Pedro Salguero González
pedrosal@ucm.es
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Juan Antonio Roa Domínguez
juan.roadominguez@uca.es
Universidad de Cádiz, España
Abstract:
This article analyzes professional activism in Spain through ethnographic research based on participant observation, interviews, and discourse analysis. Against the backdrop of the 15M and under neoliberal hegemony, this article examines how different professionals redefine their work-related identities and practices to fight systemic inequalities, striving for a deep moral sense beyond mere functionality. This study reveals an identity crisis in traditional trades, promoted by a precarious socioeconomic reality where labor becomes detrimental for personal and collective integrity. In response, there is a surge of new specialized jobs linked to social movements aiming at reconciling labor practice and social transformation. This research work critically links these professionals’ emancipating paths and the rationales of an adverse labor market, as evidenced in the tug of war between economic survival and political commitment.
Keywords: 15M, social movements, professional activism, professionalism, labor, neoliberalism.
