Knowledge Production During Revolutionary Times: Reflections From, In, and On West Asia and North Africa

Roundtable Discussion | Friday October 29, 2021 | 17:00–19:30 | Hybrid (register for details)

Speakers: Nader Talebi (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin), Nafiseh Fathollahzadeh (EUME Fellow of Rosa Luxemburg Foundation / IRGAC 2021-22), Oula Ramadan (Badael), Sana Tannoury-Karam (EUME Fellow 2020-22), Walid El Houri (OpenDemocracy / EUME Fellow 2013/14), Yasmeen Daher (Febrayer), Chair & Discussant: Jeffrey G. Karam (LAU / EUME Fellow of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation / IRGAC 2021-22)

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Florestan Fernandes: Explaining Authoritarianism Beyond the Fascist Experience

One of the main challenges for understanding the concept of authoritarianism is the many different meanings it has. Already in the 1970s, Brazilian sociologist and political militant Florestan Fernandes analysed the ambiguity of the concept of authoritarianism and its use in political mainstream discourse. He assessed that if we explain authoritarianism only through the liberal lens – as being in opposition to “democracy” -, we ignore the inherent authoritarian tendencies of liberal democracy and its everyday abuse of power. Florestan proposed a different understanding instead.

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The Crisis of Brazilian Universities: higher education under Bolsonaro

The attack on science and knowledge production is known to be one of the main elements of the rise of the authoritarian right in the past decade. As one of the main global expressions of contemporary authoritarianism, Jair Bolsonaro is no exception to that. His government has been an important part of the context of difficulties for the higher education sector in Brazil, especially since research is highly dependent on public universities and funding agencies in the country. On top of that, the COVID pandemic in 2020 created difficulties for universities all around the world. If such a global crisis is expected to generate differentiated pressures across the Global North and South, the impact of authoritarian politics is surely prone to making the situation particularly delicate for universities.

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Campuses in Action: Myanmar’s Academia Resisting against the Coup

“My decision was firm since I left my university in mid of February. My aunts are now giving me pressure to go back to my professor job. After seeing atrocities and mass killing of the junta, I no longer want to be part of the system they are ruling.”

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