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Simon Clemens

@siclemens.bsky.social

Political Theory at HU Berlin & FU Berlin | German Memorial Museum | Theories of Democracy, New Materialisms, and some Histories

86 Followers  |  179 Following  |  2 Posts  |  Joined: 03.12.2023  |  1.5049

Latest posts by siclemens.bsky.social on Bluesky

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Wie es meine Familie trotz Piraten und Taifun von Vietnam nach Österreich geschafft hat Vor 50 Jahren endet der Vietnamkrieg. Hunderttausende Menschen begeben sich danach auf die gefährliche Flucht über den Seeweg, auch die Familie von STANDARD-Redakteur Kim Son Hoang

Diese eine Geschichte, die man immer schon schreiben wollte. Aber für die einem lange der Mut gefehlt hat: www.derstandard.at/story/300000...

26.04.2025 14:41 — 👍 285    🔁 57    💬 16    📌 10
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The rise of end times fascism The governing ideology of the far right has become a monstrous, supremacist survivalism. Our task is to build a movement strong enough to stop them

THE RISE OF END TIMES FASCISM

My first major piece of the new Trump era, co-written with @astra.bsky.social.

The governing ideology of the far right has become a
monstrous, supremacist survivalism.

Our task is to build a movement strong enough to stop them. www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

13.04.2025 13:32 — 👍 6268    🔁 2670    💬 218    📌 626
Democrats Need to Face Why Trump Won | The Ezra Klein Show
YouTube video by The Ezra Klein Show Democrats Need to Face Why Trump Won | The Ezra Klein Show

Finde zwar die Stimmen und Sprechweisen von Klein und Shor nervtötend, und dennoch sollte sich das jeder anschauen, der wissen will, warum die Demokraten in 2024 verloren.

Democrats Need to Face Why Trump Won | The Ezra Klein Show youtu.be/Sx0J7dIlL7c?... via @YouTube

27.03.2025 02:42 — 👍 53    🔁 11    💬 6    📌 3
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Opinion | We Underestimate the Manosphere at Our Peril We underestimate the manosphere at our peril.

„Mr. Trump, Mr. Musk, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and the manosphere share the same dark vision of the world: that in order to win, others have to lose.“

www.nytimes.com/2025/03/28/o...

29.03.2025 07:24 — 👍 36    🔁 12    💬 1    📌 2
(Image of a google doc; first line is title & in larger font)

Speaking Out for Democracy and US Higher Education
To add your name to this statement, go to https://bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEdSign

We publicly affirm our commitment to the enterprise of higher education in a democratic and free society, and to the values and practices that facilitate the production, advancement, and sharing of knowledge. Given the continuous and escalating attacks on higher education along with many other pillars of American democracy by the Trump administration and its allies, we call on colleges and universities to protect these values.

We affirm that:

The democratic ideals of free thought, free speech, free association, freedom of assembly and the right to dissent are worth fighting for. Democracy both honors our dignity as individuals and enables collective action on behalf of the common good.

(Image of a google doc; first line is title & in larger font) Speaking Out for Democracy and US Higher Education To add your name to this statement, go to https://bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEdSign We publicly affirm our commitment to the enterprise of higher education in a democratic and free society, and to the values and practices that facilitate the production, advancement, and sharing of knowledge. Given the continuous and escalating attacks on higher education along with many other pillars of American democracy by the Trump administration and its allies, we call on colleges and universities to protect these values. We affirm that: The democratic ideals of free thought, free speech, free association, freedom of assembly and the right to dissent are worth fighting for. Democracy both honors our dignity as individuals and enables collective action on behalf of the common good.


2. Education is a fundamental pillar of a democratic society. People come from all over the world to take part in the free exchange of ideas and the depth of knowledge and expertise found in US colleges and universities. The capacity and tools these institutions provide to think carefully and deeply about politics, society, and the built and natural worlds produce scholars and world citizens whose contributions benefit us all. The value of American education has long been a consensus position across parties and ideologies; both Democratic and Republican administrations have supported our system of higher education. 

3. Diversity is essential. Democracy requires that we invest fully in the rich array of our differences. We affirm the fundamental dignity and value of each person of every race, ethnicity, national origin, class, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, legal status, religion, identity, ideology and viewpoint. Bringing together people with different experiences, talents, and perspectives is critical to a successful learning environment and ultimately benefits society as a whole. 

4. Education, knowledge, and science are intrinsically worthwhile. They improve both individual lives and the collective well-being of a democratic society. Cutting funding risks inflicting lasting damage on scholarly inquiry, from work in the arts to social policy to life-saving medical research and care.

2. Education is a fundamental pillar of a democratic society. People come from all over the world to take part in the free exchange of ideas and the depth of knowledge and expertise found in US colleges and universities. The capacity and tools these institutions provide to think carefully and deeply about politics, society, and the built and natural worlds produce scholars and world citizens whose contributions benefit us all. The value of American education has long been a consensus position across parties and ideologies; both Democratic and Republican administrations have supported our system of higher education. 3. Diversity is essential. Democracy requires that we invest fully in the rich array of our differences. We affirm the fundamental dignity and value of each person of every race, ethnicity, national origin, class, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, legal status, religion, identity, ideology and viewpoint. Bringing together people with different experiences, talents, and perspectives is critical to a successful learning environment and ultimately benefits society as a whole. 4. Education, knowledge, and science are intrinsically worthwhile. They improve both individual lives and the collective well-being of a democratic society. Cutting funding risks inflicting lasting damage on scholarly inquiry, from work in the arts to social policy to life-saving medical research and care.

5. Academic freedom is necessary to the pursuit of knowledge. Research must be conducted free from political threat if it is to identify and develop ideas serving the human race. These ideas, turned into action, are critical elements of any functioning society, including the rule of law, medical care, and scientific advancement.

6. No amount of accommodation or compliance will protect us. The current attacks on higher education amount to an assault on the foundational principles of democracy. If we abandon our commitments to equality, pluralism, and free scholarly inquiry we turn our backs on the most essential ingredients to our democracy: reflecting on our past, pooling our present talents, and investing in our future. 

As scholars, educators, and people who care about our students and our democracy, we believe it is our duty to speak out against the attacks on diversity and pluralism, on scholarship and learning, on academic freedom, and on democracy itself. We are doing so through this statement, and will continue to do so on our campuses and beyond. 

We urge the leaders of America’s colleges and universities, and every American who believes in democracy and education, to stand up for the values we share.  

We call on college and university leadership to refuse to comply with the unethical, irresponsible and frequently illegal demands of the Trump administration; to join together to speak out in defense of the values of academic freedom, scholarship and research; to protect their students and faculty from government reprisals; and to fight attacks on our institutions in the public sphere and the legal arena.

5. Academic freedom is necessary to the pursuit of knowledge. Research must be conducted free from political threat if it is to identify and develop ideas serving the human race. These ideas, turned into action, are critical elements of any functioning society, including the rule of law, medical care, and scientific advancement. 6. No amount of accommodation or compliance will protect us. The current attacks on higher education amount to an assault on the foundational principles of democracy. If we abandon our commitments to equality, pluralism, and free scholarly inquiry we turn our backs on the most essential ingredients to our democracy: reflecting on our past, pooling our present talents, and investing in our future. As scholars, educators, and people who care about our students and our democracy, we believe it is our duty to speak out against the attacks on diversity and pluralism, on scholarship and learning, on academic freedom, and on democracy itself. We are doing so through this statement, and will continue to do so on our campuses and beyond. We urge the leaders of America’s colleges and universities, and every American who believes in democracy and education, to stand up for the values we share. We call on college and university leadership to refuse to comply with the unethical, irresponsible and frequently illegal demands of the Trump administration; to join together to speak out in defense of the values of academic freedom, scholarship and research; to protect their students and faculty from government reprisals; and to fight attacks on our institutions in the public sphere and the legal arena.

A key step in fighting the Trump admin's attacks on higher education specifically and democracy more broadly is to say as clearly as we can that we share values that are meaningful and that we will not stand by while our institutions are destroyed.

You can do that here:
bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEd

19.03.2025 14:12 — 👍 910    🔁 306    💬 19    📌 41

I decided to start a #thread 🧵 of stories about legal residents and tourists being (illegally) arrested, detained and/or deported by the Trump regime. I'll only post stories from serious sources, as rumors and conspiracies are really not needed in this authoritarian moment.

15.03.2025 21:04 — 👍 3769    🔁 2076    💬 1    📌 333
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Oral history interview with Sandra Harding Sandra Harding was born in San Francisco, California, the first of five children born to Lloyd and Constance Harding. Her father's struggle to find work during the Great Depression led the family to L...

A dear feminist science studies mentor passed on March 5. Have a good journey Sandra Harding. ❤️

Harding was UCLA Distinguished Professor Emerita of Education and Gender Studies, former Director of the Center for the Study of Women.

Link is an oral history interview with Sandra on her career.

06.03.2025 19:45 — 👍 845    🔁 214    💬 21    📌 50

Buffy the vampire slayer

26.02.2025 23:42 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Alan Posener: „‚Wir werden sie jagen!‘, hatte Alexander Gauland beim Einzug seiner Partei in den Bundestag 2017 gesagt. Merz hat sich tatsächlich in eine Ecke jagen lassen, aus der er ohne Beschädigung nun nicht mehr herauskommen kann.“ archive.is/0wFDA

01.02.2025 12:08 — 👍 95    🔁 20    💬 5    📌 1
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Together with my colleague Ieva Höhne, I am giving a talk at this conference on contradictions in the ontological approach of new materialism. Click here for the program contradictionstudies.uni-bremen.de/en/ecbc-conf...
and here to register forms.gle/CohJTLfg8UBN...

17.01.2025 17:25 — 👍 3    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

@siclemens is following 20 prominent accounts