The territorial constellations of social movements: socialists, nationalists and Islamists in 1970s Istanbul

This article revisits the relationship between social movements and territory. While the literature is dominated by accounts of progressive movements in conflict with authoritarian states, there has been scant attention to social movements competing with each other. Our study of 1970s Istanbul shows how socialists, nationalists and Islamists sought to expand their territories to recruit, organise and control strategic spaces in the city. Through the concept of territorial constellations, we trace how movements forged intricate ties within and across contested spaces. These constellations, we argue, were shaped by movement ideology, relationship to the state and entanglement in broader struggles.