And the Weak Suffer What they Must?: Responses to Austerity Policy in Greece and Spain

For my International Politics and Economics honors thesis I researched movements against austerity policy in Greece and Spain. The theoretical framework for my thesis comes from economic historian and philosopher Karl... [ view full abstract ]

For my International Politics and Economics honors thesis I researched movements against austerity policy in Greece and Spain. The theoretical framework for my thesis comes from economic historian and philosopher Karl Polanyi’s seminal 1944 work, The Great Transformation: the Political and Economic Origins of Our Time. In The Great Transformation Polanyi presents the concept of a “double movement” to describe periods of economic transition towards free trade followed by reactionary movements for social protection from the market.

In order to measure if the “double movement” is present in Greece and Spain today, I conducted 70+ interviews from left-leaning Greek and Spanish citizens via an online survey. I analyzed the interview responses and read the published thoughts of political leaders in Greece and Spain to understand why the two countries have maintained austerity despite strong opposition to the policy. I have not yet made any conclusions, but my research to date suggests that Greek and Spanish governments accommodation of austerity is a result of their loyalty to the Eurozone and European Project at large. However, my research further shows that these allegiances to the EU may be changing as activists and politicians increasingly believe that they cannot accomplish their anti-austerity goals within the neoliberal structure of the Euorzone.