Neotraditional Politics and Ethno-Nationalism

April 16 @ 10:30AM CT via Zoom

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The rise of ethno-nationalisms has been a major factor in Eurasian politics since the years leading up to the Soviet collapse. As the post-Soviet periphery exploded in anticolonial and nationalist rebellion, ethno-nationalist and neotraditionalist ideas began to transform politics in Russia. Participants on this panel, part of a series of discussions sponsored by the After the End of History project at the Neubauer Collegium, will examine the causes and consequences of the rise of red-brown allied ethno-nationalisms amid the collapse, as well as their effects on regional and global politics today.

Panelists

Anindita Banerjee, Cornell University
Mark Bassin, Sodortorn University
Leah Feldman (moderator), University of Chicago
Faith Hillis (chair), University of Chicago
Serguei Oushakine, Princeton University
Anita Starosta, Pennsylvania State University
Dirk Uffelman, University of Passau

When Europe’s Communist regimes collapsed between 1989 and 1991, most observers hailed the spread of economic prosperity and liberal democracy across the continent. One commentator even predicted that the Communist collapse would bring about the “end of history,” ushering in an era of global peace and cultural convergence. It is now abundantly clear just how wrong these expectations were. This webinar series will catalyze an interdisciplinary dialogue about this period of profound transformation and work toward the creation of a new collective narrative of its meaning. Jettisoning old theories of democratic transition and cultural convergence, participants will approach this crucial period in history as an intense confrontation between models and ideas drawn from around the world. Emphasizing the importance of international exchange and circulation, they will document the emergence of a new form of regional politics that fused pernicious political and cultural ideas imported from the West, local traditions of national supremacy and xenophobia, and collective experiences of political and economic collapse. At the same time, the project will explore how these new cultural forms have been packaged and exported abroad, acquiring a visible role in EU and US politics.