Introduction to the Special Issue, People on Streets. Critical Phenomenologies of Embodied Resistance

The last few years have seen the emergence of critical phenomenology as an exciting paradigm in phenomenology and beyond. Even if the very term, ‘critical phenomenology,’ is relatively recent, it is certainly not an entirely novel project. Critical phenomenology, as we know it today, does not have a single point of origin. It can be traced back not only to its beginnings in early twentieth century phenomenology but also to feminist phenomenology and critical phenomenology of race that were first established in the mid-twentieth century, and subsequently developed by later generations of feminist, queer, trans, critical race, and intersectional phenomenologists. Like any paradigm in-the-making, critical phenomenology has not yet reached provisional closure, such as consensus about its method. Hence, in this introduction to the special issue on People on Streets. Critical Phenomenologies of Embodied Resistance we refrain from providing a definition and instead approach critical phenomenology indirectly. To illuminate the methodological challenges involved, we unpack two foundational debates, pertaining to the key questions:“What is phenomenological about critical phenomenology?” and “What is critical about critical phenomenology?” Subsequently, we point to its relation to social and political struggles and protest before introducing the contributions to this issue.