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Call for Papers
"Immigration, Minorities and Multiculturalism in
Democracies"
Interdisciplinary Conference
Department of Political Studies, Queen's University
Départment de Science Politique, Université de Montréal
Montreal (Canada)
25-27 October 2007
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Concern with issues of ethnic pluralism has come to the
forefront of public debate in liberal democracies and newly
democratizing states. Wide-ranging population movements
around the globe, endorsement of cosmopolitanism, and the
increasing importance of norms fuzzily labeled civil
rights, have been widely regarded as positive trends. At
the same time, there is little doubt that in many cases,
ethnic heterogeneity has been characterized by mistrust,
suspicion, alienation, and conflict. As many societies are
undergoing demographic transformations, there is intense
debate about how communal relations are best managed. At the
forefront are issues such as the place of religious
arbitration, dress codes in public schools, and the balance
between freedom of speech, and the sensibilities of
religious minorities, as demonstrated in the cartoon
affair in Europe in the winter of 2006. Some believe that
illiberal norms are being injected into liberal societies
and are contributing to the erosion of social cohesion.
Others fear that multicultural ideals are being taken over
by increasing intolerance toward immigrant and indigenous
ethnic communities. Yet others still feel that
multiculturalism and social cohesion are not inconsistent
policy objectives. The aim of the conference is to explore
empirical, normative, and policy-relevant questions relating
to inter-group relations in multiethnic societies, both
Western and non-Western, and from diverse disciplinary
perspectives.
Topical themes
I. Origins / history of ethno-cultural communities,
immigrant and indigenous
No exploration of the phenomenon is complete without a story
of origins. This theme explores the history of minorities
and the impact such history has had on perceptions of and
self-perceptions amongst ethnocultural communities. Why do
people leave their ancestral homes? How are their identities
reshaped in the lands of immigration?
- Internal and external politics of indigenous and immigrant
ethnic communities
- Conditions (causes) of political mobilization of
minorities or ethnic groups
- Internal and external socio-cultural factors in the
creation of group identities
- Political economy of class and ethnicity among indigenous
and immigrant groups
- Variations in the immigrant experience immigration by
choice, refugees, internal migrations, forced repatriation,
etc.
- Ethnic networks as a local, national and transnational
economic resources
II. The reciprocal impact of political and economic
institutions on ethno-cultural communities
Polities are regulated by a set of laws, by political and
economic institutions which provide constraints and
opportunities to all societal groups. How do different laws
and institutional settings accommodate or alienate
ethnocultural communities? Are some laws and institutions
better suited to the peaceful resolution of tensions than
others?
- National and local state institutions and ethno-cultural
communities
- Impact of community and civil society institutions,
including educational and religious institutions, print and
electronic media, cultural groups
- Assimilation, accommodation, recognition, and
marginalization of the citizenship of indigenous and
immigrant communities
- Immigrants, minorities and the urban experience:
multi-cultural cities
III. International and transnational dimensions of
population movements
No state is an island. In an increasingly globalized world,
the international is increasingly intertwined with the
transnational. Population movements are no exception. This
theme explores the international and transnational
institutions, formal and informal, that affect population
movements and resettlement in new locales. Which
international and transnational factors exacerbate tensions
between ethnocultural communities and the polities where
they have settled? Which contribute to peaceful
conflict-regulation, and how?
- Economic and security implications of transnational
population movements
- International norms and the empowerment or marginalization
of ethno-cultural groups and identities
- Diasporas and transnational political, economic and
cultural linkages
- Transnational immigration and the globalization of
criminal underworlds, e.g. drugs and sexual trafficking
IV. Multi-culturalism in theory and practice in liberal
democracies
Normative principles of justice and equality underpin the
smooth functioning of multiethnic polities. What are these
principles? How do they work to achieve ideals of peace and
social harmony? Who are the agents of their dissemination in
society?
- Individual rights vs. group rights of ethno-cultural
communities, indigenous and immigrant
- Secular modernity, religion and the mobilization or
accommodation of ethno-cultural communities
- Gender, sexuality and ethnicity in multi-cultural liberal
democracies
- Revaluating the politics of multi-culturalism and other
forms of difference in liberal democracies
- European backlash against multiculturalism and a debate
about its reasons: the rise of xenophobic populist right
wing parties, European Islamophobia, irregular immigration,
a crisis of European welfare state regimes and a reassertion
of the national bases for social solidarity
Submission Guidelines
The EDG committee welcomes the submission of paper and panel
proposals related to the conference theme.
For paper proposals, please submit a 300-word (max.)
abstract and a 75-word (max.) vitae paragraph.
For panel proposals, an abstract of the overall Panel Topic
should be provided. Please submit a 200-word (max.) panel
description summarizing the panel's rationale, a 300-word
(max.) abstract for each paper, and a 75-word (max.) vitae
paragraph for each speaker. Panels will be accepted or
rejected as a whole. Proposals for linked panels are
welcome.
Panels will be 90 120 minutes in length and may consist of
either 3 to 4 papers or 2 to 3 papers and a respondent.
Presentations should be no longer than twenty minutes and
panel chairs are responsible for ensuring there is adequate
time for discussion. Panels may be chaired by one of the
presenters, but no individual may present more than one
paper or organize more than one panel. Overhead projectors
will be provided. If applicable, please indicate alternate
form(s) of audio-visual equipment required (supplied at the
presenters expense).
Please submit abstracts to <[email protected]> by March 31st,
2007. Please clearly label which of the four thematic areas
your proposal falls under. Acknowledgment of receipt of the
abstract will be sent by email as soon as possible after
receipt. You will receive notification of acceptance no
later than June 15th, 2007. For further information about
the conference including registration and accommodation,
please visit the EDG website at: http://www.edg-gde.ca
Contact:
Jennifer Clark
Project Manager
SSHRC Ethnicity and Democratic Governance /
GTRC Gouvernance démocratique et ethnicité
Queen's University
Kingston, ON K7L 3N6
Canada
Phone: +1 (613) 533-6000 x74523
Email: [email protected]
Web: http://www.edg-gde.ca/cfp.html
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