Organizers:

Jonathan Wiesen (University of Alabama at Birmingham)
Angéla Kóczé (Romani Studies Program, Central European University in Vienna)
Kateřina Čapková (Institute of Contemporary History, Czech Academy of Sciences)

Today, xenophobia is once again a central feature of the transatlantic political landscape. From the United States to France to Eastern Europe, political movements centered on the rejection of "the other" (immigrants, racial and sexual minorities, and so-called "internal enemies") have attracted mass followings and entered governments that until recently were considered immune to the kind of populism that characterized the first half of the twentieth century. At this conference, participants will discuss politicized xenophobia, past and present. We hope to bring together themes that: offer comparisons and contrasts between, for example, xenophobic movements in the 1930s and today; offer new perspectives on transnational xenophobia, especially as it relates to anti-Romani, anti-Black, and anti-Jewish racism; and show continuities and similarities between the past and the present.

How, we ask, did past xenophobic movements talk to each other across the Atlantic in centuries past? How have European and American xenophobia and racism in the past influenced movements today? What was and is the role of historical memory in the politics of xenophobia? What are the benefits and risks of drawing parallels between xenophobic movements of the past and those of the present?

The two-day conference will focus on panels of 20-minute presentations with commentary and extensive discussion. Keynote addresses will be given by Angéla Kóczé (Central European University, Vienna) and Jonathan Wiesen (University of Alabama at Birmingham).