In the production of an American national identity, those who did not fit within the parameters of whiteness, maleness, heterosexuality, or legally recognizable citizenship became illegal while those who miss all categories but have legal citizenship become alien. How do certain bodies become coded as alien citizens within the space of the academy? How do alien citizens contest epistemological violence? And how can the academy be used as “exploitable political space,” a space that “calls attention to how curricula that universalize the values and norms of a ‘common’ national culture are in contradiction with…society” (Lowe)?

Possible topics and fields relevant to this conference include:

- The discursive work of multiculturalism and the language of diversity

- Post-race, race and racism

- Scripts of belonging

- Quare/Queer studies

- Performativity and disidentification

- Undocumented students and public institutions

- Geographies of power and academic landscapes

Please submit abstracts/panel proposals of 250 words in the body of an email (no attachments) to bgsa.rutgers@gmail.com by July 15, 2011. We’ll notify presenters by Aug 15th.