A few days ago, on the 15th of January 2023 was the 104th anniversary of the murder of Rosa Luxemburg, an internationalist revolutionary. Rosa Luxemburg until her death believed that “history itself always knows best what to do about things, even when the situation looks most desperate” (letter to Marta Rosenboum, 1917). She believed that “one should not overestimate the impact or effect that one individual can have” (Letter to Luise Kautsky, 15 April 1917) and she believed in the capacity of masses for the radical changes.
Luxemburg is one of those rare female revolutionaries who continues to be a source of discussion and inspiration for scholars, philosophers (including Max Horkheimer and Hannah Arendt), social movements, artists from all over the world. Recently interest in her works and writings has extended beyond political and economic writings to include her views on women's issues – which have been echoed in particular by the insurrectionary feminist movement – and her positions against war and militarism. Finally, Luxemburg looks at the problem of economic and political crises not as a mere local or particular problem but as a universal problem. Rosa Luxemburg writes “Revolution, among other things, differs from war because its law of existence is perpetual motion—constant forward movement, developing according to its own internal logic and consistency. The revolution knows no pauses or ceasefires, unless it is in retreat.” Her faith in revolution and struggle for a classless society goes along with her love for life.
With this conference, we aim to collectively discuss today's social, economic, political and cultural problems through Luxemburg's insights, concepts, and her revolutionary life and experiences as such. As Eduardo Galeano writes “Rosa goes on being our source of fresh water in thirsty times.” No doubt, we need Rosa Luxemburg's insights more than ever. This two-day conference will begin with a projection of Margarethe von Trotta's movie about the personal-political life of Rosa Luxemburg at Cinema Arsenale di Pisa on 24th January 2021 at 21.00PM. On 25th January, the conference will be held at the University of Pisa and on 26th January at Scuola Normale Superiore. The conference will be held in English (with a few interventions in Italian), in two modalities: online (Microsoft Teams, for link here) and in presence.
Programme
JANUARY 24th
Arsenale di Pisa, Vicolo Scaramucci, 2, Pisa
21.00 Projection of the film, Rosa Luxemburg by Margarethe von Trotta Introduction by Alessandra Fussi (Università di Pisa)
JANUARY 25th
Aula VI del Polo Sapienza - Università di Pisa Via Curtatone e Montanara, 15 Pisa
14.00 Opening Remarks
Vinzia Fiorino (Università di Pisa)
Donatella Della Porta (Scuola Normale Superiore)
14.30 Free Research for Truth: Intersection of Class, Gender, “Race” and Vulnerability
Chair: Vinzia Fiorino (Università di Pisa)
· Federica Giardini (Università Roma Tre)
· Roberta Ferrari (Università di Bologna)
· Giulia Longoni (Università di Pisa)
· Rita Fulco (Università di Messina)
16.30 Break
16.45 Contemporary Conflicts, Challenges and Freedom at Risk
Chair: Carlotta Cossutta (Scuola Normale Superiore)
· Riccardo Bellofiore (Università di Bergamo (retired) & Università di Modena and Reggio Emilia (adjunct professor))
· Maria Turchetto (Università Ca’ Foscari di Venezia)
· Peter Hudis (Oakton Community College)
· Federico Oliveri (Università di Pisa)
20.00 Dinner
JANUARY 26th
Sala degli Stemmi - Scuola Normale Superiore, Piazza dei Cavalieri, 7 Pisa
9.00 Subjects and Agents. Political parties, organizations, social movements
Chair: Donatella Della Porta (Scuola Normale Superiore)
· Ingrid Sharp (University of Leeds)
· Brecht De Smet (Ghent University)
· María Cecilia Espasandín Cárdenas (University of the Republic (FCS UdelaR), Uruguay)
· María Del Carmen Echeverriborda San Martín (University of the Republic (FCS UdelaR), Uruguay)
· Gianni Del Panta (Scuola Normale Superiore)
11.00 Break
11.10 Critical Thinking and Rosa Luxemburg in Italy
Chair: Alessandra Fussi (Università di Pisa)
· Chiara Giorgi (Università degli Studi “La Sapienza” di Roma)
· Sevgi Dogan (Scuola Normale Superiore)
· Iacopo Chiaravalli (Istituto Italiano di Studi Germanici)
· Sergio Nacinovich (Liceo Scientifico Barsanti e Matteucci di Viareggio)
13.10 Lunch
14.30 Solidarity for Thinking and Acting Together through Art, Literature and Revolution
Chair: Simona Forti (Scuola Normale Superiore)
· Hjalmar Jorge Joffre-Eichhorn (University of Coimbra)
· Natascia Mattucci (Università di Macerata)
· Antonio Mota Filho (State University of Campinas (UNICAMP - Brazil))
· Kate Evans (Artist-activist-Author of Red Rosa*)
* Red Rosa: A Graphic Biography of Rosa Luxemburg will be out in Italian in 2023
16.30 Book Launch
Chair: Laura Cremonesi (Scuola Normale Superiore)
Rosa Luxemburg, The Complete Works of Rosa Luxemburg Volume IV - Political Writings 2, “On Revolution” (1906–1909)
Conversation with editors: Sandra Rein (University of Alberta)
Discussant: Riccardo Bellofiore (Università di Bergamo (retired) & Università di Modena and Reggio Emilia (adjunct professor))