The Lozano Long Conference is seeking submissions for this year's "Refashioning Blackness: Contesting Racism in the Afro-Americas" to be held February 20-22nd, 2013 at the University of Texas at Austin. The aim of this conference is to encourage a cutting-edge conversation about the current political and cultural moment in the Afro-Americas. Submission Deadline: September 30th, 2012.
Convened by the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies (LLILAS)
and the John L. Warfield Center for African and African-American Studies (WCAAAS)
http://www.utexas.edu/cola/insts/llilas/conferences/2013-Lozano-Long.php
Call for Papers
In recent years there has been an explosion of scholarly work on Afro-Latin America that has moved away from simply demonstrating that racial discrimination exists to analyzing the different ways in which black populations represent their identities, relate to the state, and mobilize politically internally and transnationally. In the United States, meanwhile, the election of the first African American president led many to proclaim the end of race and of black politics. The aim of this conference is to encourage a cutting-edge conversation about the current political and cultural moment in the Afro-Americas. How can scholars and activists engage in anti-racist politics in systems where racial democracy/post-racial ideologies prevail? As governments employ post-racial or multicultural ideologies to stifle the impact of black social movements, new questions are emerging about how racial inequalities can be challenged in the Americas. Embracing blackness, which is often seen as the desirable and logical tactic to counter racism, is an insufficient response, as it can lead to fruitless debates about who is black and how blackness is being conceived and become disconnected from political action. This conference encourages participants to grapple with changing configurations of racial inequalities and racism in the Afro-Americas and the ongoing challenge to topple these hierarchies. We are particularly interested in papers that analyze the ways racial ideologies in Latin America parallel and indeed inform notions of "post-raciality" in the United States.
Conference themes will include, but are not limited to:
· Black social movements/political mobilization
· Comparative and transnational approaches to racism and anti-racist politics
· Cultural production and racism
· Race and public policy
· Blackness and national identity
We welcome papers that address these themes from both contemporary and historical perspectives.
Those interested in participating should send their paper titles and abstracts (between 250 and 300 words) as well as a short bio-bibliographical notice (200 words) to the two conveners: Drs. Juliet Hooker and Frank Guridy at refashioningblackness@gmail.com. Questions about the conference should be addressed to Paloma Diaz.
The deadline for sending proposals is September 30, 2012.
Notification of acceptance will be given by October 30, 2012
