From Recherches sur les Suds et les Orients
Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
ReSO (Recherches sur les Suds et les Orients)
International Conference
July 2027
Sacco & Vanzetti 1927-2027
Call for Papers
Unlike millions of Italian migrants who reached American shores in the 1920s and lived anonymous lives, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti became household names. Their arrest, trial, and execution captured the attention of the world. Left and right, people demanded that Nick and Bart be granted a reprieve. This was not only true across the political spectrum (even Benito Mussolini made such a request), but also among a variety of unions and intellectual circles (Simone de Beauvoir remembers signing a petition for their pardon as one of the earliest steps that would lead to her subsequent political engagement). Until Sacco and Vanzetti’s execution, protesters filled the streets and town squares throughout the world. And then, with the exception of the libertarian groups which continued to honour Sacco and Vanzetti, people gradually forgot about the affair. In 1971, however, Giuliano Montaldo’s movie Sacco & Vanzetti put their case back on the map, to such an extent that in 1977, the then-governor of Massachusetts (Michael Dukakis) rehabilitated Sacco and Vanzetti. A parallel has often been drawn here with the Dreyfus affair, given the way both men found themselves trapped in the political and legal system. From comics to musical operas, the arts have drawn inspiration from the case. August 23, the date of their execution, is now marked annually in the mainstream press (at least in France).
This conference invites papers from all disciplinary fields (for example, history, historiography, politics) and especially encourages comparative and transnational analyses of the Sacco and Vanzetti affair. Contributions may address (for example) the dynamics of the campaigns in and across different locations, the influence of Italian diaspora communities on mobilisations and methods of action outside Italy, campaign practices and/or innovations in practice, the mainstream and militant press coverage of the campaigns over the course of the arrest, trials, protests and executions, the weight of political and judicial arguments in the conduct of the release campaigns and the role, scope and evolution of art in memorialising Sacco and Vanzetti as anarchists and/or victims of injustice.
Conference languages: French, Italian, English, Spanish
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Calendar
The Conference will take place at Montpellier Paul-Valéry University in July 2027 (three days to be determined between the 1st and the 10th).
Abstracts should be sent before 15th April 2026.
The results of the selection process will be announced on 30 May 2026.
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Abstracts
Title
Abstract maximum 500 words
Name and institutional affiliation
Resume maximum 200 words
Email address
send to isabelle.felici@umpv.fr
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Conference proceedings will be published following the event.
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Conference registration fee €30
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Organizing committee
Irene Cacopardi ReSO Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Isabelle Felici ReSO Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Raphaël Ricaud EMMA Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Lucia Campanella Universitat Oberta de Catalunya Barcelone
María Miguelañez Universidad Carlos 3 Madrid
Patrick Taïeb IRCL Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
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Scientific Committe
Pierre Delpu Université de Valence
Isabelle Felici ReSO Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Ruth Kinna Loughborough University
Anne Morelli Université Libre de Bruxelles
Claudine Raynaud EMMA Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Raphaël Ricaud EMMA Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Giorgio Sacchetti chercheur indépendant
Susana Sueiro Seoane UNED Madrid
Marie-Eve Thérenty RIRRA21 Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Mihaela Tudor CORHIS Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry
Sidonie Verhaeghe CERAPS Université de Lille
Contact: isabelle.felici@umpv.fr
Document Appel à communication: https://reso.www.univ-montp3.fr/fr/file/112093/download?token=TXBsss_a
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