On protest archives and solidarity at ESA Conference in Wien

Prof. Maciej Kowalewski presented the paper Solidarity in and through Social Movements Archives at “Contested Solidarities: Contentious Politics Between Resistance, Backlash and Change” at the CEU in(June 16 to 18, 2025).

The paper presented examines how social movements archives contribute to defining solidarity while also practising it. Drawing on research conducted in Poland and Germany. it discusses the forms and scales of recording and sharing ‘testimonies of harm’ (e.g., repression, police brutality) and ‘testimonies of glory’ (e.g., solidarity protests, supportive activism). The Polish case is particularly significant, as it demonstrates how solidarity was appropriated through commemorative practices centered on the legacy of the Solidarity movement and its post-1989 trade union activities, under the same name.

Conference was organized by ESA Research Network 25 on Social Movements; ECPR Standing Group on Participation and Mobilization; CES Research Network on Social Movements; Shattuck Center for Human Rights at Central European University; Department of Public Policy, Central European University.