Protest Movements as a Segment of Civil Society and a Form of Direct Democracy: Global Trends and Ukrainian Experience

Modern protest movements in Ukraine and in the world are considered as a specific segment of the civil society. Within the information society, protest movements are shown to globally obtain some common defining features putting them into a form of direct democracy. Information communication means in the modern world are proved to contribute to the restoration of archaic forms of direct democracy. Transformations of relations between the civil society and the state, as well as forms and methods to spread protest movements are considered as a result of general trends taking place within the information society in a globalized world. This is noted to allow for predicting the further development of the forms of direct democracy and increasing the role of the civil society in the structures of power relations.
Keywords: protest movement, direct democracy, revolution, civil society, Maidan, Euromaidan.

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Tetiana METELIOVA