The conference Mobilizing Affect – Affective Mobilization explores the powerful role of affect and emotion in driving social and political mobilization. It examines the dynamics of affect in prompting (political) action, shaping activist practices, and sustaining social movements. In the context of global crises, disputes over inequalities, identities, and rights are intensifying, while affects and emotions are increasingly becoming subjects of negotiation and social conflict. At the same time, affect is not only a driving force for progressive activism but also plays a crucial role in the rise of authoritarian and right-wing movements. Featuring contributions from academics, activists, and artists, the conference aims to deepen the understanding of the role of affect in mobilizing social transformation – across the political spectrum.
Abstracts and CVs (Pdf)
In English
18:00 Opening Lecture and Discussion
Clare Hemmings (London)
From ‘Affective Dissonance’ to ‘Affective Solidarity’:
The Politics of Affect and the Rise of the Far Right
19:00 Reception
10:00 – 10:30 Welcome and Introduction
Margreth Lünenborg (Berlin)/Kerstin Schankweiler (Dresden)
Mobilizing Affect – Affective Mobilization
10:30 – 13:15 Panel Presentations
Chair: Dominik Mattes (Berlin)
Michal Givoni (Be’er Scheva/Berlin)
Protest of the Captive Heart: Mobilizing Desperation
Ani Makhashvili (Berlin)
Affect and Counterpublicity in Far-Right Mobilization on X
Simon Koschut, Jonas Harbke (Friedrichshafen)
Hijacking Marginalization: How the Identitarian Movement Mobilizes for Affect
14:30 – 17:00 Invisible Monument
Walking Sessions with Lara Baladi (Cairo), Fadia Elgharib (Berlin/Cairo), and Tanja-Bianca Schmidt (Dresden)
17:00 – 18:00 Coffee Break
18:00 – 19:30 Podium Discussion
Chair: Verena Straub (Dresden)
Mobilizing Affect:
Entanglements across Academia, Arts and Activism
Cesy Leonard, Radikale Töchter (Berlin), Billy Holzberg (London), and Sinthujan Varatharajah (Berlin)
10:00 – 11:30 Workshops (running parallel)
Workshop I
Lara Baladi (Cairo)
Anatomy of Revolution
Workshop II
Marina Guzzo (São Paulo)
Performative Rest Assembly
Workshop III
Gesa Jessen, Aletta Diefenbach, Stefanie de Velasco (Berlin) „Komm in den Garten“ – Eine kurze Schreibpraxis zu feministischen Liebes- und Lebensmodellen mit Stefanie de Velasco (in German)
11:30 – 12:00 Coffee Break
12:00 – 13:00 Closing Lecture
Carolyn Pedwell (Lancaster)
Affect Theory for Uncertain Futures
Wrap up and Farewell
With
Lara Baladi
Stefanie de Velasco
Aletta Diefenbach
Fadia Elgharib
Michal Givoni
Marina Guzzo
Jonas Harbke
Clare Hemmings
Billy Holzberg
Gesa Jessen
Simon Koschut
Cesy Leonard
Margreth Lünenborg
Ani Makhashvili
Dominik Mattes
Carolyn Pedwell
Kerstin Schankweiler
Tanja-Bianca Schmidt
Verena Straub
Sinthujan Varatharajah
Organized by
The conference is organized by the Collaborative Research Center 1171 ‘Affective Societies’, FU Berlin, in cooperation with the TU Dresden research project ‘Image Protests on Social Media’ and ICI Berlin.
