Is there such a thing as a future-oriented humanism? Dehumanization is a process that has often occurred and continues to occur in contexts of extreme violence. It serves to legitimize violence by degrading people to “sub-human” status or animalizing them. However, the invocation of common humanity remains a central motif in the history of resistance to such violence. The focus of Manuela Bojadžijev’s lecture is Étienne Balibar’s approach to a new anthropology of differences, in which he poses the question of what it means to be human anew, and thus also the question of how humanity presents itself today. In particular, Bojadžijev focuses on Balibar’s reflections on the theory of racism and the concept of the “genealogical schema.” Bojadžijev emphasizes that anthropological differences, such as race, gender, and intelligence, are historically and institutionally intertwined, producing differentiated forms of inclusion, exclusion, and normalization. Balibar’s approach enables us to identify the similarities and differences between racist formations and their links to other forms of domination more precisely than is often possible with some of the current intersectional approaches. To effectively counter dehumanization and racism today, and to develop new forms of cohabitation in solidarity, it remains of central importance to update humanism by engaging in critical reflection.
Manuela Bojadžijev is a professor at Humboldt University in Berlin, where she focuses on migration from a global perspective.
Ayşe Çağlar, IWM Permanent Fellow, will moderate the discussion.
