Regionalism and Anti-Regionalism in North America: The Politics of 'Us' and 'Them'.

Most of the theory and research we have so far on mobilization and coalition-building in the political struggle over North American integration has looked at the opponents of integration, and most of that primarily in the Canadian and Mexican contexts. It is often assumed that opponents of regional integration employ different kinds of rhetorical strategies, because they have different kinds of mobilization and coalition-building challenges. There are of course important differences in the way proponents and opponents 'frame' the issues; but there are also some underlying similarities. Even the most 'clinical' expository arguments in favour of regional integration will also include--or at least imply--basic narrative elements similar to those built into the arguments made by their anti-integration opponents: identification of 'us' and 'them,' equivalency between the individual and the community, and an emphasis on risk or loss-avoidance. This paper, as a preliminary step in a larger project, develops the theoretical framework for thinking about narratives and regional integration debates, outlines the broader research strategy, and offers some supporting illustrations based on analysis of the rhetorical strategies built into three recent works by a prominent integration advocate. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]