the churches as ‘the other’ of nineteenth-century scientific atheism. The main contemporary antag... more the churches as ‘the other’ of nineteenth-century scientific atheism. The main contemporary antagonists have in common that they challenge the ‘modern’ project of the scientistic ideology the New Atheists promote. Therefore, following LeDrew, the New Atheists are only superficially interested in criticising religion. Their most important agenda has been the legitimisation of scientific authority on the grounds of an evolutionistic ideology. Within the secular movement of the US, the emergence of the New Atheism caused conflict with other factions, for example, with the so-called “secular humanism” (145). LeDrew shows that the underlying tensions go back over a hundred years, since secular humanism has its own historical predecessors: the so-called “humanistic atheism” (25–27) emerged shortly after scientific atheism and took the latter’s denial of all supernatural claims for granted. Essentially, however, humanistic atheism is interested in the ongoing existence and social functioni...
Is the Economic Crisis a Crisis for Social Justice Activism? The recent economic crisis, which be... more Is the Economic Crisis a Crisis for Social Justice Activism? The recent economic crisis, which began in 2007, has had devastating impacts for people throughout the United States, with over 15 million workers out of their jobs and several million families out of their homes. Compounding these problems, demands for social services have soared at the very time that revenues to states and nonprofit organizations have decreased. At first blush, these circumstances seem ripe for social justice activism in the United States. Grievances tend to increase during recessions, thereby creating a larger pool of potential participants. Social justice movements may also have opportunities to identify new opponents (such as “big banks”) to help galvanize support, and economic crises can increase strain on political and economic structures in ways that render them more vulnerable to challenges by social movements. At the same time, difficult economic circumstances may reduce funding available to soci...
Abstract This paper examines how a social movement reproduces gender inequalities and excludes wo... more Abstract This paper examines how a social movement reproduces gender inequalities and excludes women, even in the absence of explicitly sexist ideologies and the presence of a purported commitment to gender egalitarianism. I show how a US-based movement that appears conducive to challenging dominant gender ideology—the New Atheist Movement—instead maintains a gendered movement culture that support the persistence of gender inequalities. The movement culture embraces gendered discourses and rejects feminist claims for participation or recognition. Further, a culture of men's dominance—which extends to men making claims about women's rights and criticizing women who speak out against men's abuses of power—has contributed to women respondents feeling shut out and silenced. The paper contributes to improved knowledge of how gender inequalities reproduce themselves in social movements through movement culture.
Gender mainstreaming emerged in the mid-1990s as an innovative and controversial policy tool for ... more Gender mainstreaming emerged in the mid-1990s as an innovative and controversial policy tool for reducing gender inequalities. The European Union seeks to propagate the practice of gender mainstreaming both within EU institutions and among member states. Feminist scholars and policy elites discuss and debate gender main-streaming widely, but have yet to consider how local feminist activists, who could play a central role in diffusing gender mainstreaming, understand, interpret and respond to this agenda. This paper examines whether and why local feminist movements in two cities in eastern Germany adopt gender mainstreaming. Consideration of the characteristics of the contexts in which local feminist movements are embedded clarifies the conditions under which social movements rally round new policy paradigms.
Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change, 2015
In this paper, we demonstrate the linkages between humor and political and cultural opportunities... more In this paper, we demonstrate the linkages between humor and political and cultural opportunities and present an analysis of the importance of humor for collective identity and framing in the New Atheist Movement, a social movement focused on reducing the social stigma of atheism and enforcing the separation of church and state. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of interview, ethnographic, and web-based data, we show why the New Atheist Movement is able to use humor effectively in the political and cultural environment. We further demonstrate that humor is central to the development and maintenance of collective identity and to the framing strategies used by the New Atheist Movement. Through a diverse range of forms, including jokes, mockery, and satire, humor is a form of resistance and also can be harnessed to support the goals of social movements. We use this case study as a basic for advocating for greater attention to humor within social movement studies, and greater attention to social movements in humor studies.
Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society, 2006
This article examines the development of the local women's movement in one city in eastern Ge... more This article examines the development of the local women's movement in one city in eastern Germany since German unification in 1990. Utilizing a framework that attends to issues of scale, space, and place reveals how this women's movement has both participated in and benefited from the downward scaling of women's mobilizations in the immediate postunification period. Feminist activists and organizations contributed to the constitution of the city as a place defined by its emphasis on egalitarian values and high degrees of state intervention in gender inequality and to the emergence of the city as part of a transnational space tied as much to Sweden as to Germany. Through this reimagination of the scale, space, and place of the city, the women's movement was able to position itself as a legitimate and important part of the life of the city and to successfully collaborate with local state offices and institutions to secure funding for women's organizations and pass legislation to protect women from discrimination and abuse. [End Page 551]
This article examines how the decision to use real names or pseudonyms for people, organizations,... more This article examines how the decision to use real names or pseudonyms for people, organizations, and places involves consideration of the ethics of confidentiality, the power of naming, and strategies for fieldwork and presentation of findings. While these issues are infrequently discussed in published work, qualitative researchers need to attend to how we decide what names to use in presenting our findings. Rather than avoiding discussions of confidentiality, qualitative researchers should address the implications of their decisions regarding the use of pseudonyms or real names for the confidentiality of our respondents, for our relationships with respondents, for our commitments to transformative social science, and for our findings.
... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differen... more ... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differences (Paulsen 2004). As indicated earlier, local feminist social movements have adopted gender mainstreaming to very different degrees in these two cities. ...
... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differen... more ... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differences (Paulsen 2004). As indicated earlier, local feminist social movements have adopted gender mainstreaming to very different degrees in these two cities. ...
Studies in Migration and Diaspora Series Editor: Anne J. Kershen, Queen Mary College, University ... more Studies in Migration and Diaspora Series Editor: Anne J. Kershen, Queen Mary College, University of London, UK Studies in Migration and Diaspora is a series designed to showcase the interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary nature of research in this important field. Volumes in the series cover ...
This special issue of Feminist Formations centers on the politics of the movement of feminist sch... more This special issue of Feminist Formations centers on the politics of the movement of feminist scholars within, across, and out of academic institutions, or what Patti Duncan (2014, 56) has called “academic migrations.” Too often, feminist scholars relocate or are relocated as a response to discrimination, bullying, harassment, and/or hostile work environments. Such relocations may involve changing departments/units or institutions, or leaving academia altogether. Contributors to this special issue ask how and why feminist scholars circulate within, across, and sometimes out of academic institutions, what factors drive these movements, and what the meanings and consequences of their movements are at various scales. We seek to address the continued need for critical reflection on the experiences of scholars “from the margins” in academia, and of critical mobilities, specifically exits and reroutings.
the churches as ‘the other’ of nineteenth-century scientific atheism. The main contemporary antag... more the churches as ‘the other’ of nineteenth-century scientific atheism. The main contemporary antagonists have in common that they challenge the ‘modern’ project of the scientistic ideology the New Atheists promote. Therefore, following LeDrew, the New Atheists are only superficially interested in criticising religion. Their most important agenda has been the legitimisation of scientific authority on the grounds of an evolutionistic ideology. Within the secular movement of the US, the emergence of the New Atheism caused conflict with other factions, for example, with the so-called “secular humanism” (145). LeDrew shows that the underlying tensions go back over a hundred years, since secular humanism has its own historical predecessors: the so-called “humanistic atheism” (25–27) emerged shortly after scientific atheism and took the latter’s denial of all supernatural claims for granted. Essentially, however, humanistic atheism is interested in the ongoing existence and social functioni...
Is the Economic Crisis a Crisis for Social Justice Activism? The recent economic crisis, which be... more Is the Economic Crisis a Crisis for Social Justice Activism? The recent economic crisis, which began in 2007, has had devastating impacts for people throughout the United States, with over 15 million workers out of their jobs and several million families out of their homes. Compounding these problems, demands for social services have soared at the very time that revenues to states and nonprofit organizations have decreased. At first blush, these circumstances seem ripe for social justice activism in the United States. Grievances tend to increase during recessions, thereby creating a larger pool of potential participants. Social justice movements may also have opportunities to identify new opponents (such as “big banks”) to help galvanize support, and economic crises can increase strain on political and economic structures in ways that render them more vulnerable to challenges by social movements. At the same time, difficult economic circumstances may reduce funding available to soci...
Abstract This paper examines how a social movement reproduces gender inequalities and excludes wo... more Abstract This paper examines how a social movement reproduces gender inequalities and excludes women, even in the absence of explicitly sexist ideologies and the presence of a purported commitment to gender egalitarianism. I show how a US-based movement that appears conducive to challenging dominant gender ideology—the New Atheist Movement—instead maintains a gendered movement culture that support the persistence of gender inequalities. The movement culture embraces gendered discourses and rejects feminist claims for participation or recognition. Further, a culture of men's dominance—which extends to men making claims about women's rights and criticizing women who speak out against men's abuses of power—has contributed to women respondents feeling shut out and silenced. The paper contributes to improved knowledge of how gender inequalities reproduce themselves in social movements through movement culture.
Gender mainstreaming emerged in the mid-1990s as an innovative and controversial policy tool for ... more Gender mainstreaming emerged in the mid-1990s as an innovative and controversial policy tool for reducing gender inequalities. The European Union seeks to propagate the practice of gender mainstreaming both within EU institutions and among member states. Feminist scholars and policy elites discuss and debate gender main-streaming widely, but have yet to consider how local feminist activists, who could play a central role in diffusing gender mainstreaming, understand, interpret and respond to this agenda. This paper examines whether and why local feminist movements in two cities in eastern Germany adopt gender mainstreaming. Consideration of the characteristics of the contexts in which local feminist movements are embedded clarifies the conditions under which social movements rally round new policy paradigms.
Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change, 2015
In this paper, we demonstrate the linkages between humor and political and cultural opportunities... more In this paper, we demonstrate the linkages between humor and political and cultural opportunities and present an analysis of the importance of humor for collective identity and framing in the New Atheist Movement, a social movement focused on reducing the social stigma of atheism and enforcing the separation of church and state. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of interview, ethnographic, and web-based data, we show why the New Atheist Movement is able to use humor effectively in the political and cultural environment. We further demonstrate that humor is central to the development and maintenance of collective identity and to the framing strategies used by the New Atheist Movement. Through a diverse range of forms, including jokes, mockery, and satire, humor is a form of resistance and also can be harnessed to support the goals of social movements. We use this case study as a basic for advocating for greater attention to humor within social movement studies, and greater attention to social movements in humor studies.
Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society, 2006
This article examines the development of the local women's movement in one city in eastern Ge... more This article examines the development of the local women's movement in one city in eastern Germany since German unification in 1990. Utilizing a framework that attends to issues of scale, space, and place reveals how this women's movement has both participated in and benefited from the downward scaling of women's mobilizations in the immediate postunification period. Feminist activists and organizations contributed to the constitution of the city as a place defined by its emphasis on egalitarian values and high degrees of state intervention in gender inequality and to the emergence of the city as part of a transnational space tied as much to Sweden as to Germany. Through this reimagination of the scale, space, and place of the city, the women's movement was able to position itself as a legitimate and important part of the life of the city and to successfully collaborate with local state offices and institutions to secure funding for women's organizations and pass legislation to protect women from discrimination and abuse. [End Page 551]
This article examines how the decision to use real names or pseudonyms for people, organizations,... more This article examines how the decision to use real names or pseudonyms for people, organizations, and places involves consideration of the ethics of confidentiality, the power of naming, and strategies for fieldwork and presentation of findings. While these issues are infrequently discussed in published work, qualitative researchers need to attend to how we decide what names to use in presenting our findings. Rather than avoiding discussions of confidentiality, qualitative researchers should address the implications of their decisions regarding the use of pseudonyms or real names for the confidentiality of our respondents, for our relationships with respondents, for our commitments to transformative social science, and for our findings.
... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differen... more ... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differences (Paulsen 2004). As indicated earlier, local feminist social movements have adopted gender mainstreaming to very different degrees in these two cities. ...
... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differen... more ... I selected these cases as a strategically matched pair based on key similarities and differences (Paulsen 2004). As indicated earlier, local feminist social movements have adopted gender mainstreaming to very different degrees in these two cities. ...
Studies in Migration and Diaspora Series Editor: Anne J. Kershen, Queen Mary College, University ... more Studies in Migration and Diaspora Series Editor: Anne J. Kershen, Queen Mary College, University of London, UK Studies in Migration and Diaspora is a series designed to showcase the interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary nature of research in this important field. Volumes in the series cover ...
This special issue of Feminist Formations centers on the politics of the movement of feminist sch... more This special issue of Feminist Formations centers on the politics of the movement of feminist scholars within, across, and out of academic institutions, or what Patti Duncan (2014, 56) has called “academic migrations.” Too often, feminist scholars relocate or are relocated as a response to discrimination, bullying, harassment, and/or hostile work environments. Such relocations may involve changing departments/units or institutions, or leaving academia altogether. Contributors to this special issue ask how and why feminist scholars circulate within, across, and sometimes out of academic institutions, what factors drive these movements, and what the meanings and consequences of their movements are at various scales. We seek to address the continued need for critical reflection on the experiences of scholars “from the margins” in academia, and of critical mobilities, specifically exits and reroutings.
Monster is an adult pit bull, muscular and grey, who is impounded in a large animal shelter in Lo... more Monster is an adult pit bull, muscular and grey, who is impounded in a large animal shelter in Los Angeles. Like many other dogs at the shelter, Monster is associated with marginalized humans and assumed to embody certain behaviors because of his breed. And like approximately one million shelter animals each year, Monster will be killed. The Lives and Deaths of Shelter Animals takes us inside one of the country's highest-intake animal shelters. Katja M. Guenther witnesses the dramatic variance in the narratives assigned different animals, including Monster, which dictate their chances for survival. She argues that these inequalities are powerfully linked to human ideas about race, class, gender, ability, and species. Guenther deftly explores internal hierarchies, breed discrimination, and importantly, instances of resistance and agency.
Making Their Place: Feminism After Socialism in Eastern Germany, 2010
The collapse of state socialism in eastern and central Europe in 1989 had a dramatic impact on wo... more The collapse of state socialism in eastern and central Europe in 1989 had a dramatic impact on women. Witnessing the loss of state support for their economic activity, the curtailing of their reproductive rights, and the rise of gender ideologies that value women primarily as mothers and wives rather than as active participants in the workforce, women across eastern and central Europe organized on a local level to resist these changes.
Making Their Place brings to light how feminist movements in two eastern German cities, Erfurt and Rostock, utilized local understandings of politics and gender to enhance their possibilities for meaningful social change. The book chronicles the specific reasons why place matters, the importance of localized experiences during the socialist era, and how history shapes contemporary identities, cultures, and politics. What emerges is the fascinating story of the different ways people have struggled to define themselves, their values, and their understandings of gender in a period of monumental social, economic, and political upheaval.
"The book makes a significant contribution to the on-the-ground understanding of how feminist movements and practices are shaped by the legacies of socialist women's organizing before 1989. The book is elegant and concise, perfect for teaching undergraduate classes about local politics in East Europe and political transformations after socialism . . . Overall, the book is a much-needed contribution to current feminist debates, and is perfectly suitable for courses in women's studies, sociology, anthropology, political science and East European Studies." (Kristen Ghodsee Women's Studies International Forum)
"A highlight of [Making Their Place] is its language and rhetorical clarity. . . . This book is a major achievement in the continuing analysis of East and West German feminism. It will challenge and enrich social movement debates with its insistence on place-bound mobilization." (Sabine Lang American Journal of Sociology)
"Overall, this book with its detailed case studies will prove extremely valuable to scholars of the ongoing [German Democratic Republic] studies, as well as to generalists in contemporary German studies. Its well-written prose makes this book very accessible; and the excellent concluding chapter could be included in any undergraduate course on contemporary German society." (Beret L. Norman German Studies Review)
"Making Their Place is a fascinating and insightful tale of two feminist movements after the fall of state socialism in Eastern Germany. It is one of the first and only comparative studies that dispels the myth of the East European antipathy toward feminism, revealing instead the complex factors that shape and give meaning to local feminist struggle. Through an impressive mixture of interview, observational, and archival material, Guenther exposes how larger political, cultural, and social structures give rise to local conditions that can enhance and undermine the emergence of feminist organizing. This book is a must read for those interested in social movement theory and history, social change in contemporary Europe, and the politics of gender after socialism." (Lynne Haney New York University)
"Guenther's book is an important addition to our understanding of feminism in both Germany and Europe as a whole. Too many accounts of the post-socialist transition note the extraordinary rise of feminist movements in many Eastern European countries in 1989, but then assume that these efforts soon ended in defeat. Guenther shows that feminism, though no longer conspicuous at the national level, is still a vital force in many cities and communities. By emphasizing the relationship between international, national, local, and regional identities, Guenther provides a useful critique of conventional accounts of feminism, which is still presented mainly in national contexts." (Ann Taylor Allen Women's History Review)
"Guenther's detailed comparative work affirms that the socialist past matters, but it matters variously, even in places with a seemingly similar history. . . . Making Their Place certainly satisfies as an insightful and well-written comparative study of how the differential development of 'place character' shapes potentials for and forms of feminist organizing and is variously shaped by these efforts in turn." (Sarah D. Phillips American Ethnologist)
"Making Their Place is a welcome contribution to the literature of activism, movements, and (feminist) political change. Those interested in feminist organizing will enjoy it and learn from it, as will anyone who wants to explore the dynamics of post-socialist Europe. Her book is a well-argued example of how to think about history, culture and local political contexts in tandem. As more and more studies of social movements rightly draw our attention to the global opportunities for and challenges to grassroots organizing, Guenther reminds us to consider questions of place along with questions of scale." (Benita Roth Contemporary Sociology)
"If you are interested in how and why social movements evolve in times of political and cultural upheaval, you must read Making Their Place. In a beautifully written and innovatively theorized book, Guenther demonstrates how feminist organizations in two East German cities, Rostock and Erfurt, diverged following the fall of state socialism in 1989. Guenther examines the ways in which differences in place influence the emergence, opportunities, and outcomes of two local feminist organizations. Guenther introduces a new theory to social movements by combining political, cultural and spatial perspectives. This research contributes not only to understanding feminist movements and social change in Europe, but also to overarching conversations about connections between social movements, context, politics and culture." (Alison Dahl Crossley University of California, Santa Barbara, Mobilization)
"Making Their Place is not only well researched but also beautifully written . . . While Guenther is clearly a masterful sociologist, she apparently has the patience of a good historian. The book is based on rich data from many years of fieldwork, including a multisite ethnographic study with observations and extensive interviewing, as well as archival research and document analysis . . . It is a must-read for scholars of gender politics, women's movements, German feminism and postsocialist studies." (Kathrin Zippel Gender & Society)
"Guenther's book presents a remarkable contribution to scholarly understanding of the women's movement in Eastern Germany. She manages to combine a multitude of perspectives, observations on the developments in eastern Germany as a result of very specific traditions and regional dynamics, and thoughtful comparisons with positions in western Germany, Scandinavia, and the U.S. The study excels in its neutrality towards ideology, thereby delivering some relief from the trench warfare of the 1990s between the 'stepsisters' of the East and the West. Guenther, therefore, may be seen as a representative of a new generation of feminist researchers who will seek to determine the direction of feminist discourse from a greater historical distance." (Ingrid Miethe German Politics and Society)
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Papers by Katja M Guenther
Making Their Place brings to light how feminist movements in two eastern German cities, Erfurt and Rostock, utilized local understandings of politics and gender to enhance their possibilities for meaningful social change. The book chronicles the specific reasons why place matters, the importance of localized experiences during the socialist era, and how history shapes contemporary identities, cultures, and politics. What emerges is the fascinating story of the different ways people have struggled to define themselves, their values, and their understandings of gender in a period of monumental social, economic, and political upheaval.
"The book makes a significant contribution to the on-the-ground understanding of how feminist movements and practices are shaped by the legacies of socialist women's organizing before 1989. The book is elegant and concise, perfect for teaching undergraduate classes about local politics in East Europe and political transformations after socialism . . . Overall, the book is a much-needed contribution to current feminist debates, and is perfectly suitable for courses in women's studies, sociology, anthropology, political science and East European Studies." (Kristen Ghodsee Women's Studies International Forum)
"A highlight of [Making Their Place] is its language and rhetorical clarity. . . . This book is a major achievement in the continuing analysis of East and West German feminism. It will challenge and enrich social movement debates with its insistence on place-bound mobilization." (Sabine Lang American Journal of Sociology)
"Overall, this book with its detailed case studies will prove extremely valuable to scholars of the ongoing [German Democratic Republic] studies, as well as to generalists in contemporary German studies. Its well-written prose makes this book very accessible; and the excellent concluding chapter could be included in any undergraduate course on contemporary German society." (Beret L. Norman German Studies Review)
"Making Their Place is a fascinating and insightful tale of two feminist movements after the fall of state socialism in Eastern Germany. It is one of the first and only comparative studies that dispels the myth of the East European antipathy toward feminism, revealing instead the complex factors that shape and give meaning to local feminist struggle. Through an impressive mixture of interview, observational, and archival material, Guenther exposes how larger political, cultural, and social structures give rise to local conditions that can enhance and undermine the emergence of feminist organizing. This book is a must read for those interested in social movement theory and history, social change in contemporary Europe, and the politics of gender after socialism." (Lynne Haney New York University)
"Guenther's book is an important addition to our understanding of feminism in both Germany and Europe as a whole. Too many accounts of the post-socialist transition note the extraordinary rise of feminist movements in many Eastern European countries in 1989, but then assume that these efforts soon ended in defeat. Guenther shows that feminism, though no longer conspicuous at the national level, is still a vital force in many cities and communities. By emphasizing the relationship between international, national, local, and regional identities, Guenther provides a useful critique of conventional accounts of feminism, which is still presented mainly in national contexts." (Ann Taylor Allen Women's History Review)
"Guenther's detailed comparative work affirms that the socialist past matters, but it matters variously, even in places with a seemingly similar history. . . . Making Their Place certainly satisfies as an insightful and well-written comparative study of how the differential development of 'place character' shapes potentials for and forms of feminist organizing and is variously shaped by these efforts in turn." (Sarah D. Phillips American Ethnologist)
"Making Their Place is a welcome contribution to the literature of activism, movements, and (feminist) political change. Those interested in feminist organizing will enjoy it and learn from it, as will anyone who wants to explore the dynamics of post-socialist Europe. Her book is a well-argued example of how to think about history, culture and local political contexts in tandem. As more and more studies of social movements rightly draw our attention to the global opportunities for and challenges to grassroots organizing, Guenther reminds us to consider questions of place along with questions of scale." (Benita Roth Contemporary Sociology)
"If you are interested in how and why social movements evolve in times of political and cultural upheaval, you must read Making Their Place. In a beautifully written and innovatively theorized book, Guenther demonstrates how feminist organizations in two East German cities, Rostock and Erfurt, diverged following the fall of state socialism in 1989. Guenther examines the ways in which differences in place influence the emergence, opportunities, and outcomes of two local feminist organizations. Guenther introduces a new theory to social movements by combining political, cultural and spatial perspectives. This research contributes not only to understanding feminist movements and social change in Europe, but also to overarching conversations about connections between social movements, context, politics and culture." (Alison Dahl Crossley University of California, Santa Barbara, Mobilization)
"Making Their Place is not only well researched but also beautifully written . . . While Guenther is clearly a masterful sociologist, she apparently has the patience of a good historian. The book is based on rich data from many years of fieldwork, including a multisite ethnographic study with observations and extensive interviewing, as well as archival research and document analysis . . . It is a must-read for scholars of gender politics, women's movements, German feminism and postsocialist studies." (Kathrin Zippel Gender & Society)
"Guenther's book presents a remarkable contribution to scholarly understanding of the women's movement in Eastern Germany. She manages to combine a multitude of perspectives, observations on the developments in eastern Germany as a result of very specific traditions and regional dynamics, and thoughtful comparisons with positions in western Germany, Scandinavia, and the U.S. The study excels in its neutrality towards ideology, thereby delivering some relief from the trench warfare of the 1990s between the 'stepsisters' of the East and the West. Guenther, therefore, may be seen as a representative of a new generation of feminist researchers who will seek to determine the direction of feminist discourse from a greater historical distance." (Ingrid Miethe German Politics and Society)