Proposal Description: The July Revolution of 2024 in Bangladesh marked a turning point in the nation’s political landscape, culminating in the end of Sheikh Hasina’s fifteen-year fascist and authoritarian rule. Sparked by student protests against the reinstatement of a 30% quota for the descendants of 1971 Liberation War veterans, the movement swiftly evolved into a nationwide call for democratic reform, exposing long- standing grievances about governance, civil liberties, and national identity. This panel seeks to analyze the July Revolution through a multidisciplinary lens, focusing on rhetoric, sonic subversions, performativity, and the strategic use of historical discourse to understand how the movement reshaped political narratives and reclaimed the streets as a site of contestation.

The session will explore how language, sound, and performative identity played pivotal roles in the revolution. Protesters and activists co-opted and subverted state-sanctioned narratives, employing slogans, hip-hop, and digital rhetoric to redefine key terms like “Razakar,” a historically charged label for war collaborators, to critique authoritarian fascism. Through discourse analysis, performativity theory, and political linguistics, this panel will investigate how such rhetorical strategies both galvanized resistance and strategically positioned the movement within national and international discourses.

Rationale for the Session: Scholarship on social movements and revolutions frequently interrogates the interplay of rhetoric, performance, and political identity, as seen in studies of the Arab Spring, Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests, and the “Black Lives Matter” movement. However, the July Revolution of 2024 remains an understudied but critical event in the South Asian political discourse, offering insights into the evolving nature of resistance in postcolonial states. This session contributes to existing scholarship by situating the July Revolution within global conversations on nationalism, state power, and citizen-led movements. It highlights the innovative ways in which resistance movements appropriate historical symbols and digital platforms to construct counter-narratives against entrenched state power.

Individual Presentations:

1. “Tumi ke, āmi ke, Rāzākār, Rāzākār”: The July Revolution and its Sonic Subversions (by Sushrita Acharjee): This presentation examines how the July Revolution subverted state narratives through slogans and music, particularly Bangladeshi hip-hop and rap. By analyzing protest slogans like “Tumi ke, āmi ke, Rāzākār, Rāzākār” and Anik Sahan’s rap anthem “Rāzākār,” the paper explores how sonic practices challenged the government’s monopolization of nationalist rhetoric. Drawing on Judith Butler’s concept of “performative contradiction,” this paper argues that the street became a dynamic site and an archive of sonic insurgency, where marginalized voices reclaimed political discourse and enacted freedom.
   
   
2. Staging Resistance: Rhetoric, Performativity, and the July Movement in Bangladesh (by Suman Dey): This presentation delves into the strategic rhetoric and performativity within the July Revolution. Protesters consciously manipulated historical references, gender roles, and digital aesthetics to construct an inclusive and pluralist identity. The paper interrogates how leading activists used performative shifts—such as altering personal appearance and promoting gender inclusivity—to craft a palatable image for both domestic and international audiences. Through rhetorical analysis, the study reveals how resistance movements balance authenticity with calculated image-making to sustain momentum.
   
   
3. Enemies of the State: ‘Rāzākār’ in Bangladesh vs. ‘Terrorist’ in the U.S. (by Hossain Md. Arafat): This paper offers a comparative analysis of political labeling, exploring how the Bangladeshi government and opposition forces wielded the term “Rāzākār” to delegitimize dissent, much like how “terrorist” has been deployed in the U.S. to justify state control. Using Michel Foucault’s discourse analysis and Edward Said’s Orientalism, the paper demonstrates that such labels serve as tools of state power but can also be reclaimed by opposition forces to challenge hegemony. This study contextualizes the July Revolution within broader global trends of state-led rhetoric and counter-discursive strategies.
   
   

Conclusion: This special session will provide a nuanced understanding of the Bangladesh July Revolution (2024) by examining its rhetorical, performative, and linguistic dimensions. By bringing together scholars specializing in political discourse, performativity, and digital activism, this panel will shed light on how resistance movements navigate historical memory and contemporary political realities to construct counter-hegemonic narratives. As Bangladesh moves into a new political era, the July Revolution offers critical insights into the future of democratic struggles in South Asia and beyond.