New Cold War

The metaphor of the “cold war” encourages us to imagine that the world is easily divided into opposing forces, black and white. Throughout the “old” Cold War, chess was an important part of diplomacy, competition and strategy on “both sides” of the “Iron Curtain.” The idea of a “New” Cold War risks inviting us back… Continue reading New Cold War

The Wretched of “the East”

In this digital exhibition we explore episodes of what we call “the East”. The stories you will see here are fragmented and unfinished, somehow connected with each other because they all talk about experiences of migration, racism, gender and exploitation, yet they remain chaotic and disorganised. This virtual mess may be frustrating at first sight,… Continue reading The Wretched of “the East”

Politics of Liberty

The notion of “liberty” is often used to legitimize Western imperialism and state-sanctioned violence. At the same time a motive and a motivation, an abstract ideal and a rationale for pulling triggers, “liberty” in the West is a privilege for some and a death sentence for others. Unsurprisingly, “liberty” is propagated as starkly lacking in… Continue reading Politics of Liberty

Shouldering the West

Your “5- EUR-per-hour-plumber”. Or the unknown mother who leaves behind her kids 2.000 kilometers away, to take care of your elder. Or your “Shawarma boy”. You know that nothing would function in the West, without the constant and cheap supply of humans from the East.  During the Berliner Gazette 2021 conference “Black Box East”, ten… Continue reading Shouldering the West

Post-Covid-19 States

Both, in the so called “First World” and “Third World”, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic registers at many levels, from the still-growing death toll and health-related issues, to an increase of inequality and other political-economic effects. However, while all kinds of reporting try to account for those impacts, it is noteworthy that the “Second… Continue reading Post-Covid-19 States

Photo Album: Black Box East

“Post-Communist” States As Laboratories Of Neoliberal Globalization · Photo Documention of the Berliner Gazette Conference 2021. Fotos by Krystian Woznicki | berlinergazette.de | cc by nc.