CHIBOW at a conference in Boston, MA

Each fall, the convention of the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) offers a unique platform for international as well as interdisciplinary exchange in the field. This year, its 50th annual convention took place from 6 to 9 December in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 550 different panels and round table discussions, it brought together more scholars than ever.

ESR Michal Korhel and network Lead Scientist Sabine Lee were among ASEEES’ participants. Michal organized the panel “National (Un) Mixing in the Shadow of War. Intermarriage in the wake of 20th Century Eastern Europe’s Conflicts.” It sought to illustrate and discuss how conflicts affect transnational cohabitation from the perspective of nationally mixed families. Against the background of various (post)conflict scenarios throughout 20th century Eastern Europe, originally an ethnically diverse region, three presentations (among them Michal’s on Czech-German intermarried families after WWII) showed how intermarriage was treated in periods of political and social extremes and how it was reflected in experiences of mixed families. As panel discussant, Sabine picked up on aspects of the individual talks, offering a broader view beyond the horizon of intermarriage onto the functioning of states. Notably, she drew attention to children as results of these relationships as well as bearing the consequences of official polities and social responses.