The spatial contours of transnational activism: conceptual implications and the road forward

Patel, Kiran Klaus und Levsen, Sonja (2022): The spatial contours of transnational activism: conceptual implications and the road forward. In: European Review of History, Bd. 29, Nr. 3: S. 548-561

Abstract

The conclusion to this special issue concentrates on the conceptual and especially the methodological dimensions of the editors' findings, presenting them in four steps. In doing so, it sketches the ways in which their approach can change the understanding of the spatial transformations associated with 'transnationalism', also beyond the history of political activism during Europe's 'long' 1970s. More precisely, the text first assesses the role of space in transnational history by contending that there is great heuristic value in analysing the physical and geographical dimensions of transnational interactions. It then discusses the overlaps and mismatches between the three kinds of transnational spaces they have identified: imagined spaces of solidarity and belonging;spaces of social experience and political action;and spaces of knowledge circulation. Thirdly, it emphasizes the infrastructural underbelly and its impact on the various forms of exchange before, in a fourth and final step, the article discusses how their approach helps with the arrival of a more sophisticated understanding of the significance of transnational connections. All in all, the editors argue that a more elaborate understanding of space has the potential to open up a whole new field of enquiry. It can help to generate fresh insights into the history of activism and social movements, but also to arrive at a better understanding of the very nature of transnational processes.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Geschichts- und Kunstwissenschaften > Historisches Seminar
• Themengebiete: 900 Geschichte und Geografie > 900 Geschichte
• ISSN: 1350-7486
• Sprache: Englisch