Dear colleagues,

UACES sponsored collaborative research network "Romanis in Europe" is now calling for papers for a panel on  'Alternative strategies of Roma mobilization' at the 2013 BASEES/ICCEES European Congress  "Europe: 
Crisis and Renewal" in Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge 5-8 April 2013.

Looking at the present day socio-economic situation of Roma communities across countries, discrimination and marginalization have proven to be pan-European phenomena. In this context, the Europeanization of the Roma 'issue(s)' has also brought about a large research interest in aspects of Roma trans-national and political organization. Yet, analyses of local, contextual and non-political strategies of Roma mobilization have remained peripheral within the literature.


We invite young and established scholars to submit their papers for a panel that seeks to fill this research gap.  Trying to move beyond the existing discursive construction of a 'failed Roma mobilization', this panel focuses on the 'localized' and alternative strategies of Roma organization and integration, and look at the cases in which Roma members themselves become agents of social change for the communities they inhabit.

We invite papers spanning the fields of anthropology, social and political science, religious studies, or other cognate disciplines. 
Case studies and comparative analyses on the following topics are particularly welcome, yet papers dealing with a wider range of themes will also be considered:

-  Contact as a pathway to integration: How does increased cultural and/or economic contact between local Roma communities and local majorities shape or alter negative stereotypes and perceptions coming from behalf of local majorities? How are the opinions and stereotypes coming from the Roma community in regards to non-Roma communities shaped by increased communication between groups? What types of contact (economic, social, cultural or other) between Roma groups and local majorities foster greater awareness of similarities rather than differences?
-  Roma artists as mediators: what role does artistic expression (i.e. 
through film, documentaries, photography, and painting) play in countering negative Roma stereotypes? How do Roma visual artists respond to and address issues of discrimination and marginalization? What role do they have as mediators of the ways in which the image of their Roma 'community' is promoted in the local majority community?
-  Music as counter-discourse: what role does popular music play in addressing the issues of Roma discrimination? What position do Roma musicians take in lifting up political and social issues regarding Roma minorities and what are their means to do so? How are collaborations between Roma and non-Roma musicians shaping the image of local Roma communities?
-  Religion and social integration: What role does religion play in the social and/or political mobilization of particular Roma communities? 
What kind of relations is shaped between Roma and non-Roma members of religious minorities and how do these shape the stereotypical images of Roma?

The aim of the panel is to foster discussion across academic fields as well as provide a medium for presenting the 'success' stories of Roma integration and mobilization. Please submit your abstract of no more than 250 words by 01 September 2012, including full contact details, indicating your institutional affiliation and research interests on the
website: http://cms.computingpro.co.uk/romainclusion/

If you have any questions, please contact Raluca Bianca Roman at : 
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For information on the UACES CRN "Romanis in Europe", please see http://www.romanis.eu/contact/



Best wishes and looking forward to your submissions,

Raluca Bianca Roman




__________________
Raluca Bianca Roman
University College London/University of Helsinki
UACES Collaborative Research Network "Romanis in Europe" 
http://www.romanis.eu
Tel: 00(40)745313602 &  00358/(0)417010466
Email: [log in to unmask]