I am seeking panelists whose work focuses issues such as: memory of slavery and the Civil War; representations of race and slavery; the intersection of popular culture and politics; civil rights struggles; etc. My own paper will examine the public performances of the Original Fisk Jubilee Singers, their role in preserving a memory of slavery as the "national" memory of the Civil War moved toward reconciliation, and their simultaneous use of the public platform to call for civil rights. While the troupe's performance of slave spirituals called up images of suffering and African American victimhood for largely white audiences, the troupe put that image to political purpose in fighting discrimination, segregation, and unequal treatment.

If you think your work might fit, please contact me off list (heather-cooper@uiowa.edu) with your paper abstract or a description of your project ASAP – but no later than Feb. 23. Complete panel proposals are due to OAH Feb. 28, so we will need to move quickly.

Thank you!