Performing Power

When the bronze statue of Edward Colston was thrown into the Bristol harbour, what was it about this spectacle that made it more effective than countless petitions to have the slaver’s icon removed? What animated Trump’s supporters to answer his rhetorical question ‘who’s going to pay for the wall?’ during his 2016 presidential campaign? Why do leaders of social movements, or those seeking public office, bother to appear in front of audiences when they could just as well spell out their pos...