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CALL FOR PAPERS
Eulogies
for the Public:
Capitalism,
Warfare and the Conservative Turn
The Fifth Annual
Conference in Critical Social Research/
The 2013 Great
Lakes Graduate Conference in Political Economy
Thursday, May 2nd,*
2013 [*NOTE new date]
Carleton
University
Ottawa, ON
pub-lic: \ˈpə-blik\
●
of, relating to, or affecting all the
people or the whole area of a nation or state;
●
devoted to the general or national
welfare;
●
“A special kind of virtual social object,
enabling a special mode of address” (Michael Warner. Publics and Counterpublics. New York: Zone Books, 2002).
Like
‘social justice’, the notion of the ‘public’ has long held an esteemed position
in progressive politics. Yet given the many crises of contemporary capitalism,
the proliferation of wars between and within nation-states, and the rise of
conservative movements and moods, there is a strong case to be made for asking
critical questions about how the ‘public’ - in its many shapes and forms - is
being transformed:
On capitalism
and the ‘public’: How have social formations of capitalism, such as recent
austerity policies, the shift from welfare states to private philanthropy, or
the rise of consumer responsibility modified the ‘public’?
On warfare
and the public: Just over a decade old, the 21st century has already known
constant warfare, between states and within them. How can we understand the
impact and role of media, movements, patriarchy, indigenous struggles, and
technologization in conflict waged for, against and between publics?
On the conservative
turn and the public: The rise of popular neo-conservative movements (and
their convergence with neo-liberal ideologies) has manifested in the coming to
power of right-leaning governments, while so-called left-leaning governments
drift towards the centre. Are processes of privatization and conservative rule
changing how we come to know, express, constitute, or act, as publics?
Using the
three broad themes of capitalism, warfare, and the conservative turn, the Critical Social Research Collaborative
is seeking papers and/or creative submissions which address how the ‘public’
(broadly defined) is constituted, contested and enforced in contemporary
society, for its 5th Annual Conference in Critical Social Research. The
conference is being held in conjunction with The 2013 Great Lakes Graduate
Conference in Political Economy, hosted by the Institute of Political Economy
at Carleton University. We expect to showcase high quality, compelling
analytical works backed up by robust research on topics relating to the
transformation of the ‘public’. The following list of topics is non-exhaustive
and merely suggestive of the many dimensions through which we believe the
public could be eulogized:
● Riot, Occupy, Strike: The Public Response to Austerity
● Corporate Social Responsibullshit: The ‘Ethically Consuming’ Public
● Philanthropy and Great Citizenry as the New Welfare State
● ‘Excluding Everyone Equally!’: Sexism, Racism, and Classism in the New
Public
● Pitting Public Against Public: The Avarice of Modern Warfare
● The Clash of Fundamentalisms: Using the Public as a Shield
● The Trope of Public Private Partnerships: The Privatization of Public
Spaces
● Tragedies of the 21st Century Commons: Neoliberalizing (Public) Nature
● Drifting Right: Conservative Movements and the Co-optation of the
Public
● Labour’s Unending Challenge: Gutting the Public Service
Academics,
researchers, students and activists are invited to submit proposals for panels
or individual paper presentations, or artistic projects, from diverse
theoretical and methodological orientations in historical and/or contemporary
contexts. Please send your proposal, including an abstract of no more than 300
words, a presentation title, your name, and a brief biography (of no more than
100 words) to the conference organizing committee at
CriticalSocialResearch@gmail.com by February
28th, 2013. Decisions on proposals will be communicated by mid-March.
Accepted submissions may be solicited for publication. Some (limited) funds are
available to help cover student travel expenses – please inquire by email.
The Critical
Social Research Collaborative (www.CSRCproject.ca) is an
interdisciplinary research collective consisting of students, faculty, trade
union and community activists based at Carleton University. We aim to promote,
support and create a platform for the sharing and dissemination of critical
perspectives and research conducted on the defining social issues of our time.