Post-Soviet Decoloniality in Art and Activism

This seminar will focus on the latest approaches to post- and decoloniality from the perspectives of the former USSR. We will scrutinize the notions of post-Soviet, postsocialist, post- and decolonial and their intersections with the categories of race and gender. We will engage with theoretical works written by both “Western” and local scholars. We will particularly focus on the both racialized and colonized parts of the former USSR and explore how the debates on decolonization intersect with the feminist discourses of the former USSR. We will also look at actual examples of post-Soviet feminist and decolonial artistic and activist projects and invite local scholars, artists and activists to some of our sessions. 

What does decolonization mean in the context of the former USSR? How is race and gender constructed in the (formerly) colonized parts of the Russian/Soviet empire? What role does postcolonial nationalism play in their construction? What are the artistic and activist practices that deal with decolonization from a feminist perspective? How can we, gender studies students based in Germany, organize cooperation in solidarity with activists and scholars from Central Asia, South Caucasus and the colonized parts of the contemporary Russian Federation? These questions we will answer throughout the course.