Organised by The Wilberforce Institute for the study of Slavery and Emancipation, University of Hull, UK.
Cape Town, South Africa, 19-22 November 2009.
CALL FOR PAPERS:
An International Conference organised by the Wilberforce Institute for the study of Slavery and Emancipation, University of Hull, UK.
Taking place in the Iziko Slave Lodge in Cape Town, South Africa, in November 2009, this conference will coincide with the arrival of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race 2009-10 in Cape Town harbour. Mirroring its aims to broaden knowledge and understanding and promote tolerance through teamwork, new relationships and the sharing and development of skills, the conference seeks to encourage researchers to open a conversation on the subject of slavery in the worlds of the Indian and Atlantic oceans. The four-day conference, which will bring together early career researchers and leading world scholars, will be interdisciplinary in nature and chronologically diverse, in order to encourage a fruitful cross-fertilization of ideas, sources and methods. The histories of slavery and the slave trade in the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans have been the focus of a substantial body of research; this conference aims to unite the perspectives of researchers in these parallel fields to promote a culture of exchange and cooperation in the innovative context of Twin Ocean Slavery. Crucially, there will be opportunities for postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers, educators and museum professionals to interact with prominent academics from across the world: confirmed speakers for the conference include Edward Alpers; Gwyn Campbell; David Eltis; Paul Lovejoy; John Oldfield; Nigel Penn; David Richardson; and Nigel Worden.
The Twin Ocean theme will be the focus of this four-day event, but the first two days of the conference will be reserved exclusively for early career researchers and interested professionals, from whom we seek to encourage papers that examine past and present connections between the Indian and Atlantic worlds. Perspectives on the subject of Twin Ocean Slavery could incorporate aspects of memory, conservation and museology, the teaching of slavery, material cultures of slavery, economic and political aspects of the slave trade in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, historical and contemporary abolitionist and anti-slavery activism, African and Indian diasporas and movements between oceans, and reparations in the context of Twin Ocean Slavery.
Interested individuals are therefore invited to submit proposals along the following lines:
We also invite proposals for short, innovative audiovisual presentations (of around 5-10 minutes) from virtual delegates who may not be able to attend the workshop in person. These presentations could focus, for example, on material or artistic representations of slavery in the Atlantic or Indian Oceans, diasporas, local museums, exhibitions or community projects, personal testimonies, oceanic crossings or legacies of slavery.
Attendance at the conference is free, including drinks and lunch on all four days, the conference dinner, and local transport within Cape Town. Additional funding is being sought, and we hope to provide a limited number of bursaries for the travel and hotel accommodation of early career researchers from African and Indian universities, but as yet flights and accommodation cannot be guaranteed.
Please send your abstract of 300 words together with a short curriculum vitae and email contact to Kate Hodgson [email protected] or Judith Spicksley [email protected], by 15th June 2009. Those hoping to be considered for bursaries should indicate this on their proposal. Successful participants will be notified by email on 1st July 2009. Please note that the conference will be open to the general public, and the language of the conference will be English.
Information about the Wilberforce Institute can be found at www.hull.ac.uk/wise/ and about the venue at www.iziko.org.za/slavelodge/ Further details, if required, will be provided on request.