We are happy to post this Call for Papers — especially aimed at  junior scholars — for what looks to be a fascinating conference. The topic is not specifically related to the focus of Jewish Heritage Europe — but it seems that there certainly could be scope for papers that would address issues relating to Jewish heritage sites under communism, including documentation, neglect, deliberate (or casual) destruction and eradication of memory, etc etc etc — the way surviving Jewish built heritage was regarded by Jews; what surviving places represented;  the individuals who made it their personal mission to seek out lost places, and related topics, including Jewish museums under communism.

New Approaches to the History of the Jews under Communism

May 23-25, 2017,  Villa Lanna (http://www.vila-lanna.cz/index.html), Prague

The organizers as applicants to send a longish abstract (1,000 words) of their research project (including footnotes) and a short bio by the end of October 2016 to all the conference organizers: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. They encourage junior scholars from Europe to apply. The results will be announced by the end of November 2016.

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From the organizers:

Several key perspectives, we think, could help us to achieve a better understanding of the complexity of Jewish experience under the Communist régimes and thus also of the various Communist régimes and regions.

First of all, we are especially interested in contributions focused on the everyday life of the Jews, Jewish religious and secular organizations, and the possibilities of ‘being Jewish’ under the Communist régimes, which are also matters related to the legal position of the Jewish communities. […]

Second, scholars in this field mostly concentrate on the Jewish cultural and political elites in the Communist societies and therefore also on the Jews in the large cities, often the capitals. Though there is clearly a need for more research of this kind, we particularly welcome contributions that emphasize the experience of the Jews on the periphery and also Jews who did not succeed in becoming part of the elite or did not even wish to do so. […]

Third, as the path-breaking work of Anna Shternshis shows, even if we consider the official Communist propaganda for and about the Jews, we must be careful to separate the intentions of the propaganda writers from how the propaganda was perceived and creatively transformed by the Jews. Among the questions of interest to us is how the official anti-fascist ideology was perceived by the Jewish communities and by individual Jews. What about the state-sponsored Yiddish publishing houses and journals which were often seen as providing unique opportunities for Yiddish journalists and writers, while, however, demanding their loyalty to the socialist State?

Fourth, from the end of the nineteenth century onwards, consciousness of world-wide connections between Jewish communities, families, and individuals increased and several international Jewish institutions were established. When, how, and to what extent did Communism attack this aspect of Jewish life, which was one of most important in the Jewish modernization process? How did the Jews try to negotiate and preserve the particular modes of their transnationalism during the Cold War and East-West political divisions?

The following topics are for us of particular importance:

1. The legal positions of the Jews of the Communist/Socialist countries of Europe and the institutional opportunities for the Jews there (including religious, cultural, educational, and charitable institutions).
2. The ways of preserving and developing ‘Jewishness’ under the Communist regimes, within and outside the official organizations, in private and in public.
3. Family and gender aspects of Jewish life under Communism.
4. Networks across the ‘Iron Curtain’ and across the state borders in the ‘Soviet bloc’.
5. Yiddish culture and education under the Communist régimes.

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