The War of Worlds: Self and Society in Social Movements

This two-day international conference at UCL brings together ethnographers who have worked with activists across several continents, to explore the shape and significance of social movements today.

The conference asks how activists pursue their projects in cultural terms: by cultivating new selves they wish to be, and new imaginings of, and engagements with, the societies they inhabit. By dropping the definite article of H.G. Wells' science-fiction classic, we propose that many contemporary social movements push back against the levers of oppression not by simple adversarial or identity politics, but rather through insurgent re-significations of the worlds in which they live.

Speakers and discussants include:

• Angelique Haugerud, Rutgers University
• Patrick Huff, Brunel University
• Tamar Katriel, University of Haifa
• Stine Krøjer, University of Copenhagen
• Sian Lazar, Cambridge University
• Maple Razsa, Colby College
• Pnina Werbner, Keele University
• Jarrett Zigon, University of Amsterdam

Please e-mail vita.peacock@ucl.ac.uk if you would like to attend.

Links:

• Download the conference poster (PDF)
• Download the conference programme (PDF)