The 2005 American Cultures and Global Contexts Graduate Conference, an interdisciplinary forum at UCSB, will explore the ways that identities in the U.S. and the Americas shape and are shaped by global crises, whether they are historical or contemporary.  This year we are pleased to host distinguished keynote speaker George Lipsitz, Professor and Chair of the Department of American Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz and author of American Studies in a Moment of Danger, a provocative book about changes in culture, social movements, and the state prompted by the increasing power of transnational capital.

This year’s one-day conference will explore the construction of various identities in the Americas, including those associated with, but not limited to, gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, politics, religion, and profession. In particular, we seek to consider these identities in the context of various kinds of global crisis, including the exceptionally charged global environment of recent years. What critical insights are gained when we “globalize” American identities and examine how these identities have frequently drawn on debates and intellectual trends developing both within and outside the national framework? At the same time, we will consider analyses (from the U.S. and abroad) regarding the impact and significance of American identities as they circulate in other countries during times of crisis.

We especially invite proposals that bridge disciplines, explore historical global crises, and examine American identities beyond the U.S. In addition, we are seeking papers and panels that recommend viable strategies and solutions to issues raised by the confluence of identities and global crises. The conference will also include an exhibition of various artistic responses such as paintings, sculptures, and montages related to our theme.

The topics below are loosely divided into two categories, "American Identities" and "Global Crises;" however, presentation topics may include but should not limited to an investigation of the significant overlaps and connections between these lists.

AMERICAN IDENTITIES
Ability and disability
Age
Class
Education
Gender and sexuality
Hybridity/borders
Nationality and transnationality
Political
Queerness
Race and ethnicity
Religion

GLOBAL CRISES
AIDS, disease, healthcare
Citizenship/democratic participation
Colonialism/postcolonialism
Economics: outsourcing, currency devaluation, maquiladoras
Environment
Famine
Global civil society
Human rights
Labor and workers’ rights
Languages and translation
Media consolidation
Mobility: immigration, migration, travel and tourism
New media and the digital divide
Pop culture and the threat of cultural homogenization
Poverty and debt
Religious nationalism
Violence: terrorism, war, ethnic cleansing

Please submit 250-word individual abstracts or panel proposals, comprised of a 250-word abstract for the entire panel and titles for each paper. Include names, email addresses, institutional affiliations, technology requests, paper titles with abstracts by February 21, 2005 to eric_martinsen@umail.ucsb.edu. Please paste your proposal into the body of your message. If submitting a work of art, please attach a low-resolution photo of your piece, if possible, in addition to your abstract.

Deadline: February 21, 2005.
For more information about the American Cultures and Global Contexts Center, visit http://acc.english.ucsb.edu.