CSD Seminar with Prof. Aidan McGarry (Loughborough University)

Political Voice: Protest, Democracy, and Marginalised Groups

Dr Aidan McGarry, Professor of International Relations, Institute for Diplomacy and International Governance, Loughborough University, London

Abstract: The inclusion of marginalised groups is a problem of modern democratic societies as representative democracy is built on principles which favour the majority. Around the world, some sections of society are silenced and actively excluded--including women, migrants, refugees, LGBTIQ, indigenous communities, and ethnic minorities, among others. The voice of the majority is used to contain, diminish, and oppress minorities through institutional racism, violence, erasure from public life, socio-economic exclusion, and gender inequality. As marginalised people around the globe rise up to challenge political regimes, there is a pressing need to understand what political voice is, why is it vital to marginalised and excluded people, and examine its transformative potential.
In his most recent book, (Oxford University Press), Aidan McGarry examines the agency of marginalised people, emphasizing the processes and strategies through which different communities around the world articulate their political voices. McGarry develops an innovative concept of political voice around three elements: autonomy, representation, and constitution. This conceptualization is illustrated through contemporary case studies of two persecuted and silenced groups: LGBTIQ activists in India and Roma mobilization in Europe. The cases show how excluded people articulate their ideas, demands, hopes, and experiences, and what impact these interventions have on democratic institutions. By focusing on the political voices of marginalised groups, McGarry considers democratic expression beyond the ballot box, examining how the articulation of political voice constitutes marginalised groups and democracy itself.

Aidan McGarry is Professor of International Politics and Associate Dean for Research and Innovation at Loughborough University, London, where he teaches courses on ‘Media, Social Movements and Politics’ and ‘Diplomacy in the Digital Age’. His research focuses on the political voice of minority and marginalised communities, particularly Roma across Central and Eastern Europe but also LGBTIQ communities. He has conducted research on protest movements in India, USA, UK, Turkey, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Czechia, Romania and Hungary.

He has written six books: Who Speaks for Roma? (Continuum 2010); The Politics and Discourses of Migration in Europe (co-editor, Palgrave 2013); and The Identity Dilemma: Social Movements and Collective Identity (co-editor with James Jasper, Temple University Press 2015); Romaphobia: The Last Acceptable Form of Racism (Zed 2017) which explores the causes of anti-Roma prejudice in Europe; and The Aesthetics of Global Protest: Visual Culture and Communication (co-editor, Amsterdam University Press 2019).

The event will take place in-person. If you have any questions, please email the seminar convener, Dr Jac St John, Lecturer in Politics and International Relations ([email protected])

The Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD), established in 1989, is based in the School of Social Sciences at the University of Westminster. At the Centre, academics working in politics and international relations undertake socially engaged, methodologically diverse and often interdisciplinary research that aims to address a range of critical political challenges in relation to democracy worldwide.

CSD has a longstanding international reputation for research excellence through a programme of publications, events and collaborations with academics, practitioners, policymakers, and activists. Research in Politics and International Studies at CSD was ranked 4th highest in the UK for impact in the Research Excellence Framework 2021.

The Centre has established numerous collaborations with scholars and universities around the world and has hosted encounters with public intellectuals including Luc Boltanski, Judith Butler, Stuart Hall, Bruno Latour, Richard Rorty, Quentin Skinner, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Charles Taylor, James Tully, and Michael Walzer. The CR Parekh lecture, instituted by Lord Bhikhu Parekh, has included lectures by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Arundhati Roy, and Ashis Nandy.

CSD recognises that responding to contemporary social and political challenges requires engagement beyond the academy, so actively welcomes dialogue and collaboration with researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and activists around the world. The Centre is directed by Dr Nitasha Kaul, Professor in Politics and International Relations at the University of Westminster.

Host or Publisher This seminar is organised by the Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD).