Corruption’s ‘New’ Subjectivities
Donna M. Goldstein and K. Drybread
AAA/CASCA Call For Abstracts 2019
Worldwide, contemporary stories of corruption tend to center on either the myriad ways the rich exploit tax regimes or the ways that powerful politicians abuse their offices to retain power and secure private financial gain. Indeed, the organizers of this panel have recently written about these sorts of scandals in the Latin American context, exploring ‘the social life of corruption’ mainly among the region’s political class (Goldstein and Drybread 2018). In addition to examining the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff (Ansell 2018), the racialization of criminality (Drybread 2018), and the ‘white-collar’ classed parameters of nuclear expertise in Brazil (Goldstein 2018), our collaborators also examined representations of indigeneity in corruption narratives in Ecuador (Lyall 2018), the so-called ‘moral corruption’ of indigenous peoples in Peru (Peluso 2018), and the ways in which paramilitary leaders gained high moral standing during Columbia’s Dirty War (Tate 2018).
Together, these essays have taught us that corruption does not always involve political or even large-scale financial schemes, nor does it hew to a particular political ideology. Corruption is an evolving social practice that is always shaped by local histories, power configurations, and expressions of subjectivity. And anthropological research is uniquely positioned to offer unique perspectives on how corruption is practiced (and by whom), and how it comes to be understood and experienced by those who benefit—and those who suffer most—from its practice.
Taking as a point of departure Richard Sennet’s discussion of the corrosion of character that marks the contemporary configuration of global capitalism (2000), this panel explores the practices by which those with access to power have recently expanded their wealth and influence through legal schemes and illegal means, even as responsibility for their potential and actual wrongdoings has become democratized. We can all point to the 2008 financial crisis and recognize that no unscrupulous bankers or real estate brokers went to prison for their part in ‘millennial capitalism,’ but many poor homebuyers and small businesses owners are still paying dearly for the market’s losses (Comaroff and Comaroff 2001). As we move further into the 21st century, inequality is deepening and corruption is becoming more common—or at least more apparent. But have new subjectivities emerged from corruption’s advance?
Through the examination of recent corruption cases and actors in sites around the globe, this panel seeks to answer the following questions:
Why do so many recent corruption cases seem to hinge on ‘redundant desires’ of actors who have so much already, but still want more?
What can we learn from the fact that so many of these cases have exposed not only the illegalities of the rich, the powerful, and the famous, but also their personal and collective insecurities?
How can we understand the new subjectivities produced in this advancing constellation?
From the recent college admissions scandal that exposed how wealthy parents paid illegal bribes to get their children into to prestigious U.S. Universities, to the scandals involving politicians who have raided government funds, to the sex scandals that have endangered powerful Hollywood players, contemporary corruption scandals seem to involve the excessive and redundant desires and fragile egos of the rich and the powerful. Does this suggest that new subjectivities are being formed in relation to contemporary practices of corruption?
We are seeking a few additional participants to address this theme at the upcoming AAA/CASCA conference in Vancouver 2019. If you are interested in participating, please send your abstract (250 words or less) to Donna M. Goldstein ([log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>) or K. Drybread ([log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>) by April 7th 2019.
___________________________
Donna M. Goldstein
Professor, Anthropology
CB233 Hale Building
University of Colorado Boulder
Boulder, Colorado 80309-0233
fax.: (303) 492-1871
telephone: (303) 492-5484
[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Sites:
https://www.colorado.edu/anthropology/gradstudy/donna-m-goldstein
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