Call for Proposals

The primary focus of this year’s session will be on theorizing the African Diaspora and African Diaspora subjectivities. This Seminar will explore the way diaspora conditions produce subjectivity by examining the particular conditions under which diasporic identities are being articulated. In diasporic communities, cultural artifacts such as ritual, religion, art, music, and language operate as bearers of displaced identities. Hence, how is “diaspora” differentially experienced by various groups in the world of diasporic formations? What are the subjectivities of diaspora individuals and groups? What subject positions does the diasporic condition produce? How are these occupied, contested, negotiated, and/or appropriated by members of the diaspora? How can we theorize diasporic subjectivity? This Seminar seeks papers that address these questions by engaging with the thematic and conceptual aspects of diaspora subjectivities.

Mission

This Consultation endorses the study of African Diaspora religions beyond its traditional parameters to include broader geographies, histories, and cultures of people of African descent and the way they shaped the religious landscape, not only in the Caribbean and the Americas, but also in Europe and Asia. This study defines diaspora as the spread and dispersal of people of African descent, both forced and voluntary, through the slave trade, imperial and colonial displacements, and postcolonial migrations. We emphasize the importance of an interdisciplinary approach. Our aim is to engage a wide range of disciplines and a variety of scholars who work on different aspects of African Diaspora religions. We consider the linguistic and cultural complexities of the African Diaspora, the importance of African traditional religions, Afro-Christianity, Afro-Islam, and Afro-Judaism, the way they they have and continue to inform an understanding of Africa, and also in the way that they have and continue to shape the religious landscape of the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Anonymity of Review Process

Proposals are anonymous to Chairs and Steering Committee Members until after final acceptance or rejection.

Questions?

Maha Marouan
University of Alabama
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Method of Submission

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