The Croatian Diaspora in Argentina: From Martyrs to Memory Guardians | Nikolina Židek (Madrid) in conversation with Katarina Damčević (IOS) and Sara Žerić-Đulović (IOS)

This session brings Nikolina Židek's new book The Croatian Diaspora in Argentina: From Martyrs to Memory Guardians (Routledge/ CEU Press, 2026) into dialogue as part of the LSC seed-funded initiative aimed at developing a university course titled "Contested Symbols and Memory Politics: A Transatlantic Knowledge Exchange on Identity, Conflict, and Public Space," led by Katarina Damčević (IOS), Vjeran Pavlaković (University of Rijeka), and Nikolina Židek (IE University Madrid).

Židek's study of how Croatian diasporic communities in Argentina have reshaped their commemorative practices offers a rich case study for the project's broader inquiry into how contested symbols and memory politics travel across the Atlantic. The discussion will explore diaspora identity, transitional justice, and the politics of remembrance in transnational Croatian communities.

All are welcome to attend. No registration is required.

Nikolina Židek is a Lecturer in Political Science and International Relations at IE University Madrid’s School of Politics, Economics, and Global Affairs. She is also a researcher specializing in diaspora and memory studies. She holds a PhD in Political Science from the Complutense University of Madrid. Her current research examines the Croatian post–World War II diaspora in Latin America and Spain, as well as Spanish exile in Yugoslavia.

Katarina Damčević is a research associate at the Department of Politics at IOS. Her research centers on the semiotics of hate speech and controversial symbols in (post)conflict societies with a regional focus on Southeast Europe.

Sara Žerić Đulović is a research associate at the Department of History at IOS. He research focuses on the social history of socialist Yugoslavia, especially in the process of modernisation, migration and women's history.

The Leibniz ScienceCampus offers seed funding for collaborative research and outreach projects. This event is supported by a seed funding grant, which was awarded on a competitive basis to further cooperation. The current call has a deadline of 30 November 2026 and we encourage colleagues based at IOS or UR to apply for support of up to 2,000 EUR.