HOTCUS Annual Postgraduate & Early Career Conference: ‘The Regulated Body’

Rothermere American Institute, The University of Oxford

Friday, 18 October 2019

Keynote Speaker: Professor Douglas Charles (Penn State University)

Over the course of the twentieth century, the federal government of the United States regularly surveyed and policed the personhood, behaviour and gender of its citizens. This state policing of gender and sexuality inspired the formation of activist coalitions that fought against punitive policies and for expanded rights. Today, the Trump administration continues to threaten women’s constitutional right to access abortion care, and the ongoing assault on LGBT+ communities—most recently through its ban on transgender troops serving in the military—proves that the narrowing of rights based on assumptions about sexuality and gender are never far away. The growing scholarship on the history of American sexuality and its relationship to the state coupled with our current political moment make it a pertinent time to explore themes surrounding ‘the regulated body’ in their historical context.

HOTCUS invites proposals for 20 minute papers or panels (of three speakers) from postgraduate and early career researchers exploring how social movements for rights and justice have interacted with the state regulation of gender and sexual nonconformity from the early twentieth century to the present day. Submissions should include a 300-word outline of the papers or panels and a brief biography or CV of the presenter, and should be submitted to [email protected]. The deadline for submission is Thursday, 1 August 2019. For more information or queries, please contact Emma Day ([email protected])  

Paper/panel topics may include, but are not limited to:

  • Social movements for rights and justice and activist demands on the state
  • Intersections of gender and sexuality with race
  • Reproductive justice and the regulation of reproductive rights 
  • The criminalization of gender and sexual nonconformity
  • The role of the three branches of government in curtailing or advancing rights
  • The federal government versus the states in curtailing or advancing rights
  • Bodies as a site of resistance
  • Transgender histories and histories of gender nonconformity
  • Histories of disability

This conference is specifically designed for postgraduate and early career researchers and includes roundtable discussions on applying for research grants and postdoctoral fellowships, the state of the profession, publishing, the REF and teaching, each led by experienced academics.

HOTCUS intend for this event to be as inclusive and diverse as possible and therefore panels composed entirely of male presenters will not be considered. HOTCUS would also especially welcome proposals from the BAME academic community, who have historically been under-represented at the conference.