PERFORMANCE-AS-RESISTANCE AND RESISTANCE-AS-PERFORMANCE IN THE NO MUOS MOVEMENT IN SICILY

Abstract

One of the US-owned Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) installations was projected and built in Sicily, near Niscemi. Since 2012, NO MUOS activists have excogitated various forms of protest that are reminiscent of artistic performances and identitarian rituals. Additionally, a number of creators/performers across different art forms have supported the movement by referring to the NO MUOS resistance in their work. This article seeks to explore the connection between protest and performance in the symbolic practices staged within and outside the picket line. I argue that these protests/ performances possess an identitarian content that points to the reclamation of Sicily’s sovereignty against the hysteric militarisation of an imaginary North/South border in the Mediterranean.

Keywords

• muos
• silicy
• sovereignty
• resistance
• performance