Friday, November 18, 2022 via Zoom (Times TBA)
Deadline: October 1, 2022
Our annual conference of the Punk Scholars Network Canada and United States will be held on November 18, 2022 via Zoom. The theme this year is Punk & Resilience, and we welcome proposals from punk scholars both in North America and internationally.
Punk has always had an association with crisis, whether as a progressive response to social or economic problems or a dark, satirical expression of existential angst. For our annual event, the Punk Scholars Network will explore the theme of resilience in relation to punk history, punk cultures, punk scenes and punk identities. Resilience can be understood in terms of strength, resistance, endurance, adaptability, flexibility, and unshockability. In recent years, many communities have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, which was quickly followed by widespread economic decline, social and political conflicts, as well as a cost-of-living crisis. With this theme serving as a starting point, members of the Punk Scholars Network in Canada and the United States aim to critically engage in a global conversation about what resilience means today and how it functions in a post-pandemic punk practice.
In keeping with the Punk Scholars Network’s multidisciplinary academic approach, we are seeking contributions from a range of fields of study and methodological approaches including, but not limited to: cultural studies, history, musicology, communication, art and design, humanities, performing arts and the social sciences. As ever, the PSN also welcomes proposals from independent scholars, artists, journalists, musicians, punk fans, and scene participants working outside of formal academic institutions. Selected papers and panels could cover, but are not limited to, the following themes:
- The history of punk: origins, legacy, impact.
- Punk resistance, longevity and sustainability.
- Global punk scenes.
- Punk ethics and politics.
- Punk aesthetics, punk style.
- Punk and conflict, crisis or trauma.
- Ethnographic considerations of scene/space and borders.
- Music and the performer: creativity, authorship, identity, definition, musical boundaries.
- Reception: DIY culture, activism.
- The art of punk: record covers, concert flyers, fanzine design and associated graphic styles.
- Political issues relating to Canadian and the United States analyzed though the lens of punk scholarship, such as abortion rights, systemic racism, gender equality, and disability justice.
Submissions for presentations in English, French, and Spanish will be accepted.
Proposals by USA-based scholars, about US punk, or that will be presented in Spanish should be submitted to punkscholarsusa@gmail.com<mailto:punkscholarsusa@gmail.com>
Proposals by Canada-based scholars, about Canadian punk, or that will be presented in French should be submitted to: punkscholarsnetworkcanada@gmail.com<mailto:punkscholarsnetworkcanada@gmail.com>
Deadline: Saturday, October 1, 2022, though we are happy to accept proposals earlier.
Proposals should be 350 words maximum (or equivalent, 2 minutes if a video clip for example). Please include a presentation title, affiliation information (if any), preferred pronouns, and a brief presenter bio (50-100 words) with your submission.