Lecture: Prof. Albert Dzur on Democratic Organization

On Thursday, 23 October, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM, American political scientist Albert Dzur will give a lecture based on a book project on democratic organization.

• Location: UvH, Kromme Nieuwegracht 29, Utrecht, zaal 1.40
• Entrance: free, registration is required (via our Dutch web page)
• Contact: Julian Veenstra, julian.veenstra@uvh.nl

Topic of the lecture:

‘Everyday (de)polarization: democracy in action’

This talk is based on a book project on Democratic Organization, which addresses contemporary distrust of institutions by examining organizations that encourage citizen agency, foster caring and nonviolent social relations, and generate reflexive knowledge about social problems. Can the work of such organizations provide any kind of cultural inoculation against reactionary extremism? Do they offer de-polarization skills and practices that can be taken up by people who do not consider themselves activists? We will discuss two cases: the Braver Angels project in the US, which focuses directly on the problem of polarization, and the European restorative city network, which works on social issues exploited by extremists, including fear of crime and immigration.

Albert W. Dzur is Distinguished Research Professor at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, USA.