Conference announcement – Colonial memories at present – decolonizing Belgium? – 27 November 2014

Conference announcement: GAPSYM8: Colonial memories at present – decolonizing Belgium?

Gent, 27 November 2014
CALL FOR PAPERS – DEADLINE 1 JUNE 2014

Please find attached the call for papers of the 8th annual symposium of the Africa Platform of Ghent University Association, entitled « Colonial memories at present – decolonizing Belgium? ».

The objectives of the 8th annual symposium of the Africa Platform are basically twofold: we want to shed light on the current post-colonial situation in Belgium and on the way Belgian society deals with its colonial history; in an attempt to analyze the relation between the colonial past and racism today.
In order to bring these two concerns—history and its present impact—into dialogue, the symposium’s organizers invite a wide range of contributors, from political scientists, jurists, urban planners, physicians, educationists and sociologists to engage in this conference.
Although the main focus is on African colonial past and Africans in Belgium, we welcome contributions that take on a comparative perspective and/or consider non-African population groups as well as the post-colonial situation in other contexts.

In short: we invite scholars to submit paper proposals dealing with the topics of colonial memories, colonial past, the impact of colonialism on present day Europe, and racism/discrimination in western society today.

Paper proposals (abstract of maximum 300 words) can be submitted until the 1st of June 2014.

More details can be found at http://www.gap.ugent.be/gapsym8_en