The XIX ISA World Congress of Sociology (Toronto, July 15-21, 2018) will focus on how scholars, public intellectuals, policy makers, journalists and activists from diverse fields can and do contribute to our understanding of power, violence and justice. In this context, the Research Committee on Social Classes and Social Movements (RC47) participates with 21 panels
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The Umbrella Movement (or Occupy Central) is a democracy movement fighting for universal suffrage in the election of the chief executive (head of the government) in Hong Kong. China had promised giving Hong Kong democracy before the handover of Hong Kong from United Kingdom to China in 1997. In Aug. 31, 2014, however, China made
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Dear members of ISA47, The deadline for panel proposals at the next world congress of sociology is nearing. Please register your session proposals directly on the ISA website before March 15th (!!). https://isaconf.confex.com/isaconf/wc2018/rc/cfs.cgi (Then choose RC47). Proposals should be thematic open call for abstracts (and not closed sessions with invited scholars). These panel proposals will
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The recent violence at Delhi University’s Ramjas College is another example of growing threat to freedom of expression on Indian University Campuses since the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in 2014. The violence erupted after the nationalist group ABVP disrupted a seminar titled, ‘Cultures of Protest’. This incident, once again highlights the
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With an new state of emergency decree published on 7 February 2017, the Turkish government has expelled another 4,464 public workers, among them 330 academics (source). According to vocaleurope.eu, this purge turns “Turkey into an ‘intellectual desert.’” The ISA 47 Initiative against repression of academics strongly condemns the recent wave of purge and assault on
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From 26 to 28 April 2017, the ISA reseach committees 34 and 47 will be holding a conference on “Youth, Change, and Social Agency” at Bethlehem University in Bethlehem, Palestine The deadline for submitting proposals is 30 January 2017 Young people shape the futures of their society. They envision, plan, challenge practices and present new
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During the ISA Forum in Vienna, members of RC 47 decided to take on a more active role against different forms of repression posed on academics. This decision is a timely response to recent repressive developments within authoritarian regimes of the global South as well as the so called democracies of the global North. Today,
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Since the collapse of the peace process with the Kurdish Liberation Movement, the government of Turkey has declared curfews in Turkey’s Kurdish cities and villages. On 11 January 2016, 1128 academics from Turkey issued a declaration called, “we will not be a party to this crime”, with the support of more than 2000 international colleagues.
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Repression against scholars in Turkey ISA47 statement, 17.03.2016 (you can download here the pdf version) Dear colleagues, 2016 is a frightening year for freedom, peace and social sciences. As I wrote you 5 weeks ago, instead of diffusing researchers’ work and publications, the role of an ISA Research Committee on social movements has suddenly become
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Italian and Turkish translations below. Social movement scholar Giulio Regeni murdered in Cairo Geoffrey Pleyers, President of ISA47 “Social movements” 08.02.2016 (here you can download the pdf version) It is very sad news to learn the forced disappearance, torture and murder of our young colleague Giulio Regeni. He was conducting a doctoral research on
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