Ethnic Studies: 40 Years

The College of Ethnic Studies
Ethnic Studies 40 Years Later: Race, Resistance and Relevance

In 1968-69, students of the black student union and third world liberation front, staff and faculty, as well as members from the larger Bay Area community, organized and lead a series of actions to protest systematic discriminiation, lack of access, neglect, and misrepresentation of histories cultures and knowledge of indigenous peoples and communities of color within the univeristy's curriculum and programs. Their specific demands included the establishment of our departments - Asian American Studies, Black Studies, La Raza Studies, Native American Studies - in Ethnic Studies. These demands reflected a respect for the diverse intellectual traditions and cultural expressions of the scholars, activists, and artists of communities of color and indigenous people throughout the U.S., and a fierce commitment to the concept of self-determination through education.
October 7-10, 2009 / CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The College of Ethnic Studies (CoES) at San Francisco State University (SFSU) invites proposals for papers, panels, roundtable discussions, workshops and performances for a conference marking the founding of The College and the emergence of the field of Ethnic Studies. The first College of Ethnic Studies, inaugurated in 1969, was accompanied by ethnic studies initiatives, programs, centers and departments at universities and colleges around the world. This 40th anniversary of CoES presents an opportunity to examine contributions, developments, and challenges within the field of Ethnic Studies. We welcome the exploration of themes that include but are not limited to the following:

• Where is Ethnic Studies in the world today, and what are the similarities and differences between our contemporary goals and those of decades past that led to the creation of the field?

• What fruitful relationships are possible—and what obstacles exist--between Ethnic Studies programs, local communities of color, and related diasporas?

• How are social justice pedagogies relevant to the field of Ethnic Studies?

• In what ways have our conceptual tools for discussions about race, racialization, racial formation, and power changed since the founding of Ethnic Studies? How are we addressing class, gender, sexuality, religion, and citizenship within Ethnic Studies?

• What strategies allow for inclusion of a full range of ethnic experiences, philosophical perspectives, methods, and analytical frameworks within the field?

• How might recent events such as restrictions of civil liberties domestically and internationally, the election of Barack Obama, ongoing wars, and the international economic crisis affect the field of Ethnic Studies and the centering of race relations?

Please send your submissions with the cover sheet to fortieth@sfsu.edu
Priority will be assigned to proposals in the order of submission deadlines: