While historical, hegemonic and repressive forms of violence are increasingly the focus of ongoing debates – whether on colonial continuities, structures of patriarchy or contemporary capitalism – acts of resistance are more and more frequently being characterised as violent and thereby delegitimised: “Cancel culture”, “PC police” or “destruction of monuments” are just a few of the associated, polemically charged battle cries.
But what is considered legitimate and what is considered illegimate? At what point is it acceptable to use counter-violence against sexist, racist, extractivist or economic forms of violence? In the joint discourse series “On Violence”, HAU Hebbel am Ufer and the Akademie der Künste der Welt in Cologne (ADKDW) are starting an analysis of current forms of expression of hegemony, dominance, surveillance, discrimination and physical control.
“On Violence” explores the issue of what it means to talk about violence at the beginning of the 21st century, while also searching for the connections between the various forms of its materialisation. A series of lectures and talks will discuss visible and invisible, institutional and structural forms of violence as well as concepts such as self-defence, anti-colonial violence, revolutionary violence, hate speech and symbolic violence. The series is divided into three parts: renowned thinkers give an online lecture in advance as part of the Akademie der Künste der Welt’s “Decolonial Study Program” (DSP), which is discussed with a live audience at HAU and to be published later in book form. The series’ curators Max Jorge Hinderer Cruz (ADKDW) and Margarita Tsomou (HAU) will moderate
