InterPhil: CFP: Human Rights, Violence and Dictatorship

[Bertold Bernreuter via InterPhil]

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Call for Papers

Theme: Human Rights, Violence and Dictatorship
Type: International Interdisciplinary Conference
Institution: University of Gdańsk
Location: Krakow (Poland)
Date: 3.–4.12.2015
Deadline: 15.10.2015

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In the time when human rights are violated on a regular basis,
violence triumphs, and feeble democracies ever more often back down
before authoritarian rule, there obviously arises the need to reflect
on the possible ways of counteracting such phenomena. Our
interdisciplinary conference is intended as a fitting opportunity for
this reflection. We would like to look at various manifestations of
violence and human rights violation, whether historical or current.
We will describe them in political, social, psychological, cultural
and many other terms. We also want to devote considerable attention
to how the situation of human rights is represented in artistic
practices: in literature, film, theatre or visual arts.

We invite researchers representing various academic disciplines:
history, politics, psychology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy,
economics, law, history of literature, theatre studies, film studies,
fine arts, design, memory studies, migration studies, consciousness
studies, dream studies, gender studies, postcolonial studies, medical
sciences, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, cognitive sciences et al.

Different forms of presentations are encouraged, including case
studies, theoretical investigations, problem-oriented arguments, and
comparative analyses.

We will be happy to hear from both experienced scholars and young
academics at the start of their careers, as well as doctoral
students. We also invite all persons interested in participating in
the conference as listeners, without giving a presentation.

We hope that due to its interdisciplinary nature, the conference
will bring many interesting observations on and discussions about the
role of human rights in the past and in the present-day world. 

Our repertoire of suggested topics includes but is not restricted
to:

I. Societies

- Genocides
- Slavery
- Nationalism
- Chauvinism
- Xenophobia
- Ethnic cleansings
- Religious dictatorships
- The Holocaust
- Apartheid
- (Neo)Nazism 

II. Individuals

- Domestic violence
- Mobbing
- Bullying in school
- Bullying in the army
- Sexual abuse
- Sado-masochism
- Symbolic violence
- Economic discrimination
- Ageism 

III. Defense of Human Rights

- Human rights organizaions
- Humanitarian missions
- Resistance movement
- The ethos of a freedom fighter
- Conspiracies, protests, revolts
- Racial equality
- Performative race
- Women's rights
- Sexual minority rights
- Disability rights
- Human rights and animal rights 

IV. Fallen Dictatorships

- Democracy in transition
- Post-communist countries
- Amnesties
- The revenge of the oppressed
- Criminal courts / courts of justice
- Escape from freedom
- Nostalgia for the regime
- Dictator's psychological portrait 

V. Violence in the (Post)Modern World

- Cultural conditioning of violence
- Dictatorship of the young
- Dictatorship of the old
- Dictatorship and conformism
- The regime of political correctness
- Democracy and the dictatorship of the majority
- Democracy and liberalism
- Human rights and the free market
- Violence in the media 

VI. Literature and the Arts

- Literature and art about human rights violation
- Literature and art about violence
- Literature and art engaged in human rights defense
- Literature and art violating human rights 

Please submit abstracts (no longer than 300 words) of your proposed
20-minute presentations, together with a short biographical note, by
15th October 2015 both to prof. Wojciech Owczarski, University of
Gdańsk: wowczars...@tlen.pl  and  rightsviole...@tlen.pl

The confirmation of acceptance will be sent by 20th October 2015. The
conference language is English. A selection of papers will be
published in a post-conference volume.

Important Dates 

Deadline for abstract submission: 15 October 2015
Notification of acceptance: 20 October 2015
Deadline for registration: 15 November 2015
Conference: 3-4 December 2015
Deadline for full paper submission: 31 March 2016

Venue

The conference sessions will take place at
The Campanile Krakow Hotel
at św. Tomasza Street no. 34 in Krakow
http://www.campanile-cracovie.pl

Organizers

Professor Wojciech Owczarski – University of Gdańsk (Poland)
Professor Paulo Endo - University of Sao Paulo (Brazil)
Amanda Chalupa – McGill University (Canada)

Contact e-mail addresses:
wowczars...@tlen.pl
rightsviole...@tlen.pl




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InterPhil: CFP: The Politics of Memory

[Bertold Bernreuter via InterPhil]

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Call for Papers

Theme: The Politics of Memory
Subtitle: Victimization, Violence and Contested Narratives of the Past
Type: 5th Annual Conference
Institution: Dialogues on Historical Justice and Memory Network
   Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability Program,
Columbia University
Location: New York, NY (USA)
Date: 3.–5.12.2015
Deadline: 15.9.2015

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In recent years, societies have begun to pay greater attention to
gross violation of human rights and mass crimes in their pasts,
especially but not exclusively, when moving from an authoritarian
state to a democracy, or emerging from a violent conflict like civil
war. There are yet other societies that have begun to use historical
dialogue to address injustices of the distant past, sometimes even
centuries ago. Do societies with heightened awareness of their
violent historical legacy have a stronger civic democratic identity?
Are they less prone to propaganda that might cause a new cycle of
violence? Papers are invited that explore the relationship between
historical dialogue and conflict resolution. Researchers, scholars
and practitioners are invited to present papers on topics related to
historical dialogue that explore mechanisms for fostering shared work
between interlocutors of two or more sides of a conflict; for
identifying and monitoring how history is misused to divide society
and perpetuate conflict; for enhancing public discussion about
reconciling the past.

To this end, this conference aims to explore in particular issues
relating to memory, victimhood and violence. Possible themes include
the changing nature and identity of victims and the theme of
contested victimization, with a particular interest in topics that
explore the anniversaries of historical violence and the way such
events are remembered. Thus, for example, 2015 marks the 100th
anniversary of the Armenian genocide; the 70th anniversary of the
liberation of Auschwitz, the first Nuremberg trial and the Tokyo
tribunal; the 50th anniversary of mass violence in Indonesia; the
20th anniversary of Srebrenica.  Papers are invited that reflect on
how these events are being remembered, on the evolution and politics
of these memories.

Other themes include papers that examine ways in which the status of
victimization provides a rational for violence, or, conversely cases
in which victimization leads to reconciliation. Papers that focus on
a historiography of what constitutes victimization—from the shame of
victimhood to victimization as empowering are also welcome. Also
welcome is work on victims of political violence, and histories of
contested victimization. Finally, papers are invited that explore the
theoretical and empirical relationship between memory (individual,
societal or international) and historical dialogue, with a particular
focus on the issue of the efficacy of justice, accountability and
reconciliation mechanisms.

The Dialogues on Historical Justice and Memory Network
(www.historicaldialogues.org) is coordinated by an international
Steering Committee and the Alliance for Historical Dialogue and
Accountability (AHDA), at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights
(ISHR).

Please e-mail a 300-500 word abstract and a 2-3 sentence bio as well
as contact information to a...@columbia.edu. The abstract and bio
should be sent as a single e-mail attachment. Applications for panels
or roundtables are also welcome. In order to accommodate participants
who need to apply for travel grants, abstracts will be accepted on a
rolling basis beginning in mid-July.


Contact:

Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability Program
Institute for the Study of Human Rights
Columbia University
91 Claremont Ave, 7th Floor
New York, NY 10025
USA
Email: a...@columbia.edu
Web: http://www.humanrightscolumbia.org/ahda/conference




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