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Hamburg,  1 June 2010

Toward an International History of Lynching

The University of Heidelberg and the Hamburg Institute for Social Research are co-organizing an upcoming international conference on the phenomenon of lynching.

At the conference, extrajudicial punishment that targeted alleged criminals, members of ethnic minorities, or social "deviants"—long considered chiefly an anomaly of American history—will be examined from a transnational, comparative perspective. Contributions to the conference’s nine sections will present case studies from North and South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Australia.

"I expect that this conference will make an important contribution to research on violence by broadening our perspective to address not also distinct national phenomena, but also explore similarities and differences within an international framework", noted Bernd Greiner from the Hamburg Institute for Social Research.

Professor Manfred Berg (University of Heidelberg), Professor Bernd Greiner (Hamburg Institute for Social Research), and Dr. Simon Wendt (University of Heidelberg) collaborated in planning the meeting. More information on the conference is available here.

You are welcome to contact me for further information or to arrange an appointment with Professor Greiner.

Dr. Regine Klose-Wolf
Hamburg Institute for Social Research
Press and Public Relations Office
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20148 Hamburg
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