Center for InterAmerican Studies
International Workshop: Undoing Militarized Narconarratives (from 22 to 24 June 2026)
From 22 to 24 June 2026, the Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF) at Bielefeld University will host the international workshop "Undoing Militarized Narconarratives: Outlines of the Popular in Illegalized Markets".
Bringing together leading scholars and practitioners from Latin America, Europe, and North America, the workshop explores how dominant narratives about drugs, violence, and security shape contemporary forms of governance and social inequality. The event takes place within the framework of the Long-Term Research Group Dimensions of Regulation: Conceptualizing the Popular in the Drugs/Violence Nexus. Participants will critically examine how prohibitionist policies and militarized approaches to drug control influence everyday life, public discourse, and political institutions. Moving beyond conventional “war on drugs” perspectives, the workshop seeks to develop new ways of understanding popular economies, informal markets, and the social realities surrounding illegalized activities.
The program features contributions from internationally recognized researchers, including Rita Laura Segato, Seth Harp, Luci Cavallero, Luca Trenta, Teresa Jobson, David Barrios, Mary Ryder, and Luis Córdova. Through interdisciplinary dialogue, the workshop will address questions of violence, regulation, security, social justice, and the production of knowledge about illicit economies. By bringing together perspectives from anthropology, sociology, political science, history, cultural studies, and journalism, the workshop aims to foster critical debate on the relationship between drugs, violence, and democracy in contemporary societies.
It offers a unique opportunity for scholars, students, and interested members of the public to engage with current international research on one of the most pressing political and social issues of our time.
Conveners: Philipp Wolfesberger (Bielefeld), Estefanía Ciro Rodriguez (Caquetá, Colombia), Alke Jenss (Freiburg), Oswaldo Zavala (New York)
Date: 22–24 June 2026
Venue: Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF), Bielefeld University