While election campaigns here and there are more polarizing than ever, the Austrian-American Society (ÖAG) is emphasizing what unites us. MeinBezirk spoke to Americanist Roberta Maierhofer about false assumptions and cultural exchange.
GRAZ/STYRIA. If in the USA Presidential elections are coming up, the domestic media landscape is not unaffected. “Of course there are many people here who are asking themselves what this has to do with me,” said the GrazerAmericanist Roberta Maierhoferwho assures: “Perhaps the effects are not immediately felt by someone here, but in one way or another such political changes permeate international affairs, because ultimately all countries are related.”
Maierhofer pursues her special interest in the “Land of the Free” as president of the Styrian regional organization of the Austrian-American Society (ÖAG)Despite many serious differences between the democratic systems on both sides of the Atlantic, she sees the increasing polarization in the red-white-red political landscape as a parallel to the duel between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump: “But the USA has always been a divided country with the two major parties, the liberal Democrats and the conservative Republicans, and actually quite different from what we know from the European context.”
Even today’s flood of information has hardly changed the fact that for many – contrary to their own assumptions – “the American soul” remains a closed book. “We Europeans only think we know the USA so well because it is so present through TV series, through films, through the constant images and now also the reporting on the presidential election,” says Maierhofer.
But the reality on the ground is much more complex and political competencies much less centralized organized than is often expected. “For example, when Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement as president, it caused a great stir in Europe. But despite this, the 50 US states have individually taken many rights and strong measures in environmental protection.”
Dates around election day
In order to promote mutual understanding as well as cultural and economic exchange, the ÖAG (engl.: Austro-American Society for Styria, Anm.) in Graz a variety of events – for example on Martin Luther King Day in honor of the African-American civil rights activist who was murdered in 1968, with traditional celebrations for Independence Day the USA on July 4th or Thanksgivingthe American equivalent of Thanksgiving.
As an “information portal” for Americans living in Styria and Americanophile Styrians, the society is also dedicated to current political discourse. For example, on November 4, the day before the US presidential election with a Panel discussion in the premises of the Urania Steiermark (Start: 5.15 p.m.) And on November 6, the day after the election, the Center for Inter-American Studies the University of Graz from 9 to 11 am the so-called “Election Brunch” instead of.
Further information about ÖAG Styria: www.oag-stmk.at
You might also be interested in:
Minister Gewessler comes to Graz for climate talks
Programme highlights of the Graz Autumn Fair
