CFP: Duquesne Philosophy Graduate Conference 2026

Call For Papers:
Philosophy Against Empire

April 10th-11th, 2026 

Duquesne University (Pittsburgh, PA) 

Department of Philosophy

A civilization that proves incapable of solving the problems it creates is a decadent civilization. A civilization that chooses to close its eyes to its most crucial problems is a stricken civilization. 

– Aimé Césaire, Discourse on Colonialism

From its inception in the slave economies of Hellenic states, Western philosophy has failed to grapple adequately with the topics of colonialism and imperialism. Even at its most “critical” – the  Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School, Foucauldian genealogy/archeology, Arendtian political philosophy, Western Marxists like Althusser, Bloch, Zizek, and Badiou – the colonial question and its relation(s) to imperialism have been underrepresented or neglected wholesale. To contribute meaningfully to global struggles for liberation, a rethinking and restructuring of Western thought is needed. 

Some preliminary questions come to the fore. How do the material conditions of knowledge production in imperialism, in its past, present, and future forms, shape our theoretical projects? In what ways do the logics of imperialism and colonialism persist–or how have they mutated–in our contemporary moment? What positions, ideas, or preconceptions in the history of Western philosophy need to be rethought in light of the colonial question? Can these positions, ideas, and preconceptions be rehabilitated towards decolonial or anti-colonial ends?

The conference will occur April 10th to 11th, 2026 at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. Speakers should prepare a ~20 minute presentation, with ~10 minutes of questions to follow. 

Applicants should prepare anonymized abstracts for blind-review between 300-600 words, submitted via email as a .pdf or .docx document to [email protected]. Please additionally include a title page with the following information: 

• Name 

• Paper Title

• E-mail Address

• Institutional affiliation + department/program 

Submissions are due by 11:59pm (EST) on December 31st, 2025. Submissions will be reviewed by the graduate committee, with notifications to applicants regarding decisions sent by February 1st, 2026. 

For further questions (NOT SUBMISSIONS), please contact one of the conference organizers: 

(Katie McCabe) [email protected], or (William Brown) [email protected]. 

Sample paper topics may include, but are certainly not limited to: 

• Colonialism’s conceptual relationship with Imperialism (are they meaningfully distinct?)

• Phenomenological studies of the individual in colonized states

• Historical relationships and differences between Colonialism and Imperialism

• The use and abuse of “metaphorization” in decolonization

• Colonialist structures in Western philosophy, theology, and psychology

• Modern conceptions of liberty and the rights of a citizen