Showing papers in "International Political Sociology in 2007"

Governmentalities of an Airport: Heterotopia and Confession

Abstract: Airports are barometers of the balance between mobility and security sought by governments, industry, and the traveling public. This article examines this dynamic at a Canadian international airport, evaluating the legal and practical elements of the policing of movement with this crucial site of politics. Using two under-studied concepts from Foucault, the heterotopia and the confessionary complex, it is illustrated how contemporary aviation security arrangements are dependent on both the exceptional nature of the airport and the predisposition of citizens to confess in the face of agents of the state.

Governing Terror: The State of Emergency of Biopolitical Emergence

Abstract: This paper argues that western security practices are as biopolitical as they are geopolitical. Explaining that biopolitical security practices revolve around “life” as species existence, the paper explores how biopoliticized security practices secure by instantiating a general economy of the contingent throughout all the processes of reproductive circulation that impinge upon species existence. For this reason, “Governing Terror” does not merely reference the massive global security effort that is now devoted to governing terror. It observes how western security practices are themselves now also governed by a widespread fear of terror. It locates that fear in the way that western biopolitics has long adopted “the contingent” as its principle of formation. Here, “the real” is understood and experienced differently, as a general economy of emergence: “life” understood as constant nonlinear adaptation and change. The paper concludes that the state of emergency, which governs western politics of security at the beginning of the twenty-first century is not that of Carl Schmitt or Giorgio Agamben. The state of emergency which governs western security politics is the emergency of emergent life itself.

States of Exception on the Mexico–U.S. Border: Security, “Decisions,” and Civilian Border Patrols

Abstract: Civilian border patrol groups, like the much publicized Minutemen, who engage in the unofficial and unauthorized patrolling of U.S. borders, have proliferated in recent years. They have received an overwhelming amount of press, both national and international, but have garnered very little scholarly attention. In this article, I explore this phenomenon with an eye toward addressing conceptual and theoretical issues raised by the existence and practices of these groups. Specifically, how do we conceptualize civilian border patrol groups in terms of their relationship to statecraft, identity, and security? Do they have implications for the ways in which sovereignty and the political can be understood? I argue that while Carl Schmitt's theory of the political and the Copenhagen School's securitization theory are useful in attempting to understand and theorize the practices of these groups, the case ultimately points to the need for a reexamination of some of Schmitt's concepts including sovereignty and the political. Evidence from this case suggests that we should not limit our understanding of decisions that result in contemporary manifestations of exceptionalism to those controlled by the state or elites. Rather, decisions can arise in numerous locales and can be made by seemingly insignificant agents. This has implications for how we understand the practices that can lead to exceptionalism as well as how we understand sovereignty and the political.

“A Speech That the Entire Ministry May Stand for,” or: Why Diplomats Never Produce Anything New

Abstract: Drawing on ethnographic material on speech writing in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I argue that this practice and others like it integrate the Ministry by setting up the work so that every subsection of the Ministry is allowed a say, and by short-circuiting outside attempts to access the practice for other purposes, such as tailormaking speeches to audience needs and expectations. Speeches are treated first and foremost as instantiations of the ministry. Inasmuch as a Ministry of Foreign Affairs consists of units that mediate relationships to widely different worlds, there is a pressing need for it sometimes to speak in one voice. Speech writing turns out to be such a practice, and the work of the ministry is set up in such a way that this is guaranteed to continue, barring outside intervention from politicians. This finding supports the hypotheses of Michael Herzfeld and Mary Douglas about the integration of organizations, while also demonstrating in detail how diplomatic working routines secure invariance by actively relegating innovative moves in order to repeat an already existing form. Change will therefore reach the interior of the organization from its margins, where the costs of non-adaptability is most keenly felt. Change in diplomacy may therefore be expected to be initiated by politicians, not by diplomats themselves.

“Global Civil Society” and the Political Depoliticization of Global Governance

Abstract: Activists, officials, and academics alike have often linked observations about an emerging global civil society to an incipient democratization of world politics. Global civil society is assumed to bring public scrutiny and “bottom-up” politics to international decision making “from outside” formal political institutions. Based on an analysis of uses of the concept of global civil society in 1990s global governance discourse (especially related to the major UN world conferences), this paper argues that the presumed democratization of world politics is better understood in terms of a double movement: on the one hand, “global civil society” depoliticizes global governance through the promotion of “human security” and “social development”; on the other hand, the emerging international public sphere (in the UN context) operates as a subsystem of world politics rather than opposing the system from outside. Practices of depoliticization are thus part of the political logic of (neo-)liberal global governance. The argument draws on Luhmann’s systems theory and Foucault’s analysis of governmentality.

Know‐Where: Geographies of Knowledge of World Politics

Abstract: The problem of “foundations” is a crucial one for any field, particularly perhaps one with as varied a possible repertoire of elementary sources as the study of world politics. In this paper, I draw attention to how some different ways of thinking about where knowledge is produced and how it circulates can be used to inform understanding about geographies of knowledge of world politics. Such geographies, however, are not ends in themselves. The point is to understand the ontological bases of knowing from perspectives that do not privilege a singular history of knowledge associated with a specific world region or of conceptions of knowledge that implicitly or explicitly presume their self-evident universality. In other words, we need to move beyond the all-too-conventional repertoires of relativism and positivism in understanding the bases to knowing about world politics/international relations. The paper suggests some ways forward, which should now be the subject of vigorous debate.

“We Live in a Country of UNHCR”—Refugee Protests and Global Political Society

Abstract: Between September and December 2005 over 3,000 Sudanese refugees held a sit-in demonstration at the Mustapha Mahmoud Square in Cairo, Egypt, which is located directly across from the offices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). We analyze the events of the refugee sit-in as an act of global political society, one that saw people outside the realm of the political making demands for recognition and a say in the solutions being developed to relieve their plight. We argue that the sit-in at Cairo was fundamentally a disagreement between the refugees and the UNHCR over the politics of protection, care, and mobility. The article analyzes the strategies through which the refugees named their “population of care” in ways that countered the UNHCR’s governmental strategies to classify the Sudanese refugee population in Cairo. We propose the concept of “global political society” as a way of thinking about global political life from the perspective of those who are usually denied the status of political beings. Global political society is a highly ambiguous site where power relations are enacted, taken and retaken by various actors, but in ways that do not foreclose opportunities for refugees to actively reformulate the governmentalities of care and protection.

Guilty Bodies, Productive Bodies, Destructive Bodies: Crossing the Biometric Borders

Abstract: This article examines the forms of power brought into play by the deployment of biometrics under the lenses of Foucault's notions of discipline and biopower. These developments are then analyzed from the perspective of governmentality, highlighting how the broader spread of biometrics throughout the social fabric owes not merely to the convergence of public and private surveillance, but rather to a deeper logic of power under the governmental state, orchestrated by the security function, which ultimately strengthens the state. It is associated with the rise of a new governmentality discourse, which operates on a binary logic of productive/destructive, and where, in fact, the very distinctions between private and public, guilty, and innocent—classic categories of sovereignty—find decreasing currency. However, biometric borders reveal a complicated game of renegotiations between sovereignty and governmentality, whereby sovereignty is colonized by governmentality on the one hand, but still functions as a counterweight to it on the other. Furthermore, they bring out a particular function of the “destructive body” for the governmental state: it is both the key figure ruling the whole design of security management, and the blind spot, the inconceivable, for a form of power geared toward producing productive bodies.

International Political Sociology

Abstract: This journal responds to a broadly acknowledged sense that scholars engaging with problems understood to be international in scale and character increasingly reach beyond the established resources of the institutionalized discipline of international relations. Specifically, it responds to the judgment that much is to be gained by engaging with sociology and social theory as broad arenas of scholarship that have so far played only a marginal role in the development of international relations as an institutionalized discipline. The three terms that make up the title of the journal—international, political and sociology—are intended to work, in part, to affirm such expectations. Sociological traditions have indeed been neglected in and even assumed to be insignificant for the analysis of international relations and we think that much is to be gained by engaging with them now. Similarly, we think that sociological scholarship might usefully extend its engagement with literatures on international relations, for reasons that are at least equally pressing. In this respect, we hope that the journal will be able to play an encouraging role in bringing together important scholarly communities that do seem to have much in common even if interaction and collaboration have so far been rather sporadic. This is not, however, the limit of our ambition for the opportunities we hope will be opened up through this new venture: a venture, we want to stress at the outset, in which we have been supported by so many extraordinary people. We recognize that the discipline of international relations has long been characterized by powerful currents of interdisciplinarity. It would nevertheless be fair to say that it also remains closely tied to specific traditions of political science in ways that still seem to inhibit appreciation of other disciplinary resources, sociology and social theory among them. It has also been losing some …

The Sangh Parivar and the Hindu Diaspora in the West: What Kind of “Long-Distance Nationalism”?

Abstract: “Long-distance nationalism,” an expression coined by Benedict Anderson, is often used to refer to transnational political activities, but the dynamics of this expatriate nationalism tend to be neglected. Mere nostalgia or even spontaneous mobilizations are invoked to explain this phenomenon, but fail to explain the mechanisms that lie behind it. Using the example of Hindu nationalist movements, this paper seeks to highlight the implications of political entrepreneurs in the country of origin and the instrumental dimension of long-distance nationalism. The Sangh Parivar, a network of nationalist Hindu organizations, was replicated among the Hindu diaspora and its structure was literally exported by a centralized body located in India itself. The spread of the Sangh Parivar and of its Hindutva ideology abroad was greatly facilitated by local policies like multiculturalism and by the rise of racism in the countries of emigration. A comparison of Hindu nationalist outlets in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada brings to light two main factors instilling long-distance nationalism: a favorable local context for ethnic mobilization among migrants and a centralized organization in the country of origin. The engineering of long-distance Hindu nationalism from India questions the changing nature of nationalism in a globalized world.

Michel Foucault's Analytics of War: The Social, the International, and the Racial

Abstract: The absence of the international as a distinct socio-political sphere in Michel Foucault's work forms a major part of the postcolonial critique of his writings. The absence of the international has a number of consequences for any critical engagement with Foucault in the context of global politics. The significance of these consequences becomes apparent when we consider Foucault's analytics of war and power, situate these in relation to the particularity of the international, consider the very pertinent critiques of Foucault emanating from postcolonial writings, and finally re-locate Foucault in the international not, as is the predominant approach in International Relations, through the application of Foucaultian concepts, but through Foucault's own political writings on the non-western arena, specifically his engagement with the Iranian Revolution. While limited in their scope, an evaluation of these writings appears to vindicate postcolonial critiques of Foucault, though with some revealing qualifications.

The Past Is Another Culture

Abstract: This article addresses two questions relating to the modern Western treatment of contemporaries as belonging to the past; how has Western social thought come to treat belonging to the past as a bad thing, that is, as a kind of moral and intellectual failure; and how has it learned to assign some of our contemporaries to the world of the past. My response to the first question is in two parts. One examines the conventional modern division between past and present. The other considers the effects of Western social thought's equally conventional developmental understanding of humanity. In the section that separates these two discussions, I suggest that the answer to the question of how have we learned to assign some of our contemporaries to the past is to be found in the early history of modern imperialism.

The Responsibility to Responsibilize: Foreign Offices and the Issuing of Travel Warnings

Abstract: What are the connections between personal risk-management and governmental responsibility toward citizens? This paper argues that governments in neoliberal societies increasingly acknowledge a responsibility to help citizens make “informed choices” in order to reduce or avoid risk. A key feature within this framework is the issuing of official governmental advice to the citizens. But such advice does not merely carry information that citizens are free to accept or decline. Rather, it also consists of a conscious effort on part of governments to construct individuals as calculating, prudent, and rational persons that know how to manage risk (to “responsibilize” them). Below I examine the practice of governmental advice as an effort of responsibilization in the case of travel warnings issued by foreign offices to international travelers.

''Globalization Theory'': Yesterday's Fad or More Lively than Ever?

Abstract: This article argues that while globalization theory is far from being past its most productive phase, as some of its critics claim, it does exhibit a number of shortcomings, particularly when it comes to identifying a clear point of reference for what is taken to be globalized and applying theoretical concepts developed in the analysis of national societies to a global level. This article argues that globalization theory stands on solid ground in that globalization theory has developed four strands of research, which are fairly well developed and which distinguish it as a separate field of inquiry, these four strands being the understanding of globalization as inherently varied globalization, global governance research, global history, and global/world society research. It argues that in order to redress some of the problems of globalization theory, it is necessary to build on these four strands and merge them with the traditional sociological concepts of functional differentiation and rationalization as well as with insights from complexity theories.

Victims or Madmen? The Diagnostic Competition over “Terrorist” Detainees at Guantánamo Bay

Abstract: This article traces the pathologization of suspected terrorists held captive at the U.S. military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The occurrence of several reported suicide attempts among the detainees provided “proof” for their captors that terrorists are indeed fanatical madmen. These same reports of suicide attempts, however, were contradictorily diagnosed by human rights and humanitarian organizations as evidence of psychological deterioration induced by prolonged detention. What is notable in this diagnostic competition over what, exactly, afflicts the detainees is that both advocates and resisters to the detentions pathologized the detainees by chalking up the suicide attempts to their purportedly impaired psyches. This is significant because the pathologization of the detainees is one condition of possibility for their excision from the global body politic. Authoritarian practices, such as the incarceration of the “mad” and the detention of “suspected terrorists,” are theorized as integral to global liberal governance, which divides up populations, and subjects those deemed mad, deviant, or dangerous to coercive measures in the name of order, security, and liberty. The article concludes with a consideration of the ways in which international relations (IR) could be more attentive to the operation of the “psy” disciplines in the conduct of international affairs.

Space, Boundaries, and the Problem of Order: A View from Systems Theory

Abstract: The idea our global polity is chiefly divided by territorially organized nation-states captures contemporary constellations of power and authority only insufficiently. Through a decoupling of power and the state, political spaces no longer match geographical spaces. Instead of simply acknowledging a challenge to the state, there is the need to rethink the changing meaning of space for political processes. The paper identifies three aspects, a reconceptualization of the spatial assumptions that IR needs to address: the production of space, the constitutive role of boundaries, and the problem of order. With this contribution, we argue that one avenue in understanding the production of space and the following questions of order is by converging systems theory and critical geopolitics. While the latter has already developed a conceptual apparatus to analyze the production of space, the former comes with an encompassing theoretical background, which takes “world society” as the starting point of analysis. In this respect, nation states are understood as a form of internal differentiation of a wider system, namely world society.

Rocky Bottoms: Techno‐Fallacies of an Age of Information

Abstract: I am here to fight for truth, justice and the American way . —Superman 1978 This article uses a true fiction speech by Mr. Richard Rocky Bottoms to illustrate a number of background beliefs underlying contemporary perspectives on social control, borders and surveillance, and on technology more broadly. Rocky Bottoms exists only in the imagination, but the arguments he puts forth and the behavior he reflects are prevalent, and increasingly dominant, in the post-9/11 cultures of industrial nations. His speech is a composite of remarks, many of them direct quotes, that I have gathered as part of a research project on surveillance over several decades. The speech is critically analyzed in light of 38 techno-fallacies of the information age. The fallacies identified may involve empirical, logical, or value dimensions.

A Sociology of Dependence in International Relations Theory: A Case of Russian Liberal IR

Abstract: This article addresses the question of interaction between Western and ‘‘non-Western’’ international relations (IR) by analyzing liberal theory of IR that is emerging in contemporary Russia. We argue that, despite a growing diversity within Russian scholarship of liberal orientation, it remains largely a product of Western, particularly American, intellectual hegemony, and more so than any other theoretical perspective. As compared to two other existing traditions in Russian IR—realism and critical studies—liberalism remains the most dependent and therefore must be explored before any other traditions as a crucial case for understanding the dialectic of cultural dependence and hegemony in production of global knowledge. We argue that the greater dependence of Russian liberal IR results from its relatively weak indigenous tradition, perception of Russia’s material weakness as opportunity, and greater availability of Western research funds. We also discuss an alternative, less dependent version of Russian liberal IR, and opportunities that its existence implies for development of a global, de-centered international relations theory.

Globalization and Prison Privatization: Why Are Most of the World's For-Profit Adult Prisons to Be Found in the American South?

Abstract: For a generation, students of comparative public policy and international politics have argued that global market discipline and the increasing mobility of international “best practices” have given rise to policy convergence at the global level. This paper uses the American case to investigate some of the forces thought to have given rise to the spread of private prisons. It finds that while there are prisons in a number of countries, the evidence of convergence is thin and seems to suggest that the core of the prison privatization is in the American South. It then examines several theories—the political economy of the prison boom and overcrowding, globalization theory, the politics of the new right and the idea of a “prison-industrial complex”—that have been used to explain prison privatization and the extent to which they are consistent with the empirical pattern. Each takes us some way to understanding that pattern, but none can provide a clear theoretical mapping.

Criminology and the Transnational Condition: A Contribution to International Political Sociology

Abstract: This article contributes to international political sociology and the further enhancement of the interdisciplinary study of the global system by introducing some of the lexicon of critical criminology into the discourse. It suggests that the contemporary global system is ripe with existential anxieties that are symptoms of momentous historical change and it argues that, for good or for ill, issues of crime definition and control have become central to the transnational condition. As a consequence, criminological theories should be introduced into theoretical discussions about the nature of the contemporary global scene. Such interdisciplinary cross-fertilization is vital, given the centrality of the language of criminal threats in the language of global governance and the language of governance globally.

The International Relations of the “Transition”: Ernest Gellner's Social Philosophy and Political Sociology

Abstract: Ernest Gellner’s political sociology has been relatively neglected not only in international relations (IR) but also in sociology and social anthropology. This article provides an overview of Gellner’s ambitious vision of our modern condition. Central to this vision is the salience of the “transition” from agrarian to industrial society, which Gellner believed had transformed and revolutionized not only our philosophical outlook but also our sociological and historical condition. This article argues that Gellner’s work provides an intellectually rich, demanding, and fruitful model which has much relevance to IR. We illustrate this by showing how Gellner’s sociological insights into the study of nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism continue to have a direct application to contemporary concerns within IR, as well as providing an illustration of how IR can benefit from a multidisciplinary engagement with the disciplines that Gellner most creatively borrowed from: sociology, anthropology, and philosophy.

Occupational Logics and Political Commitment: American Artists Against the Iraq War

Abstract: This article analyzes the political commitment of American artists, belonging to various art worlds, against the recent war in Iraq. Through the construction of three types of trajectories, I distinguish several mechanisms of commitment and forms of political involvement. I show how artists’ heterogeneous professional identities structure their political commitment throughout the protest, how occupational logics shape the possible forms of action, in the artists’ eyes. In the second part of the article, I focus on what is changing, in this context, in the relationships between the artistic and the political spheres, and what is revealed about their ordinary functioning. As a result of the increasing differentiation and specialization of the spheres of action in our societies, it has become more and more difficult and illegitimate for artists to fuse their artwork and their political positions. At the same time, individuals with strong resources of notoriety, especially in the film industry, have demanded a new role of public representation, challenging the exclusive political legitimacy to represent people.

Contributions to the Forum

Abstract: Mark Salter's (2007) article involves an imaginative use of Foucault's ideas of heterotopia and confessionary complex to understand the bordering activities that take place at airports. In my opinion, two particularly important features of the article lie in its countering both excessively laudatory accounts of airports as transversal places and the similarly frequent failure to note the relative inefficiencies with which airports fulfill their security functions because of their inherent contradictions (screening for objects versus identifying dangerous persons, etc.) and all of the other activities they carry out, such as transportation and, increasingly, shopping by those not subject to containment and deportation. In a number of respects, however, it is …