Civil society Quote by Andrej Grubačić
““Imperial and colonial attitudes still define the terms 'civilized world,' 'international community' and 'civil society.' Balkan people were never too impressed by civilization. As early as 1871, the founder of the Balkan socialist movement, Svetozar Marković, ridiculed the entire 'civilized world,' from Times to the obedient Serbian press. The civilized world, he wrote, 'was composed of rich Englishmen, Brussels ministers and their deputies (the representatives of the capitalists), the European rulers and their marshals, generals, and other magnates, Viennese bankers and Belegrade journalists'...[he] believed...in a pluricultural Balkan Federation organized as a decentralized, directly demotractic society based on local agricultural and industrial associations. This is the kind of antinomian imagination that needs to be rediscovered: a horizontalist tradition of the barbarians who never accepted the civilized world that is now collapsing. (p.44)””
About This Quote
Source Book: Balkan Horizons, 2020
The quote critiques how imperial and colonial mindsets shape concepts like 'civilized world' and advocates for a decentralized, multicultural Balkan federation based on local cooperation.
In simple terms: Critiques imperial definitions and calls for local, cooperative governance.
Key Takeaway
Embrace grassroots, multicultural organization.
Themes
colonialism
imperialism
decentralization
multiculturalism
political theory
Mood
critical
reflective
Type
philosophical
political
When to use this quote
- policy design
- community organizing
- academic research
- activism
- regional cooperation
Key Concepts
horizontalist tradition
antinomian imagination
federalism
Questions to Reflect On
- How can local associations challenge dominant global narratives?
- What obstacles arise when building decentralized federations?
A Different Perspective
Such ideas may clash with entrenched power structures and economic interests.
![“The construct of a new, fictional 'Balkans' [is] a result of linguistic violence beginning with the verb 'to balkanize,' which most of the world's dictionaries define primarily as 'to divide.' Linguistic terrorism is only one part of the larger process of stigmatization that aims to establish…” quote by Andrej Grubacic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/124/andrej-gruba-i-55033_language_the-construct-of-a-new-fictional-balkans_1808015.jpg)
![“The social [media channel] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection, and community. That's what there's too little of in today's mediascape, despite all the hoopla surrounding social tools. The promise…” quote by Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c85/umair-haque-25881_beauty_the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-bea_1270.jpg)
![“[T]here are, at bottom, basically two ways to order social affairs, Coercively, through the mechanisms of the state - what we can call political society. And voluntarily, through the private interaction of individuals and associations - what we can call civil society. ... In a civil society, you…” quote by Ed Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b8b/ed-crane-39299_affair_t-here-are-at-bottom-basically-two-ways_34431.jpg)
