• Hungary Postpones Erecting New WWII Monument

    • February 21, 2014 - 10:01 am
    • Hungary, New monument, WWII
    • Comments Off on Hungary Postpones Erecting New WWII Monument

    Facing widespread complaints that a proposed new WWII memorial commemorating the German occupation of Hungary in 1944 would whitewash Hungary's history of home-grown fascism, the ruling Fidesz government has decided to postpone erecting the monument until after April 6 elections. For more information, see the following news reports:

    http://stream.wsj.com/story/latest-headlines/SS-2-63399/SS-2-461213/

    http://www.bbj.hu/politics/wwii-memorial-postponed;-pm-offers-dialogue_76100

    http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCABREA1J1LS20140220?sp=true

     

  • Special Issue of Nationalities Papers on Post-Socialist Cities

    The September 2013 issue of Nationalities Papers features articles on national identity and the post-socialist city. Link (gated) is here.

    The editors, Alexander C. Diener and Joshua Hagen, provide an excellent introductory essay to the special issue. Here's the abstract:

    From socialist to post-socialist cities:
    narrating the nation through urban space

    The development of post-socialist cities has emerged as a major field of study among critical theorists from across the social sciences. Originally constructed under the dictates of central planners and designed to serve the demands of command economies, post-socialist urban centers currently develop at the nexus of varied and often competing economic, cultural, and political forces. Among these, nationalist aspirations, previously simmering beneath the official rhetoric of communist fraternity and veneer of architectural conformity, have emerged as dominant factors shaping the urban landscape. This article examines patterns, processes, and practices concerning the cultural politics of architecture, urban planning, and identity in the post-socialist city. In addition to assessing the main contours of this burgeoning field of research, this article highlights how this special issue of Nationalities Papers contributes to a broader understanding of contemporary cultural and political change in post-socialist urban settings.