Right-wing extremism, protest and populism

The eastern German federal states have been considered particularly susceptible to right-wing political movements and parties, and not just since the rise of Pegida and the development of the AfD into a stronghold. Ever since Rostock-Lichtenhagen, it has been a recurring narrative to see the new federal states as a threat to democracy. The special social and socio-economic conditions are often seen as the cause. Starting with a lack of contact with migrants before the fall of the Wall, through precarious developments since the 1990s, to transformation fatigue caused by change, reasons are analyzed that can underpin this special position. At the same time, it is important to understand how right-wing populist initiatives work. What motives are addressed and how are they communicated and mobilized?

Research projects

At TU Dresden, the following research projects are working on this topic:

• BMBF junior research group: right-wing extremism vs. climate protection? Nationalist opposition in a transnational political field

• MIDEM: Polarization in Europe

• Right-wing extremism and right-wing populism in Saxony

• Mir reicht's Bürger. Analysis of the Monday demonstrations in Chemnitz and Gera in winter 2022/23

• Unbending protest? Dealing with corona deniers and opponents of measures from the perspective of citizen participation in Saxony

• The populist crisis narrative: A qualitative analysis of the AfD's election campaign communication on Facebook

Political culture and social self-image

From understanding historical developments after reunification to researching current political discourses, the complex structure of social transformation, collective memory and political orientation is reflected in the East. Questions of integration, the history of mentalities and political participation come into focus. This field of research contributes to an understanding of the historical and current factors that have shaped and continue to shape the political landscape in East Germany. It provides insights into the developments, challenges and potentials of a region that has a unique and changeable diversity in its political culture.

At TU Dresden, the following research projects deal with this subject area:

• The 'Wende' of children: Childhood in the East German transformation
• MIDEM: Covid-19 in Saxony

• Political action in the transformation society. A reconstructive analysis of the political biographies of Saxon city council members

• Archiving MigOst: Institutionalization of the migrant self-organization in Dresden - Exploration of self-archiving

• Deliberate non-knowledge and transformation processes

• Dialects and regional languages in Saxony

• Home education in special homes in the GDR - A pedagogical-reconstructive study on the GDR educational system and its management (completed)

• Saxon longitudinal study

• The GDR Ministry of Justice under the leadership of LDPD ministers Kurt Wünsche and Hans-Joachim Heusinger 1967-1990

• History of the Saxon state parliaments (completed)

• Crisis-Dialogue-Future

• Age and digital change. Experiences of older volunteers with volunteering, age and digitalization from the post-reunification period to the COVID pandemic (1980-2023)

Universities, research and progress

From the challenges of the post-reunification period to current trends and innovations, studies focus on the structures, teaching and research activities as well as the social role of universities in East Germany and deal with the role of science and research as well as the economic progress of the East German Federal Republic and Saxony in particular.

At TU Dresden, the following research projects deal with this subject area:

• Infrastructural disruption? Energy transition and hydrogen supply from a sociological perspective (InDis)

• Special status in the transformation? The TU Dresden in the 'Hochschulumbau Ost' after 1989/90

• Visibility of outstanding female scientists at the TU Dresden
  Establishment of places of remembrance (completed)

• Structural change in the Lusatia region - Scientific evaluation of the potential analyses of the Lusatian economy from 2010 onwards

Art and culture

Research into art and culture in the East makes it possible to analyze creative movements, from literature to visual arts to music, which absorb both local and global impulses. It offers insights into the confrontation with the past, the reactions to social changes and the role of art and culture in shaping social discourse.

The following research projects at TU Dresden are concerned with this subject area:

• Exhibition politics. The documenta and the GDR

• Affective archives - artists' travels abroad during the GDR era

• Atlas of the Ore Mountains

• Art in Networks. The GDR and its Global Relations (completed)

• Landscapes of Surveillance: Environmental Art and the Stasi in the Global GDR

Education and upbringing

Against the backdrop of populist movements, fake news and changing environmental conditions, political education, media education and education for sustainable development play a fundamental and interdisciplinary role. The rural regions of eastern Germany in particular must master the task of strengthening their pupils' understanding of democracy and educating them to become politically responsible citizens, but against the backdrop of an increasing shortage of teachers. Non-school stakeholders are also faced with the challenge of reaching as many people as possible with their educational programmes.

The projects collected in this thematic area therefore look at the historical prerequisites for Saxony's education and training system and how this system presents itself today; on the other hand, they look for solutions to current problems and test new educational paths:

• Learning map of Saxony
• Professionalism of primary school teachers in the field of political education in Saxony

• Teachers' perceptions, attitudes and knowledge of education for sustainable development at elementary school in Saxony

• Home education in special homes in the GDR - A pedagogical-reconstructive study on the GDR education system and how it was overcome (completed)

• For their own good? Children's rights, cultural education and democracy education in Europe since 1924

• Endangered by the right. The state of political education in Saxony

• Committed and at risk - the extent and causes of right-wing threats to political education in Saxony