Minor Cosmopolitan Weekend
From 6-8 December 2018, the RTG Minor Cosmopolitanisms presented the conference 'Minor Cosmopolitan Weekend'at Haus der Kulturen der Welt.
Around the turn of the millennium, academics and politicians predicted that the world would grow together as one and that people would become less bound by national affiliations. Almost twenty years later, there was little left of this vision. This is not such a surprise when we consider that the cosmopolitan ideal (as articulated during the European Enlightenment) wholeheartedly embraced the promises of a globalising economy, yet has remained oblivious to, and even complicit with, capitalist exploitation, slavery, and colonialism. Yet should we abandon the cosmopolitan idea because of this corrupt history? Or should it rather be reviewed and rethought in the face of rising nationalism? What are alternative traditions and practices of the cosmopolitan from across the globe?
In lectures, films, and performances, Arjun Appadurai, Manthia Diawara, Julian Henriques, Vivian Price, Michelle Wright, and other participants explored these questions and experimented with ideas and practices of doing, undoing and redoing the cosmopolitan.
This event was curated by Zairong Xiang, with support Lina Fricke, Monica Gutierrez, Joanna Louise Mackenthun, Farai von Pentz, Amina Balajo, Lars Eckstein, Dirk Wiemann, Anja Schwarz, Nicole Waller, Regina Römhild, Marie-Christin Hoffmann, Gracija Atanasovska, Francisco Bugmann Neto, Imge Turan, Joshua Pawli and all members of the RTG Minor Cosmospolitanisms. The event was organised by the RTG Minor Cosmopolitanisms with funding from the DFG and the Zentrum für Gender und Diversitätsforschung Tübigen Universität and in cooperation with the Haus der Kulturen der Welt. We'd like to thank in particular Olga Sievers, Stefan Aue, Gero Bauer, and Ingrid Hotz-Davies.
Link to the Main Event page
