Introduction

This book treats collective action as terrain for thinking critically about solidarity. More particularly, it is about the extent to which collective action can furnish the basis for the defence of progressive expressions of solidarity. This begs the question of whether such a defence is necessary given that most initiatives seeking solidarity often claim to be progressive. The view of this book is that collective action can form terrain for imagining progressive forms of solidarity if it dares to question the centrality of state sovereignty to an understanding of solidarity. The de-centring of state sovereignty to an understanding of collective action opens horizons that aid imaginations of solidarity that transcend the primacy modern thought gives to the understanding of co-existence. In short, the questioning of state sovereignty to an understanding of collective action takes the understanding of solidarity and co-existence beyond the binary of sovereignty and the understanding of solidarity that such sovereignty presupposes. Opening space for progressive imaginations of solidarity demands critical engagement with state sovereignty.