Three Member Scholarships for SDS Conference 17- 20 April 2021

[jesse_the_k]

The Society for Disability Studies annual conference is fully online from 17 to 20 April 2021. It shares virtual space and expenses with the Ohio State University's Mulitple Perspectives on Inclusion conference: you get two cons for the price of one.

Wait ... for even less:

There are three no-cost member scholarships available. This offer expires at 4pm Central Standard Time (1300 UTC) on Monday 4 April. Drop me a direct message if you’re interested, or email me at jesse_the_k@dreamwidth.org

The Society for Disability Studies is the academic home for people who understand disability from the social (justice) model. They publish Disability Studies Quarterly, which mixes up high academic and practical activism—it’s always worth checking out their open access archive if you’re interested in anything related to disability.

Disability Studies as a discipline recognizes that disability is a key aspect of human experience, and that the study of disability has important political, social, and economic implications for society as a whole, including both disabled and nondisabled people. Through research, artistic production, teaching and activism, the Society for Disability Studies seeks to augment understanding of disability in all cultures and historical periods, to promote greater awareness of the experiences of disabled people, and to advocate for social change.

The conference theme:

DEEP SIGH: (Re)Centering Activism, Healing, Radical Love, Emotional Connection and Breathing Spaces in Intersectional Communities

During these turbulent times of racial injustice and disappointing leadership(s), amplified by the current pandemic and climate crisis, the world is (has been, and continues to be) hurting, while some have been thriving at the expense of ‘others’. Right now, we need to take a step back and listen and learn from those who are members of some of the most vulnerable communities, in particular historically multiply marginalized communities. Pain, trauma, and vulnerability manifest in a myriad of ways. Rather than sweeping these issues under the rug, we want to invite folks to breathe for a moment and take space/time to (re)connect with their surroundings and with each other, while becoming attuned to the aches, tightness, and tweaks that our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual energies convey.

This is a moment for a deep sigh, a moment of “I am present,” a moment of becoming aware of how much wear and tear our mind, body, and spirit have embodied, toiled over, especially in the past several months of “what just happened?!”

Presenters and program items are being developed as I type, with details available by 1 April. I guarantee you’ll find something intriguing and educational.

Conference Schedule Overview

Saturday & Sunday, 17–18 April, 2021 -- SDS@OSU

• 9 Blocks of 4-5 Concurrent Sessions
• Plenary Event (details below)
• All-day Zola Help Desk
• All-day Display, Chat, and Respite Space
• DANCE DANCE DANCE

SDS Plenary event Saturday evening plenary roundtable features five contributors to the special issue of South Atlantic Quarterly on “Crip Temporalities” published this month. It’s moderated by the issue’s co-editors, Elizabeth Freeman and Ellen Samuels. This plenary, like the special issue, is deeply intersectional in practice and content and will focus particularly on how crip time is experienced in multiply-marginalized disability communities, including the impact of COVID-19 in the United States and globally on Black, Asian, Indigenous, and Latinx people. Speakers Moya Bailey, Alison Kafer, Mariá Elena Cepeda, Mimi Khúc, and Jasbir Puar, will briefly talk about how their thinking on crip time has transformed over the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, across scholarly, activist, personal, and political realms. An open discussion with questions from the audience will follow, inviting all attendees to dream together what crip futures are possible in the pandemic and post-pandemic world.

Monday & Tuesday, 19–20 April, 2021

SDS@OSU plus Multiple Perspectives:

Multiple Perspectives has posted this schedule already.

• 6 Blocks of 2 Concurrent SDS@OSU Strand Sessions
• All-Day Sessions organized by the Multiple Perspectives Conference
• Plenary Events

Mia Mingus mia.mingus will be speaking at 4pm Monday, 19 April 2021. She’s an outstanding presenter, thinker, and organizer and I treasure every time I’ve heard her present.