Global History, Latin American Anarchists, and Imperialist Threats in the Post-Great War World
SPEAKER: Kirwin Shaffer, NIAS Fellow and Pennsylvania State University
DISCUSSANT: soon available
DATE: 14 February 2025
TIME: 15:30
ACTIVITY: CEDLA LECTURE
VENUE: Vox-Pop, Binnengasthuisstraat 9, Amsterdam
How did Latin American anarchists interpret and portray world events a hundred years ago? In the years following the Great War (later known as World War I), these anarchists critically analyzed the Treaty of Versailles and the creation of the League of Nations. They condemned the Treaty’s armistice for solely punishing the Central Powers' aggression while rewarding the Allies, who were neither forced to disarm nor to decolonize. Additionally, they opposed Latin American governments’ pursuit of representation in the League, criticized Socialists and Social Democrats for collaborating with nationalists and capitalists within it, and denounced the League’s International Labor Organization as a feckless capitalist instrument. Yet, anarchists also feared U.S. proposals to establish a rival League for the Americas to advance U.S. neocolonial policies in the hemisphere. In this lecture on a dynamic period in global history (1918–1922), Kirwin Shaffer will discuss how Latin American anarchists conveyed their interpretations of world events to their readers and followers. Analyzing global history from the ""periphery"" (Latin America) and ""bottom-up"" (working-class anarchists) challenges mainstream narratives and provides new insights into the impacts of imperialism on marginalized voices around the world.
Climate change and the politics of free expression: an interdisciplinary workshop
DATE: 14 February 2025
ACTIVITY: ACADEMIC WORKSHOP
VENUE: Humanities Lab, Bushuis/SPUI25
TIME: 10:00 - 19:00
Climate breakdown is feeding into turbulent political times around the world. Environmental defenders are increasingly subjected to violence and demonization at the hands of states and corporate actors. This includes being castigated as 'extremists' and 'eco-terrorists' as well as police and carceral violence, repressive anti-protest laws and other restrictions on freedom of expression (including enrolment in 'preventing and countering violent extremism' (P/CVE) policies and restrictions on the defences activists can use in the courtroom). In this context, this workshop explores the politics of free expression in the context of climate activism. Drawing on themes the NWO ‘Climate Extremes’ research project and organized by the ARTES Sustainability and Disruption cluster, the event features an:
ACADEMIC WORKSHOP (at Humanities Lab, Bushuis)
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10.00-11.00 – Welcome and introduction
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11.00-12.30 – Panel 1 on authoritarian practices and climate activism, including Layla Aitlhadj (Prevent Watch), Sadi Shanaah (University of Warwick) and Julienne Weegels (CEDLA-UvA) as discussant
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13.30-15.00 – After lunch, Panel 2 on responses by climate movements, including Gabriel Mantelli (University of São Paulo), Melanie Jean Murcott (University of Cape Town), Harriët Bergman (University of Antwerp) and Marta Morvillo (UvA) as discussant
PUBLIC EVENT (at SPUI25)
A public event hosted by SPUI25 (17.00-18.30), featuring a lecture by British human rights lawyer Shami Chakrabarti and moderated by Professor Josephine Hoegaerts (UvA).
For more information, including on how to register for the event, please contact Andrew Telford at a.j.telford@uva.nl
Climate change and the politics of free expression
SPEAKER: Shami Chakrabarti, British human rights lawyer and current member of the House of Lords
DISCUSSANT: Professor Josephine Hoegaerts, UvA
DATE: 14 February 2025
ACTIVITY: PUBLIC EVENT/ LECTURE
VENUE: SPUI25
TIME: 17.00-18.30
For more information, including on how to register for the event, please contact Andrew Telford at a.j.telford@uva.nl
Transatlántidas. La tercera raíz africana
DATE: Del 12 de enero al 30 de marzo
LUGAR: Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam OBA (Amsterdam) - OBA Theater. Oosterdokskade 143, 1011 DL Amsterdam
ENTRADAS: 7.50 / 3.50 / 3 euros
ORGANIZADORES: Instituto Cervantes de Utrecht, OBA y FCAT
COLABORADORES: CEDLA
«Transatlántidas», el título de este ciclo, surge de un juego de palabras entre el adjetivo transatlántico y el lugar mítico de la Atlántida. El cruce entre ambas ideas evoca la imagen de la isla como espacio físico real, que está representada en el ciclo en historias ubicadas en la República Dominicana o Cuba, pero también de la isla como realidad metafórica, que simboliza a los afrodescendientes en América Latina, aislados en su propio entorno, una realidad que, como la Atlántida, parece un mito, pero refleja su situación en la sociedad.
La presencia de cine latinoamericano es una constante dentro de la programación del Festival de Cine Africano de Tarifa, con el que el Instituto Cervantes colabora de nuevo para presentar la tercera raíz de Latinoamérica, la del legado geográfico y cultural de la raza africana.
Cada película será presentada por un especialista en el tema.
LAS PELÍCULAS DEL CICLO
Breve miragem de sol (Un breve espejismo de sol)
12/01/2025 de las 14:00 hasta las 16:00
23/02/2025 de las 14:00 hasta las 16:00
La arrancada
9/03/2025 de las 14:00 hasta las 16:00
Vals de Santo Domingo
30/03/2025 de las 14:00 hasta las 16:00
PARTICIPANTES
Kees Koonings, profesor CEDLA-UvA
Luisa González Valencia, estudiante de doctorado CEDLA-UvA
Nanne Timmer, poeta, profesora Leiden University
Diego Galdo González, conferenciante CEDLA-UvA
Entidades organizadoras: Instituto Cervantes (Utrecht), Festival de Cine Africano de Tarifa (FCAT), Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam OBA
Entidades colaboradoras: CEDLA
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Navigating borders and boundaries: migrant perspectives on settling in and moving on
SPEAKERS: Christien Klaufus, CEDLA - UvA
DISCUSSANT: soon available
DATE: 7 March 2025
TIME: 15:30
ACTIVITY: CEDLA LECTURE
VENUE: Vox-Pop, Binnengasthuisstraat 9, Amsterdam
In cases of heightened immigration to consolidating informal settlements, various dynamics come into play. On the one hand, traditions of mutual aid may foster a receptive attitude toward newcomers, as residents understand firsthand the challenges of starting a new life from scratch. On the other hand, given their own struggles to establish infrastructure and secure livelihoods, the host community may view newcomers as competitors seeking to benefit from their hard-earned gains. For immigrants, adjusting to a new community often involves navigating unfamiliar norms and facing prejudice or discrimination. As such, their strategies to “salir adelante” (move forward) tend to be shaped by mixed opportunities and setbacks. From an analytical standpoint, periods of significant transnational migration intensify a variety of visible and invisible borders and boundaries. This lecture examines how urban borderscapes structure both neighborhood space and the social fabric, focusing on informal settlements that exhibit enclave-like characteristics. Drawing on new research in Medellín, Colombia and San José, Costa Rica within a NWO-funded project, the lecture explores these boundaries and potential spaces for convergence, offering preliminary findings that illuminate how migrants respond to these challenges. See www.cedla.nl/urban-project for more information on the project ‘Contesting Urban Bordescapes in Latin America: Investigating governance through b/ordering processes in self-help neighbourhoods’.
From Coke to Cops: Colombia’s Journey from Internal Conflict to Regional Security Exporter
SPEAKERS: Markus-Michael Müller, Roskilde University
Markus Hochmüller, Freie Universität Berlin & University of Oxford
DISCUSSANT: soon available
DATE: 11 April 2025
TIME: 15:30
ACTIVITY: CEDLA LECTURE
VENUE: Vox-Pop, Binnengasthuisstraat 9, Amsterdam
This talk examines Colombia’s transformation into a regional security exporter under the United States-Colombia Action Plan on Regional Security (USCAP). Signed in 2012 by Presidents Barack Obama and Juan Manuel Santos in Cartagena, USCAP aimed to strengthen Latin America’s security forces by positioning Colombia—a country long perceived as fragile and a source of regional instability—as a model of a professional and adaptable security provider. Over the past decade, the Colombian Armed Forces and National Police have trained tens of thousands of security personnel across the region, shaping a new narrative of Colombia’s role in regional security.
Drawing on original research, including over 70 interviews with policymakers, military and police officers, diplomats, and security advisors, the presentation explores how Colombia’s security assistance—focused on counter-narcotics, counterinsurgency, and migration control—prioritizes stability, pacification, and national security, often at the expense of citizen safety.