Learning history from new sources has led to the "political awakening" underlying the youth-led movement's stance against "royalist nationalism", academics say.
Anti-government demonstrations have swept the country for many months, calling for the ouster of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, charter amendments, and monarchy reform.
Patrick Jory, a lecturer in Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Queensland, Australia, said student protests are infused with a radically different understanding of history to the official version taught in schools and disseminated via the mass media.
He said they often mention historical events in Thailand and abroad, including the Siamese Revolution led by Khana Ratsadon (The People's Party) in 1932, the Oct 14 uprising in 1973, the Oct 6 massacre in 1976, the massacre of red-shirt protesters in 2010, and the French and Russian revolutions.
"Learning these histories is part of the process of what is sometimes referred to as ta sawang or berk nate, which translates as 'opening your eyes' and seeing the truth from the students' point of view on the monarchy's constant interference in Thailand's politics, legal system, and public life," he said.
Dr Jory said students are learning an alternative view of history from books and posts on social media.
In the last twenty years, there has been an explosion of revisionist work that undermines Thailand's monarchy-centred history, he said.
In addition, they are reading classic international works, such as Thomas Paine's Common Sense and George Orwell's 1984.
The academics remarks were made during a Nov 24 webinar called: "#WhatsHappeningInThailand: Youths in Revolt in Thailand" hosted by the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre (SSEAC) at the University of Sydney.
Gregory Raymond, a lecturer in Southeast Asian studies at the Australian National University, said this phenomenon is a "speech act" that goes against the institution of royalist nationalism, especially the manifesto drawn up by Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul at Thammasat University in August.
"It is a different challenge to that of Pheu Thai or Thaksin Shinawatra who challenged the elite, but who kept within the dominant discourse of royalist nationalism," he said.
social media awakening
Aim Sinpeng, a politics lecturer at the University of Sydney, said social media plays an important role in democratising alternative information about history, not taught by schools and parents, and contributing to so-called political awakening.
Social media makes the movement organisation flatter, more diffused, and less hierarchically structured than before. In the past, protests were tied to political parties or well-known figureheads, she said.
"If leaders get arrested, there will always be a plentiful supply of others who are willing to step in and lead the movement or at least keep it going online and offline."
She pointed to the role of Twitter in creating political mobilisation, using the electoral success of the now-defunct Future Forward Party in 2019 as an example.
This platform has gained traction among youths because it is more detached from those of their parents.
"This is a place where it is easier for you to have fake accounts and be more invisible. You are not subject to accepting a friend's request from your auntie where you don't want to discuss your alternative view of history with them. It is a much more liberating place to follow conversations that may conflict with existing worldviews," she said.
Subverting polite language
In recent months, opponents and even some of their own supporters have censured young protesters for their aggression and rudeness.
Chavalin Svetanant, a linguistics lecturer at Macquarie University in Australia, said their use of language -- characterised by its impolite, satirical, and coded nature -- serves as a subversive weapon to challenge the status quo.
"Thai politeness centres around hierarchical relationships. To deconstruct the perceived norm of politeness is to challenge hegemonic power whether it is acceptable or not. This is part of their democratic movement," she said.