NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust, and Genocide Studies Amsterdam; Laurien Vastenhout (Web)

Time: 24.-26.02.2025
Venue: Amsterdam
Proposals by: 15.10.2024

The aim of this workshop is to compare the coping mechanisms of ‘mixed’ couples and their networks during both historical and contemporary cases of conflict, war, and genocide. Research suggests that in times of uncertainty, couples seek stability through marriage. However, in both historical (the Holocaust, the Yugoslav Wars, the genocide in Rwanda) and contemporary (the Syrian civil war since 2011) cases of conflict, (civil) war, and genocide, marriage is not always a safe space. Due to changing or uncertain political circumstances, ‘mixed’ marriages – unions between partners across religious, national, class, political, or ethnic lines – often become vulnerable targets for persecution because of their perceived threat to homogeneous societies and/or social order. At the same time, the ‘in-between’ status of ‘mixed’ couples potentially provides them with unique opportunities: they can navigate between their own social groups and those of their partners and thus have latitude to seek refuge from persecution.
The aim of this workshop is to compare the coping mechanisms of ‘mixed’ couples and their networks during both historical and contemporary cases of conflict, war, and genocide. The workshop will explore how (the threat of) persecution affected family structures and intimate bonds as well as the role of kin support during crises. There will be a particular focus on multi-disciplinary analytical and theoretical concepts that are helpful to understand ‘mixed’ couples’ resilience (on an individual, family, or group level) and coping and survival strategies. Moreover, to better understand how outside pressure impacts the emotional bonds between partners in a ‘mixed’ union, scholars who work on the intersection between the history of emotions and ethnic and conflict studies are also encouraged to apply.

This Call for Proposals is part of the project ‘Intermarriage and Family: Survival during War, Occupation, and Genocide’ (Web) that is funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). You can apply by sending a 300-word abstract and a CV (max 2 pages) to bestuurssecretariaat@niod.knaw.nl by 15.10.2024 latest. Participants will be asked to hand in a paper that will be pre-circulated. Questions about this CfP can be sent to Laurien Vastenhout: l.vastenhout@niod.knaw.nl. Funding for costs of travel and stay will be available.

Source: H-Soz-Kult