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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar
@ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
610 followers 820 following 90 posts

Prof U of Toronto. Studying illiberalism, race, periphery: how are these three connected? East and South peripheries of the EU. Jews, Muslims, Islamophobia, antisemitism. Author of White But Not Quite: Central Europe's Illiberal Revolt. .. more

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Ivan Kalmar is a Czechoslovakian-born Canadian professor.

Source: Wikipedia
Political science 53%
Sociology 25%
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · 3d
It seems that in the Czech parliamentary election, there was a successful effort by voters to elect female candidates.
denikn.cz/1859395/vysl...
Výsledek je pro nás šok, překonali jsme kritickou masu, říká vedoucí iniciativy Zakroužkuj ženu
„Před čtyřmi lety jsme co chvíli četli, jak si vymýšlíme a že si tu ženy přece žijí úplně stejný život jako muži a my chceme jen tupě prosazovat jedno pohlaví bez ohledu na kompetence,“ říká v rozhovo...
denikn.cz
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · 4d
In the Czech parliamentary elections, parties from the left to the centre-right received 89.59% of the vote, and A. Babiš's "populist" ANO only 3.24% - among Czech voters in Canada. (Not quite so back home.)
www.seznamzpravy.cz/p/vysledky-v...
Volby 2025 a Kanada - Výsledky voleb online
Volby 2025: Kanada – aktuální výsledky online – průběžné i konečné. Všechny informace o volbách a jejich průběhu přehledně.
www.seznamzpravy.cz
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · 12d
Orbán's mouthpiece newspaper Magyar Nemzet revels in Trump's plans to prosecute George Soros, Orbán's long-term obsession. This is perhaps the most striking of the many parallels between Hungarian and American autocracy today.
magyarnemzet.hu/kulfold/2025...
Sorosék ellen hamarosan vádat emelhetnek
A Trump-kormányzat ezzel a USAID leépítése után a baloldali korrupciós hálózat másik fontos pillérét ütheti ki.
magyarnemzet.hu
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · 28d
The Progressive Slovakia party is the country's most popular, ahead of the leading "populist" Smer.
www.politico.eu/europe-poll-...
POLITICO Poll of Polls — Slovakian polls, trends and election news for Slovakia
POLLING FROM ACROSS EUROPE. UPDATED DAILY. Slovakia — National parliament voting intention What is Poll of Polls and how does it work? Read more here. Slovakia — European election 2024 results…
www.politico.eu
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Sep 5
Looks like even Fico could not refuse to sign this statement; Orbán could.
www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/ukraine...
Ukraine/Russia: Statement by the High Representative on the latest Russian attacks against Ukraine
This statement is supported by 26 EU Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembo...
www.eeas.europa.eu

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Sep 2
Even his mentor Viktor Orbán is not doing this.
www.reuters.com/world/china/...
Slovak Prime Minister Fico to meet Xi, Putin, Zelenskiy this week
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico will hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at China's World War Two anniversary celebrations in Beijing this week, Fico said on Monday.
www.reuters.com

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Sep 1
For his sake, let's wish him a speedy recovery and for the country's sake, let's wish this doesn't make him more likely to be elected.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Andrej Babis: Czech opposition leader hit in head with crutch at rally
Andrej Babis's party blamed the government for creating a climate of hate against the ex-PM.
www.bbc.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Aug 21
Orbán's geopolitical ideology in a nutshell: Hungary is a "Western country," but the only one with a good relationship with Russia.
telex.hu/english/2025...
Szijjártó: Trump did not call Viktor Orbán after his talks with European leaders
The reports about such a call are false according to the minister. He did not, however, exclude the possibility of Budapest hosting talks between Zelensky and Putin.
telex.hu

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Aug 11
"Ukraine should not be admitted to the European Union, bringing in the war with it – even if the whole of Brussels responds by throwing a fit." - Viktor Orbán
miniszterelnok.hu/en/lecture-o...
Lecture of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at the 34th Bálványos Summer Free University and Student Camp - The official website of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, Distinguished Attendees at the Free University.
miniszterelnok.hu
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Aug 5
Interesting word of the day: tsundoku 積ん読 (Japanese) - to buy books and not read them or only read a part of them. Apparently this is considered to be a positive thing in Japan, as you may possibly read the works later.
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 31
The idea of Central (and NOT Eastern) Europe has been around for some 200 years. Is it anti-E-Eur racism? Is it the vision of a global role for a marginalized area? Nationalities Papers has now accepted our Special Issue proposal on the topic. @salvapappalardo.bsky.social @brasky.bsky.social
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 25
There is a Horizon Synergy grant call out, on antisemitism in Europe. If anyone is involved in that and would like me and the University of Toronto to come on board with a project connecting antisemitism and Islamophobia, then let me know.(Or if you know someone who might be interested.)

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 25
Remember when people said Western democracy failed in the East because the Eastern Europe was "so different"? Well it's been failing in the West too—because the crisis of liberal capitalism is global. Glad @ambpressman.bsky.social avoids that tired East-West trope.
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
www.nytimes.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 20
"Ivan is a Ukrainian name. Ivan is a big guy who lives in a village and works for his family. It's a hard punch, Ivan." Might Usyk have named his left hook after Rocky's Cold War nemesis, Ivan Drago? Was Ivan Ukrainian?
www.bbc.com/sport/boxing...
Usyk vs Dubois 2: Oleksandr Usyk & 'Ivan' - the untouchable duo who can't be beaten?
BBC Sport looks at where Oleksandr Usyk ranks among the all-time heavyweight greats and who in the current generation could beat him.
www.bbc.com

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 18
The Polish ambassador to Budapest has been recalled, marking perhaps the worst turn in Polish-Hungarian relations since Donald Tusk became the prime minister of Poland.
notesfrompoland.com/2025/07/18/p...
Poland withdraws ambassador to Hungary in row over asylum for opposition politician
notesfrompoland.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 13
Trump is lying again. EU-US tariffs on each other are similar overall. (The EU does protect its farm products, while the US gets a large surplus from exporting services.) Don't expect this nonsense to stop, though.

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 6
Czech poll shows the "populist" ANO party way ahead of the rest, with about 30% support.
www.lidovky.cz/domov/volebn...
SPOLU oslabilo v průzkumech méně, než se čekalo. A co ostatní formace?
Podle průzkumu společnosti STEM by sněmovní volby v červnu opět vyhrálo hnutí ANO s 30,9 procenta. Preference koalice SPOLU lehce klesly, stále by ale zůstala druhá s 20,5 procenta. Třetí by skončila ...
www.lidovky.cz
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jul 4
"Since Donald Trump took office, practically everything has changed in the world. (...) We Hungarians are pround that we are among the standard bearers of this revulution." Hungarian FM Péter Szijjártó.
444.hu/2025/07/02/s...
Szijjártó: A határ a csillagos ég Magyarország és az Egyesült Államok kapcsolatában
„Trump elnökkel a világ biztonságosabbá vált. Az újabb háborúk rövidebbek lettek, a régiek pedig, úgy tűnik, hogy kifulladnak.”
444.hu

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 30
Great article by @zsolt.bsky.social and B. Stanley. As I've been trying to say also, illiberalism in "Eastern Europe" has never been unrelated to "the West" or "anti-Western." Also because, as Z and S show, the West isn't what it used to be.
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Farewell to the liberal consensus: the intellectualisation of political projects in Poland and Hungary - European Political Science
The article investigates the intellectual foundations of the political projects led by Jarosław Kaczyński and Viktor Orbán. We demonstrate that next to homegrown populist and traditionalist ideas, the...
link.springer.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 29
"I am so bored of fascism," one poster said.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Thousands party at Budapest Pride in clear message to Orban
A giant crowd throngs the Hungarian capital, championing LGBT rights and defying PM Viktor Orban.
www.bbc.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 28
It's not really a culture war. It's a clash opposing people who respect others and love in its many forms, to people who don't respect others and also don't respect love. Both kind are found in all cuiltures, in Hungary as much as elsewhere.
www.politico.eu/article/orba...
Orbán vs. von der Leyen: Budapest Pride takes center stage in Europe’s culture war
Dozens of prominent European politicians are heading to Hungary for Pride, but the country’s conservative government insists the parade is illegal.
www.politico.eu
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 25
The Orbán government declares that it has the right to buy any Hungarian company before it is sold to foreigners.
forbes.hu/uzlet/fevasa...
Mostantól az állam elővásárlási jogot kaphat minden eladó magyar cégre - Forbes.hu
Módosították a külföldiek részesedésszerzésére vonatkozó rendeletet, ami teljes bizonytalanságot hozhat a magyar cégpiacra.
forbes.hu

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 24
It's very likely that this is directed from Russia, but the methodological problem is how to prove it - that it's not just Russia sympathizers spontaneously reposting.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
The Telegram channels spreading pro-Russian propaganda in Poland
Telegram channels sharing disinformation in Polish are pushing the Kremlin’s narrative, experts warn.
www.bbc.com

ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · Jun 3
Etsuko Kato, who lead the translation team, says that the new, Japanese version of my book White But Not Quite got excellent reviews in the leading national newspapers Asahi Shimbun (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Asa...), Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) & elsewhere (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nik...).
The Asahi Shimbun - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · May 31
"Viktor Orban's promise to make Budapest the intellectual capital of dissident European conservatism has come true."
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Europe's US-backed conservatives hope this is their moment to go mainstream
Donald Trump's return to the White House helps Europe's nationalists and populists find their voice.
www.bbc.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · May 29
My Epilogue argues that a "primary racialization" of Eastern Europeans is, like all racialization, directly generated by capitalist accumulation. But then, in a secondary racialization, those racialized try to deflect their own stigmatization onto others (from) farther East.
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · May 29
A recording of the book launch event is now available of this groundbreaking work edited by Kasia Narkowicz, annagawlewicz.bsky.social & Konrad Pędziwiatr, a groundbreaking collection on migration from AND INTO postsocialist countries of the EU.
youtube.com/watch?v=wAy5...
SPRC Book Launch: 'Migration and Race - Central and Eastern European Perspectives'
YouTube video by SPRC Social Policy Research Centre
youtube.com
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · May 26
I have learned so much from this meeting, and am looking forward to editing a special issue on the Notion of Central Europe. It is way much more complex and far more interesting than even those of us thought who came to gether to discuss it.
salvapappalardo.bsky.social
Salvatore Pappalardo @salvapappalardo.bsky.social · May 24
Lovely, stimulating, and productive conversations at the Mitteleuropa and Central Europe workshop conference at the University of Toronto. Many thanks to @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social for the generous hospitality.
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Reposted by Ivan Kalmár

salvapappalardo.bsky.social
Salvatore Pappalardo @salvapappalardo.bsky.social · May 24
Lovely, stimulating, and productive conversations at the Mitteleuropa and Central Europe workshop conference at the University of Toronto. Many thanks to @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social for the generous hospitality.
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ivan-kalmar.bsky.social
Ivan Kalmar @ivan-kalmar.bsky.social · May 20
More on this in my interview with Andrew Schultz on QR Calgary, May 21 at 7:30 MT.