Racism, Antisemitism, and the Radical Right
Conference, September 10-11, 2017
Yale University
The Fifth Annual Conference of the International Consortium for Research on Anti-Semitism and Racism (ICRAR)
Co-sponsored by the Yale Program for the Study of Antisemitism and the Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration at Yale University
Call for Papers
Recent political events in the United States have turned the spotlight on what for many years has been a shadowy phenomenon: the existence of openly racist, antisemitic, Islamophobic, homophobic, and misogynistic groups on the far-right wing of the American political spectrum. These groups, including those who call themselves the "alt-right," have gained momentum in recent years, as well as increased visibility. The increase in hate crimes since the Presidential election underscores how urgent it is to understand the origin of these groups and how they function.
But while the rise of the racist right in the United States took many by surprise, far-right groups have been gaining prominence around the world over the past decade. The Brexit vote in the United Kingdom; the popularity of such parties as the National Front in France, the Alternative for Germany, and the Golden Dawn in Greece; and the coming to power of far-right parties in Eastern Europe and elsewhere have attracted the world’s attention.
The goal of this conference is to map these various iterations of the current far-right, racist, and/or antisemitic ethos, to explore their ideologies and ideas, to consider the features they share in common, as well as their divergences and tensions. Some of the questions we hope to raise include: What are the origins of these various movements? Did they emerge from existing right-wing parties or do they constitute a new phenomenon? What are their links to previous racist movements (the KKK, the Nazi party, conservative and authoritarian religious and nationalist groups, etc.)? What kinds of racism and/or antisemitism do they advocate? Which groups of people do they target and why? What effect has the refugee crisis had on their development? How central is racism/antisemitism to their ideology? What purposes are served by their racism/antisemitism?
While the question of racism and antisemitism is central to the conference, we encourage speakers to address the following questions: What connections, if any, exist among groups in different national contexts? Is there a global or transnational movement and if so, what are its causes? Who are the key leaders and their supporters? How are they animated by global and local forces? What techniques do they use to mobilize support? What strategies have been mobilized against them? What are the future electoral prospects of these parties?
While speakers may address one national context in depth, we welcome papers that attempt to “map” the relations among different racist parties and across national boundaries.
The conference will take place over two days (September 10-11, 2017) at the Whitney Humanities Center at Yale University. Speakers whose papers are accepted will be responsible for covering the cost of their own transportation and lodging, although the conference hopes to be able to provide financial support for those coming from abroad, especially graduate students and early-career scholars.
Please submit an abstract of your paper (no more than 300 words) along with a one-paragraph career summary byMarch 31, 2017 to: inessa.laskova@yale.edu.
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(c) Conference conveners:
Maurice Samuels, Yale Program for the Study of Antisemitism
Stephen Pitti, Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity, and Transnational Migration, Yale University