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Doing Research in the Securitate Archives and the Lessons Learned for Understanding Today’s World
This visiting lecture draws on my long-term archival research in the former Romanian secret police archives and on insights developed in my books. This lecture examines how surveillance functioned as a social relationship under totalitarianism and how its underlying logics persist in contemporary societies.
To schedule a lecture: montrealcp@gmail.com
From Secret Police Archives to Contemporary Surveillance
This visiting lecture introduces students to the practical, epistemological, and ethical dimensions of doing research in secret police archives such as the Securitate Archives. It addresses questions of access, interpretation, and methodology, as well as the challenges of working with documents produced through coercion, fear, and collaboration. Particular attention is paid to how dossiers were not neutral records, but active tools that shaped reputations, structured social relations, and reconfigured trust, memory, and identity—often with effects that extend far beyond the fall of authoritarian regimes.
In its second part, the lecture connects historical forms of surveillance to present-day practices of data collection, bureaucratic record-keeping, digital profiling, and algorithmic governance. By placing Cold War–era surveillance alongside contemporary data infrastructures, the session invites students to critically assess both continuity and change in how institutions “know” individuals and how records produce vulnerability, accountability, and reputational consequences in today’s world.
The lecture encourages discussion about power, responsibility, and the long afterlives of surveillance systems, offering students conceptual tools to think across archives, technologies, and political contexts.
Inside the Securitate Archives
Access Challenges
Navigating institutional permissions, bureaucratic procedures, and political sensitivities in post-communist archival systems
Interpretation Methods
Developing frameworks to read documents produced through coercion, fear, and state-mandated collaboration
Ethical Considerations
Balancing research objectives with responsibility to those whose lives were documented under surveillance
The lecture provides students with practical insights into conducting research in secret police archives, addressing the epistemological complexities of working with documents created under authoritarian conditions. Students learn how surveillance records reveal not just what happened, but how power operated through documentation, information circulation, and the strategic deployment of knowledge about citizens' lives.
Historical Context
How Dossiers Shaped Social Relations
Under totalitarian regimes, dossiers functioned as powerful social technologies that went far beyond simple record-keeping. They actively restructured human relationships by creating layers of suspicion, uncertainty, and strategic calculation in everyday interactions.
The knowledge that conversations might be recorded, that neighbors might be informants, and that files were being compiled fundamentally altered how people communicated, whom they trusted, and how they presented themselves. This transformation of social life through documentation created a world where the potential for surveillance became internalized and shaped behavior even in the absence of direct observation.
Collaboration and Fear in Surveillance Systems
1
Coercion
Direct pressure and threats compelling individuals to participate in surveillance activities
2
Collaboration
Complex motivations driving informant participation, from ideological commitment to personal gain
3
Fear
Pervasive anxiety about being watched that shaped social behavior and self-presentation
4
Legacy
Long-term psychological and social consequences that persist decades after regime collapse
The lecture examines how fear operated as both a product and a mechanism of surveillance systems. By analyzing actual case files and informant reports, students gain insight into the human dimensions of totalitarian surveillance—understanding how ordinary people became entangled in systems of observation and documentation, often with devastating personal consequences.
Contemporary Parallels
From Dossiers to Digital Profiles
Historical Surveillance
  • Physical files and paper records
  • Human informants and observers
  • Centralized state control
  • Limited accessibility
  • Manual compilation and analysis
Shared Logics
  • Systematic data collection
  • Profile construction
  • Reputational consequences
  • Power asymmetries
  • Vulnerability creation
Digital Surveillance
  • Database systems and cloud storage
  • Algorithmic processing
  • Distributed corporate and state actors
  • Widespread data sharing
  • Automated profiling and prediction
While technologies have transformed dramatically, fundamental surveillance logics persist. The lecture helps students recognize how contemporary data infrastructures echo earlier practices of dossier compilation, raising critical questions about power, privacy, and accountability in digital societies.
Key Learning Outcomes
01
Methodological Skills
Develop critical approaches to archival research, document interpretation, and working with sensitive historical materials
02
Historical Understanding
Grasp how surveillance functioned as a social relationship under totalitarianism and its lasting effects on post-communist societies
03
Contemporary Applications
Critically assess modern data collection practices, digital profiling, and algorithmic governance through historical lens
04
Ethical Awareness
Engage with questions of responsibility, memory, and the long afterlives of surveillance systems across political contexts
Lecture Format and Audience
Duration
1.5–2 hours
Including presentation, discussion, and Q&A session for comprehensive engagement with material
Delivery
Online via Zoom or Microsoft Teams
Accessible format enabling participation from institutions worldwide
Customization
Adaptable to Course Themes
Can be tailored to specific syllabi and paired with assigned readings from published research
Suitable Academic Fields
  • Sociology and Social Theory
  • Political Science and Comparative Politics
  • History and Memory Studies
  • Anthropology and Ethnography
  • Surveillance Studies
  • Digital Studies and Media Theory
  • Security Studies
  • Human Rights and Ethics
This lecture is designed for both undergraduate and graduate students seeking to understand surveillance through historical and contemporary lenses. The interdisciplinary approach makes it valuable across multiple fields, encouraging students to think critically about power, documentation, and the production of knowledge about individuals.
Visiting Lecture Pricing
Standard Rates
Lectures are typically offered online and range from $300 to $600 USD.
Pricing is influenced by factors such as:
  • Class size
  • Academic level
  • Degree of customization
Flexible Options
Reduced rates may be available for:
  • Graduate seminars
  • Institutions with limited funding
Please contact me to discuss details and find a solution that fits your needs.