The series of biennial international conferences titled Socialism on the Bench have been organised since 2013 by Centre for Cultural and Historical Research of Socialism. Around a hundred participants per conference have been meeting to discuss their different main themes: Cultural and Historical Interpretations of Yugoslav and Post-Yugoslav Societies (2013), Socialism: Construction and Deconstruction (2015), Communists and Communist Parties: Policies, Actions, Debates (2017), Continuities and Innovations (2019). A selection of conference papers was published in the special issues of academic journals and in edited volumes within the collection CeKaPISarnica. Papers from the last conference are currently being edited for publication.
The history of antifascism dates back to 1921, when the Italian fascist terror in Istria caused a revolt of miners who proclaimed the Labin Republic (Labinska republika) and peasants who raised the Proština Rebellion (Proštinska buna) in the villages east of Pula. The centenary of these events, as well as the eighty years since the beginning of the National Liberation Struggle in occupied Yugoslavia, are the motivation behind the theme of the next Socialism on the Bench. The focus of the conference will be twofold: directed towards historical events and their later reflections, but also towards antifascism in modern society. The historical thread encompasses the reaction to Italian Fascism, German Nazism and their allies before and during World War II, until the victory of the Allies in 1945. In Yugoslavia, it includes the communist-led partisan movement and its victory over foreign and domestic fascist forces. This historical thread in the conference theme also leads us to the politics and culture of remembrance - in celebrations, commemorations, monuments, research, education and art. It is connected to the historiographical reinterpretations and the political revisionism of the 1990s and after, to discussions of the relationship between antifascism and communism, as well as to the idea of two totalitarianisms. This brings us to the second part of the conference focus, to the contemporary thematic thread. The conference wants to pay attention to antifascism in contemporary societies and the policies that shape them, the meaning of antifascism for the political left, as well as antifascist activism and actions against right-wing extremism, racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, homophobia and various violations of minority and human rights. Unfortunately, the emancipation of oppressed groups remains an issue even a hundred years after the first antifascist uprisings.
The goal of our conferences, as well as the entire mission of the Centre, remains the same: strengthening the cooperation among scholars with similar research interests, revealing thematic, methodological and theoretical similarities, get to know different interpretations, enhancing dialogue and new research.
The conference languages will be Croatian (and mutually understandable languages) and English. Participants’ presentation time is 15 minutes within several parallel sessions. Three prominent invited keynote speakers – university professors Darko Dukovski (Rijeka), Ivo Goldstein (Zagreb) and Rastko Močnik (Ljubljana) – will deliver the plenary lectures.
The conference will be held at the Juraj Dobrila University of Pula and in partnership with the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation SEE. There is no conference fee. Conference organizers will provide two dinners and two suppers and arrange a discount at the recommended hotel. Participants will have to arrange their own trip and accommodation. We will adapt to the epidemiological situation, and if necessary, the conference will be held partly or completely online, in virtual rooms. Participants who will find it difficult to travel to Pula will be able to participate online in real time.
Application deadline is April 1, 2021. Please, fill in the application form and send it to ckpis.conf@gmail.com. By April 30, applicants will be notified about the acceptance of their proposal. By June 30, the conference programme will be published.
All information is available at
https://www.unipu.hr/ckpis/en/socialism_on_the_bench/2021.
We are looking forward to your submissions!
C K P I S