The Red House Centre for Culture and Debate presents:

Is It Easy To be a Nationalist?
debate

We search for a well motivated answer to the question Why am I/why am I not a nationalist today, here and now?, with this debate we try to understand the nature and ideology of the fastly growing in influence movement of the nationalistic-minded youth.

With the participation of: Boyan Rassate (Bulgarian National Union) and Angel Djambazki (head of the national youth Committee of VMRO) who argue with Dessislava Lilova (Cultural Studies, Southwestern University “Heofit Rilski”) and Alexey Kalionski (Balkan History, Sofia University “St. Climent Ohridski”)

Moderator: Deyan Kiuranov

More information about the invited participants:

Angel Dzhambazky (born in 1979 in Sofia) is the president of VMRO – Sofia. He has graduated at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” in Law Faculty. He is regional organizer for the district of Sofia and Pernik, chairman of the National Youth Committee of VMRO – BNM (Bulgarian National Movement), chairman of the Sofia District Committee (2001-2006).





Boyan Rasate (his real name is Boyan Boyanov, but his followers call him Rasate, as the name of the first-born son of tzar Boris I – Vladimir Rasate) is the leader of the Bulgarian National Union (BNS), related to “Guards” nationalistic political party.
The leader of BNS declares himself as a bulgarian nationalist. He has worked for the patriotic cause since his twenties. Married with one child. He was born in Sofia, but was brought up in Germany. At present he is finishing his studies in Political sciences at New Bulgarian University.

Desislava Lilova is an associate professor at the department of Theory and History of Culture at the Southwestern University “Neofit Rilski”, Blagoevgrad. She works on relationships between history and memory, modernity-nation-identity. She specialized in Paris, participates in series of scientific research projects. Lilova publishes many studies and reviews in a number of academic editions in the country and abroad. She publishes also in the specialized periodicals. Some of her most important publications include: “Europe and the barbarians in the national revival imagination”, "L'histoire universelle a l'appui d'une culture nationale. L'experience de l'Eveil bulgare du XIXe siecle", “The popular pre-nationalism of Bulgarian people”, “The National Revival visions for national identity: resources for analysis”. In the press is her latest interdisciplinary study “The National Revival meanings of the national name”.

Dr. Aleksey Kalionsky (born in 1963) graduated in History at the Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” (1986).
He is a post-graduate student in Balkan History (1987).
Assistant professor in History of Russia at the department of History at Sofia University (1989). Professor in Balkan History at Sofia University, specialist on minorities and the state policy towards them. Dr Aleksey Kalionski is head assistant in the department of New and Contemporary History at Sofia University. He is a lecturer in History of Russia and in different aspects of the otomanian period in South Eastern Europe. His sphere of interest is related to migrations, nomad and other communities, their relationships with the empires and the national states.

More important publications:
Macedonian issues I, II AND III – in: 1000 days, issues 5,6,7, 1991(co-author with V. Kolev)
A view on the ethno-religious coexistence in the southern part of the Middle Rhodopa mountain (Dospat, Devin and Chepelare districts) – in: Aspects of the ethno-cultural situation in Bulgaria, part II, Sofia, 1992
The Yoruks and the ethnic self-determination of the Turkish population in the Devin district (Borino and Giovren villages) – in: The Ethnic picture in Bulgaria, Sofia 1993.
Historical, geographical, social and political aspects of the Balkan nomadic movement during the Otomanian period – in: The Alternative in History, Sofia, 1993.
The Pomak Dilemma. - In: La transmission du savoir dans le monde musulman periferique. Lettre d'information 13, CNRS, Paris, 1993.
The Yoruks in South Western Bulgaria (Dupnitza and Blagoevgrad districts) from the 1670’s until the end of the 19th century – in: Ethnologia magazine (in the press)
Three textbooks on History of the Republic of Macedonia – in: The Image of the other in the Bulgarian history textbooks, Sofia, 1998
A study on the Karakachans - in: Democratic Review magazine (in the press).

This event is part of the series “The newly emerging civic movements”, in which we try to confront the representatives of the newly emerging movements with their opponents in a dispute of arguments, and not emotions.
With the support of the Balkan Trust for Democracy.

April 18 (Friday) 2008, 7.00 p.m.
Red hall
In Bulgarian.
Tickets: 2/1 BGN

Back to Debates