CFP: Queerness Beyond Borders

Call for Papers: Queerness Beyond Borders Emerging Scholars’ Colloquium

Deadline: 15 May 2021

We invite proposals for papers to be presented at an international conference entitled ‘Queerness Beyond Borders’, to take place online from Wednesday 7th to Friday 9th of July 2021, organised jointly by Worcester College (University of Oxford) and Philiminality Oxford. For the sake of timezone inclusivity, talks will be scheduled for late afternoon/early evening GMT each day. 

This three-day conference will explore normative and conceptual issues surrounding queerness and its intersection with academic, political, and geographical borders. It will address issues such as inter-sex and trans rights across countries, the conceptual boundaries of the ‘gender binary’, racial equity, moral justifications for queerness as grounds for refugee status, and practical and theoretical considerations for how to translate academic ideas into policy outcomes. Drawing across and beyond disciplinary and geographical borders, linking academia and activism, bridging politics and policy, and uniting vision with action, Queerness Beyond Borders seeks to expand theoretical and practical horizons. 

The CFP relates to a key part of the conference - the ‘Emerging Scholars Colloquium’, where the authors of the selected papers will have the opportunity to present and discuss their work with the invited speakers. They will also be part of a podcast recording to be disseminated on the University of Oxford’s ‘OxfordTalks’ platform.

Confirmed invited speakers include:

            Hon. Louisa Wall - (Parliament of New Zealand Pāremata Aotearoa) -  A queer, indigenous MP from New Zealand, and drafter of the marriage equality law that legalised same-sex marriage in NZ.

            Prof. Philip Ayoub - (Occidental College) - Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations. Queer activist and scholar focussing on LGBTIQ+ rights, social movements, transnational politics, sexuality and gender.

            Andrea Jenkins - (Minneapolis City Council) The first black openly transgender councillor in the United States.

          Prof. Kerri Woods (University of Leeds) - Associate Professor of Political Theory. Scholar focussing on the political philosophy of human rights, feminist thought and refugees.

          Valentino Vecchietti - Intersex activist specialising in issues relating to intersex and queer persons’ rights in Europe and beyond. They work with universities and provide consultation in the arts.

We welcome papers which address any of the themes listed in the conference summary and/or areas of interest of invited speakers and/or the following general themes: 

• Analytic approaches to queer theory
• Normative and/or conceptual issues around queerness and borders
• The links between academic philosophy, activism, and policy 

Eligibility: The CFP is open to graduate students and early career researchers within 3 years of the completion of their doctoral degree. 

Submission Guidelines: 

·      An abstract of no more than 300 words.

·      and: A full paper (not exceeding 8000 words, including footnotes but not including references), to be considered for presentation at the Conference (as part of the ‘Emerging Scholars’ Colloquia) and for a podcast recording to be disseminated through the conference’s website and on the University of Oxford’s OxfordTalks platform. 

·      To submit an abstract or full paper, please send a Word or PDF file to  [email protected]. Please write ‘Conference Submission’ in the subject line of your email. In the body of your email include: your name, departmental affiliation, email address, and the title of your paper (as well as the year in which your PhD was awarded, in the case of early career researchers). Abstracts and papers should be prepared for blind review, so please ensure that your document is free from any identifying personal details.

·      The submission deadline is 15 May 2021. We will notify authors of acceptance by 1 June 2021 at the latest.

Conference website: https://queernessbeyondborders.weebly.com/. 

The conference is organised with the generous support of the Mind Association, Worcester College, Oxford and Balliol College, Oxford.

The conference organisers,

Johann Go, Matteo Parisi, Robin Brons, and Lea Cantor

University of Oxford