This panel explores these dynamics through three historical case studies that examine the ways in which state power has been leveraged to impose neoliberal austerity and the consequences of these policies for social order. The first paper examines the legal mechanisms and emergency powers deployed to impose austerity in New York City during the fiscal crisis of the 1970s. The second paper explores how disabled veterans of the Soviet-Afghan war, abandoned by a collapsing welfare state, turned to organized crime as a means of economic survival and social recognition. The third paper examines the Chilean experience of neoliberal restructuring under the military dictatorship, highlighting the intersection of state violence and economic policy. Taken together, these papers offer new perspectives on the role of the state in shaping neoliberal transformations, shedding light on the ways in which austerity and state power have been mutually constitutive rather than antithetical.

By bringing together historical case studies from different geopolitical contexts, this panel offers a comparative perspective on the ways in which state power has been central to the imposition of neoliberal austerity. In doing so, it challenges conventional narratives of neoliberalism as a purely deregulatory or anti-statist project, instead illustrating the ways in which state capacity has been selectively mobilized to enforce economic discipline and reshape social relations. These papers contribute to broader debates on neoliberalism, governance, and the relationship between economic policy and state coercion.