The politics of labelling: from personal to collective (not-so) nonreligious identifications in Argentina

RABBIA, HUGO H.; VAGGIONE, JUAN MARCO

Conferencia; Nonreligion and Secularity Research Network (NSRN) Conference 2023; 2023

Nonreligion and Secularity Research Network (NSRN) - University of Ottawa

Some works have questioned the notion of 'nonreligious identifications' because they are defined by their negative characteristics and their lack of content. In turn, several ‘positive’ identifications that are proposed in Northern context present problems of cultural translation in the Global South.The paper analyzes the labels used by individuals and groups in Argentina to identify themselves as different than ‘religious’ and compares them with the process of public identifications (based on qualitative research and national surveys reports, and press). On the one hand, there are marked differences around the several levels of analysis of identities: personal, social, and collective. On the other hand, the paper describes several efforts to resignify in positive terms ‘nonreligious’ identities in the public space (such as 'laicistas'), which also includes ‘religious’ identifications. Finally, we reflect on the consequences of religio-normativity (mostly Catholic) in the process of establishing 'nonreligious' identities in public debates.