Call for Abstracts: scope, forms and impact of black mobilizations in Europe
Black Lives Matter in Europe – Mapping and Understanding
We invite scholars working on the scope, forms and impact of black mobilizations in Europe to submit an abstract (to be included in a panel proposal) for the 2021 CES Conference taking place from 24 until 26 June in Reykjavik, Iceland (pandemic permitting).
The killing of Black American George Floyd by the police in the United States sparked protests that quickly developed into a global phenomenon. In Europe, people protested on an unprecedented scope in several cities like Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam or Vienna to express that black lives matter. Black individuals and organizations, usually an ‘invisible visible’ minority in Europe, were in many places at the heart of these protests. Their protests highlighted similar concerns regarding police violence and structural racism in Europe, as in the US. This panel welcomes papers that try to map and understand 2020 BLM protests and previous Black Activism in Europe by answering the following questions: What impact have the US Black Lives Matter demonstrations had on the scope and forms of Black mobilizations in Europe? How are transnational protests translated differently in different local and national contexts? How do such protests relate to Black activism in national contexts and the history thereof? What visions for racial and ethnic equality do black mobilizations and demands put forward convey? What are challenges for Black mobilization vis-à-vis Black and afrodiasporic communities, the anti-racist movement and political institutions? How intersectional are the claims of BLM Europe? Has activism led to policy responses, and if yes, how and why? We particularly welcome papers that integrate the insights of critical race theory, post/decolonial theories and black scholarship with social movement theories.
Please send your paper title and abstract of 250 words (max.), your contact details and institutional affiliation (if applicable) to Folashade.ajayi@vub.be until 20 October 2020.
Please feel free to contact us for any other comment or question, including uncertainties whether your research matches with the panel description.
Best regards,
Ilke Adam (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)
Jean Beaman (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Folashade Ajayi (Vrije Universiteit Brussel)