Utopia's Shadow

Utopia's Shadow: Just Societies, New Possibilites, Old Pathologies

Date: Saturday 31 October 2009, 10am - 5pm  DOWNLOAD FLYER (PDF 135.76Kb)
Presenters:  Professor Peter Beilharz and David Freeman

Course Outline:

The purpose of this Intensive is to grapple with the limited success of our work to build a fairer world.  Given that the case for a fair world is so powerful, the question arises: why does the social justice project not have more success?  

Everybody knows that there is poverty, suffering, inequality and indignity.  Everybody knows that the world would be better without them. Yet they persist.  Why is this?  Several ERISJ Intensives examine the role of power and wealth in perpetuating these problems.  This Intensive asserts a second set of causes, emanating from the social justice side of the fence.  Social justice work has often shot itself in the foot, needlessly discrediting itself and alienating the public.  

This Intensive explores why social justice matters, ideas of utopia and dystopia, and search for ways forward that might cut through these problems.  The afternoon session will be highly interactive with participants.  The Presenters are Australia’s leading sociologist, Professor Peter Beilharz (one of the world’s foremost authorities on dysfunction within socialist traditions), and ERISJ Director David Freeman. Beilharz and Freeman will open up discussion with participants about where they disagree as well as agree. The Intensive concludes with the launch of Peter Beilharz’s latest book, Socialism and Modernity.

Presenters:

Peter Beilharz is Professor of Sociology at La Trobe University, Melbourne, and founding Director of the Thesis Eleven Centre for Cultural Sociology.  Beilharz is author or editor of twenty-three books, and has published over four hundred journal articles, book chapters and reviews.  He is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the history of socialism.  Beilharz examines the paradox of emancipatory ideas that can dissolve into unethical practice.  He argues that these problems can originate in excessive romanticism and persuasive, yet flawed thinking.  He has been keen to document socialist traditions and individuals that were in fact ethical, and to insist upon a historical sensibility modest enough to realise that we walk in others’ footprints. The Intensive closes with the WA launch of Peter’s latest book, Socialism and Modernity (Uni. Minnesota Press 2009) by Professor Doug McEachern (Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation, UWA) from 4.30 pm.  

David Freeman is Director of the Edmund Rice Institute for Social Justice and a sociologist and political scientist by training.  He has taught sociology and political science in four Universities, and previously worked in public policy, youth, trade union and church fields.  Freeman has been a social justice activist over three decades.  In both his activism and research, he has been disturbed by social justice traditions that undermine their own project. His conclusion is that social justice considerations may have limited influence until we confront our frequently weak thinking and toxic culture.

‘Value-adding: Pre or post-Intensive reading for those interested:’

Peter Beilharz:
http://arts.monash.edu.au/ecps/communications/feeds/2008/beilharz-hogan-walker.php
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/socsci/staff/beilharz/Beilharz.mov

David Freeman's "Inclusive Democracy and its Prospects" : click here (PDF 86.53kB)