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Diasporic Heritage and Identity AHM Annual Conference 2023
In the interdisciplinary vocabulary of heritage and memory studies, the concept of diaspora continues to hold a pivotal role. This conference sets out to explore (self)representations of diasporic heritages and identities: how diasporic subjectivities and communities forge means of belonging and connection to nations, (im)material objects or space. Conceptualisations of diasporic heritage and identity can be expressed through a variety of narrative, mediatic, artistic and memorial strategies. This conference aims to provoke discussion and improve understanding of how these diasporic identities come into being, evolve and are performed through different heritage domains.
Rather than seeing diasporic heritages and identities as those with a nostalgic romantic longing for the past, the conference seeks to stratify the range of positive or negative emotions and memory narratives that can emerge in diasporic communities. What narrative choices do diasporic individuals and communities adopt to define and challenge essentialised conceptions of heritage, identity, homeland, home and home-making? What counts as heritage, and how do diverse diasporas respond to, represent and perform their identity through the ever-changing cultural and global contexts?
This conference also aims to explore discourses of diasporic heritage, which correspond to the plethora of media, museological, political, historical and journalistic narratives and literary texts that structure a public and common understanding of identity. How does this discourse interact with (post/de) colonial narratives, xenophobic and right-wing movements, migration, displacement, conflict and transnationalism? How might repressive and authoritarian regimes impact diasporic identity expression?
We encourage contributions from diverse historical and geographical contexts, and invite proposals for special events such as panels, screenings, performances, exhibitions, etc. Topics can include, but are not limited to:
- Diasporic Heritage and Identity as a ‘travelling concept’
- Migration, Displacement, Exile and Return
- Belonging, Translation, and language
- (Post/de) Colonialism, Activism, Repression and Silencing
- New positionalities beyond victims and perpetrators
- The Homeland: Home-Making and Un-Making
- Material and Immaterial Heritage: Institutional and Bottom-upMemory Sites
- Postmemory and Intergenerational Memory
- Violence, Conflict, Law and Transitional Justice
- Host Societies, Citizenship and the Politics of Identity
- Cultural Afterlives of Diasporic Heritage
Applications:
- – A brief academic biography (including name, affiliation, status, research interests; max 100 words)
- – A short abstract of the paper to be presented (max. 250 words) Applications can be submitted by March 31, 2023 to diasporicheritageahm@gmail.com
The AHM annual conference offers researchers the unique opportunity to be published by Amsterdam University Press (AUP) which is a pioneer in Open Access (OA) publishing(https://www.aup-online.com/content/proceedings/2949-737X).
We will be launching and distributing the volume of papers during the conference in June. We therefore ask that the selected papers must be written and re- submitted in full length (max. 4000-5000 words including notes and references) by May 5, 2023 . Author’s guidelines and publication instructions will be available for the selected papers in April 2023.
Registration:
Please note that the conference will take place in person and it’s compulsory for all speakers and attendees to register for the conference. The conference fee is €50 for researchers and €10 for BA & MA students. Speakers are expected to arrange accommodation and transport on their own; we will offer suggestions for hotels and other practical information. We are unable to offer any financial compensation and/or waive registration fee. More information on registration will become available through the conference website in the coming weeks.
Organization Committee:
– Eleri Connick (PhD Candidate AHM)
– Lucy Gaynor (PhD Candidate AHM)
– Dr. Mario Panico (Postdoc AHM)
Conference assistance:
– Jante van der Naaten
– Nienke Huttner
For more information, email: diasporicheritageahm@gmail.com
About the Amsterdam School for Heritage, Memory and Material Culture (AHM)
AHM fosters dynamic, interdisciplinary and transnational research of heritage and memory, organises PhD training, seminars, reading groups, workshops, public debates, and international conferences, and stimulates scholarly cooperation in an international setting.
The school brings together researchers working in diverse areas and fields heritage and memory studies, cultural studies, museum studies, archaeology, and material culture, art history, media, conservation and restoration, archival studies, digital humanities, postcolonial and performative studies, religious studies, music and theatre studies, conflict and identity studies, Slavonic languages and cultures, Holocaust and genocide studies, European memory studies, Middle Eastern studies, and cultural, public and oral history. For more information about AHM please visit the website.