Social Movements & Trends, LAU-MAZ

The rules and cultural norms of an organized society may not be written in stone, but often it does take a dedicated collective effort to disrupt and revise them. Throughout history, people have come together in group campaigns to effect change in the structure or values of a society. Movements such as abolitionism, the women's rights movement, the American civil rights movement, and the gay rights movement illustrate how common citizens can influence legislative action and modify cultural norms when they unite with the shared goal of bringing about a certain social change. Societal change can also take place naturally as a result of the accumulation of many smaller changes within a society. Large-scale trends such as industrialization, modernization, and urbanization provide examples of this more passive process of change.
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Social Movements & Trends Encyclopedia Articles By Title

Laurier, Wilfrid
Wilfrid Laurier was the first French Canadian prime minister of the Dominion of Canada (1896–1911), noted especially......
Lawes, Lewis Edward
Lewis Edward Lawes was a U.S. penologist whose introduction of novel penal administrative policies helped to emphasize......
Lawrence, John Laird Mair Lawrence, 1st Baron
John Laird Mair Lawrence, 1st Baron Lawrence was a British viceroy and governor-general of India whose institution......
Lawrence, Sir Henry Montgomery
Sir Henry Montgomery Lawrence was an English soldier and administrator who helped to consolidate British rule in......
Le Duc Tho
Le Duc Tho was a Vietnamese politician who, acting as an adviser to North Vietnam, negotiated a cease-fire agreement......
Le Play, Frédéric
Frédéric Le Play was a French mining engineer and sociologist who developed techniques for systematic research......
Le Tellier, Michel
Michel Le Tellier was the secretary of state for war (1643–77) and then chancellor who created the royal army that......
Le Thanh Tong
Le Thanh Tong was the greatest ruler of the Later Le dynasty (q.v.; 1428–1788) in Vietnam. Though the early years......
Ledoux, Claude-Nicolas
Claude-Nicolas Ledoux was a French architect who developed an eclectic and visionary architecture linked with nascent......
Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew was a politician and lawyer who was prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. Widely regarded......
Lefèvre d’Étaples, Jacques
Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples was an outstanding French humanist, theologian, and translator whose scholarship stimulated......
Leo III
Leo III was a Byzantine emperor (717–741), who founded the Isaurian, or Syrian, dynasty, successfully resisted......
Leo IX, St.
St. Leo IX ; feast day April 19) was the head of the medieval Latin church (1049–54), during whose reign the papacy......
Leopold I
Leopold I was a prince of Anhalt-Dessau, Prussian field marshal and reformer and inventor of the iron ramrod; he......
Leveler
Leveler, member of a republican and democratic faction in England during the period of the Civil Wars and Commonwealth.......
Lever, William Hesketh
William Hesketh Lever was a British soap and detergent entrepreneur who built the international firm of Lever Brothers.......
Levinson, Salmon Oliver
Salmon Oliver Levinson was a lawyer who originated and publicized the “outlawry of war” movement in the United......
Levski, Vasil
Vasil Levski was a Bulgarian revolutionary leader in the struggle for liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule.......
Liberal Party
Liberal Party, a British political party that emerged in the mid-19th century as the successor to the historic......
libertarianism
libertarianism, political philosophy that takes individual liberty to be the primary political value. It may be......
Liberty, Sons of
Sons of Liberty, organization formed in the American colonies in the summer of 1765 to oppose the Stamp Act. The......
Liddell Hart, Sir Basil
Sir Basil Liddell Hart was a British military historian and strategist known for his advocacy of mechanized warfare.......
Lima, Manuel dos Santos
Manuel dos Santos Lima is an Angolan poet, dramatist, and novelist whose writing is rooted in the struggle for......
Lin Zexu
Lin Zexu was a leading Chinese scholar and official of the Qing (Manchu) dynasty, known for his role in the events......
Lindsey, Ben B.
Ben B. Lindsey was an American judge, international authority on juvenile delinquency, and reformer of legal procedures......
Linz program
Linz program, expression of German nationalist radicalism within Austria-Hungary, named after its town of origin......
list of key figures in the American civil rights movement
The American civil rights movement was a nationwide struggle for justice and equality for Black Americans during......
list of social movements
This is an alphabetically ordered list of social movements organized by country. A social movement is defined as......
List, Friedrich
Friedrich List was a German-U.S. economist who believed tariffs on imported goods would stimulate domestic development.......
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi was the chairman of the People’s Republic of China (1959–68) and chief theoretician for the Chinese......
Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice
Mary Ashton Rice Livermore was an American suffragist and reformer who believed that woman being able to vote would......
Lizzo
Lizzo is an American singer, rapper, and flutist whose messages of positivity and empowerment resonated with audiences......
Lloyd George, David
David Lloyd George was a British prime minister (1916–22) who dominated the British political scene in the latter......
lobbying
lobbying, any attempt by individuals or private interest groups to influence the decisions of government; in its......
Lofthuus, Christian Jensen
Christian Jensen Lofthuus was a leader of a reform movement who sought redress for the grievances of Norway’s peasantry......
Lohia, Ram Manohar
Ram Manohar Lohia was an Indian politician and activist who was a prominent figure in socialist politics and in......
Lomonosov, Mikhail
Mikhail Lomonosov was a Russian poet, scientist, and grammarian who is often considered the first great Russian......
Lord’s Resistance Army
Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), militant group led by Joseph Kony that has waged a war of attrition against the government......
Loubet, Émile
Émile Loubet was a statesman and the seventh president of the French Third Republic, who contributed to the break......
Louvois, François-Michel Le Tellier, marquis de
François-Michel Le Tellier, marquis de Louvois was the secretary of state for war under Louis XIV of France and......
Lovejoy, Elijah P.
Elijah P. Lovejoy was an American newspaper editor and martyred abolitionist who died in defense of his right to......
Lowell, A. Lawrence
A. Lawrence Lowell was an American lawyer and educator, president of Harvard University from 1909 to 1933, who......
Lowell, Francis Cabot
Francis Cabot Lowell was an American businessman, a member of the gifted Lowell family of Massachusetts and the......
Lowenstein, Allard K.
Allard K. Lowenstein was an American scholar, political activist, and diplomat who was known for his unceasing......
Lubecki, Ksawery Drucki
Ksawery Drucki Lubecki was a Polish statesman who restored the finances of the remnant of Poland that was constituted......
Luddite
Luddite, member of the organized bands of 19th-century English handicraftsmen who rioted for the destruction of......
Lueger, Karl
Karl Lueger was a politician, cofounder and leader of the Austrian Christian Social Party, and mayor of Vienna......
Luitpold
Luitpold was the prince regent of Bavaria from 1886 to 1912, in whose reign Bavaria prospered under a liberal government......
Lumumba, Patrice
Patrice Lumumba was an African nationalist leader, the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo......
Lundy, Benjamin
Benjamin Lundy was an American publisher and leading abolitionist in the 1820s and ’30s. Born to Quaker parents,......
Luther, Hans
Hans Luther was a German statesman who was twice chancellor (1925, 1926) of the Weimar Republic and who helped......
Lutyens, Sir Edwin
Sir Edwin Lutyens was an English architect noted for his versatility and range of invention along traditional lines.......
Lycurgus
Lycurgus was traditionally the lawgiver who founded most of the institutions of ancient Sparta. Scholars have been......
Lévesque, René
René Lévesque was the premier of the French-speaking Canadian province of Quebec (1976–85) and a leading advocate......
López Portillo, José
José López Portillo was a Mexican lawyer, economist, and writer, who was president of Mexico from 1976 to 1982.......
L’Enfant, Pierre Charles
Pierre Charles L’Enfant was a French-born American engineer, architect, and urban designer who designed the basic......
Ma Yansong
Ma Yansong is a Chinese architect whose designs reflect his “Shanshui City” concept, which calls for balancing......
Mabini, Apolinario
Apolinario Mabini was a Filipino theoretician and spokesman of the Philippine Revolution, who wrote the constitution......
Macapagal, Diosdado
Diosdado Macapagal was a reformist president of the Philippines from 1961 to 1965. After receiving his law degree,......
Machado y Morales, Gerardo
Gerardo Machado y Morales was a hero in the Cuban War of Independence (1895–98) who was later elected president......
Mackenzie, John
John Mackenzie was a British missionary who was a constant champion of the rights of Africans in Southern Africa......
Macquarie, Lachlan
Lachlan Macquarie was an early governor of New South Wales, Australia (1810–21), who expanded opportunities for......
Madikizela-Mandela, Winnie
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela was a South African social worker and activist considered by many Black South Africans......
MAGA movement
MAGA movement, nativist political movement that emerged in the United States during the 2016 presidential campaign......
Magsaysay, Ramon
Ramon Magsaysay was the president of the Philippines (1953–57), best known for successfully defeating the communist-led......
Maguire, Máiread
Máiread Maguire is a Northern Irish peace activist who, with Betty Williams and Ciaran McKeown, founded the Peace......
Mahmud II
Mahmud II was an Ottoman sultan (1808–39) whose westernizing reforms helped to consolidate the Ottoman Empire despite......
Makarios III
Makarios III was the archbishop and primate of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus. He was a leader in the struggle for......
Malachy, St
St. Malachy ; canonized 1190; feast day November 3) was a celebrated archbishop and papal legate who became a dominant......
Malcolm X
Malcolm X was an African American leader and prominent figure in the Nation of Islam who articulated concepts of......
Malesherbes, Chrétien Guillaume de Lamoignon de
Chrétien Guillaume de Lamoignon de Malesherbes was a lawyer and royal administrator who attempted, with limited......
Malik, Adam
Adam Malik was an Indonesian statesman and nationalist political leader. Malik was jailed by the Dutch in the 1930s......
Mameli, Goffredo
Goffredo Mameli was an Italian poet and patriot of the Risorgimento and author of the Italian national anthem,......
Mancini, Pasquale Stanislao
Pasquale Stanislao Mancini was a leader of the Risorgimento in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, who played a prominent......
Mandela, Nelson
Nelson Mandela was a Black nationalist and the first Black president of South Africa (1994–99). His negotiations......
Mangunkusumo, Tjipto
Tjipto Mangunkusumo was an early 20th-century Indonesian nationalist leader whose resistance to Dutch colonial......
Manin, Daniele
Daniele Manin was the leader of the Risorgimento in Venice. The son of a converted Jewish lawyer (who had taken......
Mann, Horace
Horace Mann was an American educator, the first great American advocate of public education who believed that,......
Mannix, Daniel
Daniel Mannix was a Roman Catholic prelate who became one of Australia’s most controversial political figures during......
Mansart, Jules Hardouin-
Jules Hardouin-Mansart was a French architect and city planner to King Louis XIV who completed the design of Versailles.......
March First Movement
March First Movement, series of demonstrations for Korean national independence from Japan that began on March......
March on Washington
March on Washington, political demonstration held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963, that was attended by......
Maria Theresa
Maria Theresa was the archduchess of Austria and queen of Hungary and Bohemia (1740–80), wife and empress of the......
Maritz, Salomon Gerhardus
Salomon Gerhardus Maritz was a general and rebel who was an ardent believer in the Boer nationalist cause in South......
Markievicz, Constance
Constance Markievicz was an Anglo-Irish countess and political activist who was the first woman elected to the......
Martin Luther King, Jr., 1929–68
Minister and social activist Martin Luther King, Jr., was the preeminent leader of the American civil rights movement......
Masaryk, Tomáš
Tomáš Masaryk was the chief founder and first president (1918–35) of Czechoslovakia. Masaryk’s father was a Slovak......
Matthias I
Matthias I was the king of Hungary (1458–90), who attempted to reconstruct the Hungarian state after decades of......
Mau Mau
Mau Mau, militant African nationalist movement that originated in the 1950s among the Kikuyu people of Kenya. The......
Maupeou, René-Nicolas-Charles-Augustin de
René-Nicolas-Charles-Augustin de Maupeou was the chancellor of France who succeeded in temporarily (1771–74) depriving......
Maura y Montaner, Antonio
Antonio Maura y Montaner was a statesman and five-time prime minister of Spain whose vision led him to undertake......
Maurice
Maurice was an outstanding general and emperor (582–602) who helped transform the shattered late Roman Empire into......
Mavrokordátos, Aléxandros
Aléxandros Mavrokordátos was a statesman, one of the founders and first political leaders of independent Greece.......
Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan, Sayyid
Sayyid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan was a Somali religious and nationalist leader (called the “Mad Mullah” by the British)......
Maximilian I
Maximilian I was the last Wittelsbach prince-elector of Bavaria (1799–1806) and first king of Bavaria (1806–25).......
May Fourth Movement
May Fourth Movement, intellectual revolution and sociopolitical reform movement that occurred in China in 1917–21.......
May Thirtieth Incident
May Thirtieth Incident, (1925), in China, a nationwide series of strikes and demonstrations precipitated by the......
Mayo, Mary Anne Bryant
Mary Anne Bryant Mayo was an American farm organizer, noted for her efforts toward farm-community improvement as......
Mazzini, Giuseppe
Giuseppe Mazzini was a Genoese propagandist and revolutionary, founder of the secret revolutionary society Young......

Social Movements & Trends Encyclopedia Articles By Title