Disciplining Dissent: NGOs and Community Organizations

In the context of neo-liberal globalization, we argue that many local community organizations and international development and advocacy NGOs share certain characteristics that impact struggles for justice, North and South. These include professionalization, collaboration with, and recognition and support from the state and/or international institutions, and a detachment from more critical forms of resistance. Drawing from experience and analysis of the Quebec community sector and involvement of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in 'global justice' movements, we suggest that this exclusion and reshaping of political space presents new challenges for people's movements. We examine: (a) the development and professionalization of community organizations and NGOs; (b) the role of knowledge in consolidating professional power; and (c) challenges to these hegemonic trends from within activist organizing milieux.