Cihan Tugal
@cihantugal.bsky.social
Professor of Sociology at UC Berkeley
Working on a book on right-wing populism
https://sociology.berkeley.edu/faculty/cihan-tugal
Working on a book on right-wing populism
https://sociology.berkeley.edu/faculty/cihan-tugal
Pinned
Populism Studies: The Case for Theoretical and Comparative Reconstruction
Studies of populism have shifted from substantive to discursive/performative and institutional perspectives in recent decades. This shift resolved some long-standing problems but insulated the analysi...
www.annualreviews.org
The theory of populism needs to be reconstructed by attention to some of the cases neglected in generalizing debates: India, Turkey, South Africa, China, and Iran. I point out in this article that the dominant theories of populism are based on the West 1/
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
My essay on Syria, Islamism, and capitalist geopolitics has been translated to Indonesian.
indoprogress.com/2025/12/evol...
indoprogress.com/2025/12/evol...
December 9, 2025 at 12:56 AM
My essay on Syria, Islamism, and capitalist geopolitics has been translated to Indonesian.
indoprogress.com/2025/12/evol...
indoprogress.com/2025/12/evol...
Reposted by Cihan Tugal
Küresel cihatçıların küresel kapitalizmle ilişkisi (Video) - Medyascope medyascope.tv/2025/12/07/p...
@cihantugal.bsky.social
@cihantugal.bsky.social
Prof. Cihan Tuğal ile söyleşi: Küresel cihatçıların küresel kapitalizmle ilişkisi - Medyascope
Prof. Dr. Cihan Tuğal, küresel cihatçılığın hem toplumsal krizler hem de kapitalizmin gerileyişi içinde dönüştüğünü söyledi.
medyascope.tv
December 7, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Küresel cihatçıların küresel kapitalizmle ilişkisi (Video) - Medyascope medyascope.tv/2025/12/07/p...
@cihantugal.bsky.social
@cihantugal.bsky.social
Reposted by Cihan Tugal
ICYMI: @cihantugal.bsky.social 's analysis on the movement dynamics of HTS and Syria's current political conjunction is still live on our website.
December 5, 2025 at 9:50 PM
ICYMI: @cihantugal.bsky.social 's analysis on the movement dynamics of HTS and Syria's current political conjunction is still live on our website.
Reposted by Cihan Tugal
Check out this new article by CRWS faculty affiliate @cihantugal.bsky.social, "The Evolution of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria’s Future: The Interplay between Islamism and Capitalist Geopolitics."
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
@cihantugal.bsky.social writing on the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics shaping Syria's future.
@cihantugal.bsky.social writing on the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics shaping Syria's future.
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Check out this new article by CRWS faculty affiliate @cihantugal.bsky.social, "The Evolution of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria’s Future: The Interplay between Islamism and Capitalist Geopolitics."
"Fourteen years ago, Syrians rose up with democratic demands. Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the West sought to hijack these demands for capital accumulation and empire-making. But a major unexpected winner of this process might instead, or along with these actors, be a new kind of Islamism."
My analysis of Syria’s ongoing transformation, based on sources in Turkish, Arabic, English.🧵
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
December 4, 2025 at 1:39 AM
"Fourteen years ago, Syrians rose up with democratic demands. Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the West sought to hijack these demands for capital accumulation and empire-making. But a major unexpected winner of this process might instead, or along with these actors, be a new kind of Islamism."
Reposted by Cihan Tugal
November is in the books!
Thanks to Keith Rosenthal, Ralf Ruckus, @yige-dong.bsky.social , John Mullen, and @cihantugal.bsky.social for letting us put your work on the web.
And thanks to all the contributors to our twelfth issue!
Links in thread 👇🏽 🧵
Thanks to Keith Rosenthal, Ralf Ruckus, @yige-dong.bsky.social , John Mullen, and @cihantugal.bsky.social for letting us put your work on the web.
And thanks to all the contributors to our twelfth issue!
Links in thread 👇🏽 🧵
December 1, 2025 at 4:49 PM
November is in the books!
Thanks to Keith Rosenthal, Ralf Ruckus, @yige-dong.bsky.social , John Mullen, and @cihantugal.bsky.social for letting us put your work on the web.
And thanks to all the contributors to our twelfth issue!
Links in thread 👇🏽 🧵
Thanks to Keith Rosenthal, Ralf Ruckus, @yige-dong.bsky.social , John Mullen, and @cihantugal.bsky.social for letting us put your work on the web.
And thanks to all the contributors to our twelfth issue!
Links in thread 👇🏽 🧵
The HTS regime in Damascus is the culmination of a long process of theo-political maturation and salafism’s integration into world capitalism. Violently militant forms of salafism constitute a relatively recent development in Islamic theology. They first crystallized through a differentiation
1/4
1/4
My analysis of Syria’s ongoing transformation, based on sources in Turkish, Arabic, English.🧵
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
November 29, 2025 at 1:11 AM
The HTS regime in Damascus is the culmination of a long process of theo-political maturation and salafism’s integration into world capitalism. Violently militant forms of salafism constitute a relatively recent development in Islamic theology. They first crystallized through a differentiation
1/4
1/4
The point is not that "al-Jolani has not changed," but that those changes are mostly in line with the interests of world capitalism rather than Syrians' democratic struggles. Moreover, there are strong signs that he retains important elements of his original mission. +
My analysis of Syria’s ongoing transformation, based on sources in Turkish, Arabic, English.🧵
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:59 AM
The point is not that "al-Jolani has not changed," but that those changes are mostly in line with the interests of world capitalism rather than Syrians' democratic struggles. Moreover, there are strong signs that he retains important elements of his original mission. +
My analysis of Syria’s ongoing transformation, based on sources in Turkish, Arabic, English.🧵
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:35 AM
My analysis of Syria’s ongoing transformation, based on sources in Turkish, Arabic, English.🧵
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
1) After the defeat of the democratic revolution, the transformation has been guided by capitalist geopolitics and the remaking of the global field of Islamism.
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
It was great to work with Spectre again!
spectrejournal.com/the-evolutio...
@cihantugal.bsky.social writing on the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics shaping Syria's future.
@cihantugal.bsky.social writing on the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics shaping Syria's future.
The Evolution of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's Future – Spectre Journal
Cihan Tuğal looks at the interplay between HTS's movement dynamics and capitalist geopolitics to analyze the prospects for Syria's future.
spectrejournal.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:36 PM
It was great to work with Spectre again!
The theory of populism needs to be reconstructed by attention to some of the cases neglected in generalizing debates: India, Turkey, South Africa, China, and Iran. I point out in this article that the dominant theories of populism are based on the West 1/
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Populism Studies: The Case for Theoretical and Comparative Reconstruction
Studies of populism have shifted from substantive to discursive/performative and institutional perspectives in recent decades. This shift resolved some long-standing problems but insulated the analysi...
www.annualreviews.org
November 23, 2025 at 1:49 AM
The theory of populism needs to be reconstructed by attention to some of the cases neglected in generalizing debates: India, Turkey, South Africa, China, and Iran. I point out in this article that the dominant theories of populism are based on the West 1/
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
www.annualreviews.org/content/jour...
Reposted by Cihan Tugal
We won. Every union representing workers at the University of California sued the Trump administration in September. Today, judge Rita Lin issued a preliminary injunction barring Trump’s attempts to extort political leverage from public higher education. democracyforward.org/updates/cour...
Court Blocks Trump’s Attempt to Gain Leverage and Political Control Over University of California System - Democracy Forward
democracyforward.org
November 15, 2025 at 2:05 AM
We won. Every union representing workers at the University of California sued the Trump administration in September. Today, judge Rita Lin issued a preliminary injunction barring Trump’s attempts to extort political leverage from public higher education. democracyforward.org/updates/cour...
Observations from the @dsaeastbay.bsky.social general meeting today:
The organizers opened the event by stating that electing socialists to office is only the beginning. The power holders will fight every socialist-hued policy they attempt. The people will need to mobilize to counterbalance those 1/
The organizers opened the event by stating that electing socialists to office is only the beginning. The power holders will fight every socialist-hued policy they attempt. The people will need to mobilize to counterbalance those 1/
November 17, 2025 at 1:41 AM
Observations from the @dsaeastbay.bsky.social general meeting today:
The organizers opened the event by stating that electing socialists to office is only the beginning. The power holders will fight every socialist-hued policy they attempt. The people will need to mobilize to counterbalance those 1/
The organizers opened the event by stating that electing socialists to office is only the beginning. The power holders will fight every socialist-hued policy they attempt. The people will need to mobilize to counterbalance those 1/
DSA meetings in the coming weeks will be essential to building a mass movement across the nation. We have Zohran's energy and the @socialists.nyc victory filling our sails. This is the moment to participate in @demsocialists.bsky.social meetings wherever you are. Check your local chapter's calendar!
DSA member Zohran Mamdani won BIG: 100K volunteers, 1M votes, 3M doors knocked. How did NYC DSA build the engine that made this possible? Learn how we can build that engine from local DSA members during our fireside chat at this month's General Meeting on November 16th
RSVP at tr.ee/i9q5pc tp join
RSVP at tr.ee/i9q5pc tp join
November 15, 2025 at 5:44 PM
DSA meetings in the coming weeks will be essential to building a mass movement across the nation. We have Zohran's energy and the @socialists.nyc victory filling our sails. This is the moment to participate in @demsocialists.bsky.social meetings wherever you are. Check your local chapter's calendar!
Marxism tends to dismiss generosity—and charity even more so.
In this article, I show that a reconstructed Marxism is necessary for a proper understanding of religious generosity:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
The article is an offshoot of the book below.
In this article, I show that a reconstructed Marxism is necessary for a proper understanding of religious generosity:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
The article is an offshoot of the book below.
November 14, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Marxism tends to dismiss generosity—and charity even more so.
In this article, I show that a reconstructed Marxism is necessary for a proper understanding of religious generosity:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
The article is an offshoot of the book below.
In this article, I show that a reconstructed Marxism is necessary for a proper understanding of religious generosity:
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
The article is an offshoot of the book below.
I presented my in-progress book manuscript on right-wing regimes at the University of Chicago's sociology department. The room was packed! I got excellent questions, and thinking about them will make the book better.
I got to meet several brilliant graduate students, and caught up with
+
I got to meet several brilliant graduate students, and caught up with
+
November 11, 2025 at 4:55 PM
I presented my in-progress book manuscript on right-wing regimes at the University of Chicago's sociology department. The room was packed! I got excellent questions, and thinking about them will make the book better.
I got to meet several brilliant graduate students, and caught up with
+
I got to meet several brilliant graduate students, and caught up with
+
Is Bourdieu incompatible with Marxism? No. Analytical demonstration:
My book on religious generosity. Field analysis with a world-historical market-making and market-contestation angle.
www.routledge.com/Caring-for-t...
My book on religious generosity. Field analysis with a world-historical market-making and market-contestation angle.
www.routledge.com/Caring-for-t...
Caring for the Poor: Islamic and Christian Benevolence in a Liberal World
Based on several years of fieldwork in Egypt and Turkey, Caring for the Poor tells the stories of charity providers and volunteers. The book also places their stories within the overall development of...
www.routledge.com
November 9, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Is Bourdieu incompatible with Marxism? No. Analytical demonstration:
My book on religious generosity. Field analysis with a world-historical market-making and market-contestation angle.
www.routledge.com/Caring-for-t...
My book on religious generosity. Field analysis with a world-historical market-making and market-contestation angle.
www.routledge.com/Caring-for-t...
Mamdani’s victory against Cuomo-Trump shows:
Socialism is the only thing that can defeat the marriage of authoritarianism and corruption.
Mamdani didn’t win alone. At least 50K @demsocialists.bsky.social-organized volunteers helped him win. So did unions and other movement organizations.
1/
Socialism is the only thing that can defeat the marriage of authoritarianism and corruption.
Mamdani didn’t win alone. At least 50K @demsocialists.bsky.social-organized volunteers helped him win. So did unions and other movement organizations.
1/
November 8, 2025 at 5:31 PM
Mamdani’s victory against Cuomo-Trump shows:
Socialism is the only thing that can defeat the marriage of authoritarianism and corruption.
Mamdani didn’t win alone. At least 50K @demsocialists.bsky.social-organized volunteers helped him win. So did unions and other movement organizations.
1/
Socialism is the only thing that can defeat the marriage of authoritarianism and corruption.
Mamdani didn’t win alone. At least 50K @demsocialists.bsky.social-organized volunteers helped him win. So did unions and other movement organizations.
1/
What is at the root of the historic violence of the last two years in the Middle East? In a recent panel on the Global Turn to the Right, I argued that an integrative analysis of 1) movement dynamics, 2) accumulation regimes, and 3) each nation’s place in inter-imperialist rivalry gives us
New recording 🎥
If you've missed the talk, watch now at: asatheory.com
Global Political Dimensions of the Turn to the Right — exploring contemporary right-wing movements and their theoretical implications.
If you've missed the talk, watch now at: asatheory.com
Global Political Dimensions of the Turn to the Right — exploring contemporary right-wing movements and their theoretical implications.
My sociological explanation of the recent surge of violence against Palestinians, Alawites, and the Druze ... coming up as a part of this panel:
October 29, 2025 at 4:34 PM
What is at the root of the historic violence of the last two years in the Middle East? In a recent panel on the Global Turn to the Right, I argued that an integrative analysis of 1) movement dynamics, 2) accumulation regimes, and 3) each nation’s place in inter-imperialist rivalry gives us
The rich are selling out to Trump one by one. It would be very idiotic for the resistance to count on them. Here's a recent piece from the Times, deifying Bill Gates. They might regret this today. But they will soon tell us to rally behind yet another rich hero. Don't fall for it.
October 28, 2025 at 11:59 PM
The rich are selling out to Trump one by one. It would be very idiotic for the resistance to count on them. Here's a recent piece from the Times, deifying Bill Gates. They might regret this today. But they will soon tell us to rally behind yet another rich hero. Don't fall for it.
7 million marched on Saturday to protest authoritarianism!
We participated with the Civil Rights era anthem “We Shall Overcome” and (what in the US has become) the Latinx-Hispanic anthem “El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido.” +
We participated with the Civil Rights era anthem “We Shall Overcome” and (what in the US has become) the Latinx-Hispanic anthem “El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido.” +
October 21, 2025 at 12:38 AM
7 million marched on Saturday to protest authoritarianism!
We participated with the Civil Rights era anthem “We Shall Overcome” and (what in the US has become) the Latinx-Hispanic anthem “El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido.” +
We participated with the Civil Rights era anthem “We Shall Overcome” and (what in the US has become) the Latinx-Hispanic anthem “El Pueblo Unido Jamás Será Vencido.” +
Nancy Chodorow, the great feminist sociologist, passed.
Her first book is a must-read for not only social scientists but for everyone.
If you are a parent, or ever intend to be one, or if you simply want to be a better person and keep wondering what’s preventing you, make sure to read this classic.
Her first book is a must-read for not only social scientists but for everyone.
If you are a parent, or ever intend to be one, or if you simply want to be a better person and keep wondering what’s preventing you, make sure to read this classic.
October 19, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Nancy Chodorow, the great feminist sociologist, passed.
Her first book is a must-read for not only social scientists but for everyone.
If you are a parent, or ever intend to be one, or if you simply want to be a better person and keep wondering what’s preventing you, make sure to read this classic.
Her first book is a must-read for not only social scientists but for everyone.
If you are a parent, or ever intend to be one, or if you simply want to be a better person and keep wondering what’s preventing you, make sure to read this classic.
This panel on the global turn to the Right starts in 30 minutes.
I am presenting on the violence of the last few years in Syria and Israel/Palestine.
I am presenting on the violence of the last few years in Syria and Israel/Palestine.
October 17, 2025 at 6:38 PM
This panel on the global turn to the Right starts in 30 minutes.
I am presenting on the violence of the last few years in Syria and Israel/Palestine.
I am presenting on the violence of the last few years in Syria and Israel/Palestine.
I was invited to deliver the keynote speech for a three-day conference on Michael Burawoy.
Another verse of a long goodbye to my dearest colleague, friend, and comrade…
Thanks to Portuguese sociologists for organizing this conference.
Details of the conference 🧵
Another verse of a long goodbye to my dearest colleague, friend, and comrade…
Thanks to Portuguese sociologists for organizing this conference.
Details of the conference 🧵
October 9, 2025 at 6:39 PM
I was invited to deliver the keynote speech for a three-day conference on Michael Burawoy.
Another verse of a long goodbye to my dearest colleague, friend, and comrade…
Thanks to Portuguese sociologists for organizing this conference.
Details of the conference 🧵
Another verse of a long goodbye to my dearest colleague, friend, and comrade…
Thanks to Portuguese sociologists for organizing this conference.
Details of the conference 🧵
University of California professors, students, staff, and workers are resisting higher education's increasing complicity with the Trump administration.
A damage to one is damage to all.
We will not leave our colleagues, students, and coworkers alone.
cucfa.solidarity.tech/academic-fre...
A damage to one is damage to all.
We will not leave our colleagues, students, and coworkers alone.
cucfa.solidarity.tech/academic-fre...
Academic Freedom and the Release of Names - Council of UC Faculty Associations
cucfa.solidarity.tech
October 6, 2025 at 8:26 PM
University of California professors, students, staff, and workers are resisting higher education's increasing complicity with the Trump administration.
A damage to one is damage to all.
We will not leave our colleagues, students, and coworkers alone.
cucfa.solidarity.tech/academic-fre...
A damage to one is damage to all.
We will not leave our colleagues, students, and coworkers alone.
cucfa.solidarity.tech/academic-fre...