AAC : IMISCOE Spring Conference « Postcolonial migrations – heritages, specificities, mobilizations », Wednesday 15th – Friday 17th of March 2023, Nice and online — DEADLINE : 09/​12/​2022

Call for papers

Event orga­nised by : Unité de Recherche Migra­tions Sociétés (URMIS), Univer­sity of Côte d’Azur (Nice)

Dead­line for paper submis­sions : 9th of December 2022 (23:59 CET)

This 2023 IMISCOE Spring Confe­rence focuses on what is often termed « post-colo­nial » migra­tions (Samaddar 2019). For several decades, resear­chers have inter­ro­gated the legacy of Euro­pean colo­ni­za­tion during the 19th and 20th centu­ries while analy­zing migra­tory pheno­mena. Work on this topic has emerged in different coun­tries and from different disci­plines (huma­ni­ties, poli­tical science, econo­mics, law, social sciences), and in doing so has criti­qued coloniality’s conti­nuing presence not only in formerly colo­nized coun­tries but also in colo­nial powers such as France, the United Kingdom, the Nether­lands, Belgium, Spain or Portugal. At the end of the colo­ni­za­tion period, the presence of popu­la­tions from former colo­nies in former metro­po­lises raised ques­tions regar­ding the links between colo­ni­za­tion and migra­tion. Discus­sions about post-colo­nial migra­tions also led to analyses based on the weight of past, lega­cies, and the cultural dimen­sion of migra­tion, parti­cu­larly the issue of repre­sen­ta­tions. It raised ques­tions such as : In what ways is the status of the ex-colo­nized in so-called ‛host’ coun­tries a perpe­tua­tion of colo­nial linkages and how is a former colo­ni­zing country perceived by those who decide to settle there at the end of direct colonialism ?

Resear­chers have also ques­tioned the way in which colo­nial links have conti­nued to func­tion after inde­pen­dence, both econo­mi­cally and poli­ti­cally. How has the colo­nial past resur­faced since the 1960s and how does it continue to do so today in socie­ties, parti­cu­larly in terms of migra­tion poli­cies or in the way in which migra­tion and migrants are perceived ? Moreover, is it possible to draw compa­ri­sons across coun­tries and conti­nents with different colo­ni­zing powers and colo­nial histo­ries ? Addi­tio­nally, since post-colo­nial migra­tions are also a history of feelings, it is parti­cu­larly impor­tant to examine how the ‛post-colo­nial’ is appre­hended by migrants and their descen­dants, inclu­ding anti-racist acti­vists involved in these issues as they attempt to move away from the lega­cies of colo­nia­lity in beha­vior and atti­tudes. Further reflec­tion is also needed on the speci­fi­ci­ties of post-colo­nial migra­tions : are they to be distin­gui­shed from other migra­tions and, if so, what are their specificities ?

The 2023 IMISCOE Spring Confe­rence aims to encou­rage further reflec­tions and exchanges around different facets of post­co­lo­nial migra­tions. This includes (without being restricted to) topics such as : the use of the post­co­lo­nial concept in migra­tion studies ; major deve­lop­ments in research on post­co­lo­nial migra­tion around the world ; the socio-economic dimen­sion of post-colo­nial migra­tions ; poli­tical or diplo­matic impli­ca­tions of these migra­tions ; the impact of colo­nia­li­za­tion on migrants and their descen­dants and their views on the topic ; cultural and artistic expres­sions of post­co­lo­nial migra­tions ; forms and chan­nels of mobi­li­za­tions and acti­vism around the topic.

Conditions/​requirements

We invite paper propo­sals focused on the overall theme of this Call.

  • To be consi­dered, authors should submit a short paper abstract (250 words maximum) and a biogra­phical note (100 words maximum per (co)author) via email to migpost@​sciencesconf.​org.
  • Appli­cants should include “SPRING IMISCOE 2023” in the subject of the email.
  • Appli­cants should also specify if they wish to attend the event in person or online.
  • Dead­line for submis­sion of paper propo­sals : 9th of December 2022 (23:59 CET)
  • We encou­rage authors to speci­fi­cally high­light the way(s) in which their research relates to the overall theme of the conference.
  • Results of the selec­tion will be commu­ni­cated to all appli­cants by mid-January 2023.

Refe­rence page