October 17 & 18, 2008 What does it mean to be a girl? Who defines girlhood in an age when puberty and sexualization are happening at younger ages? How do girls assert their own identity in an increasingly mediated and consumerist culture which targets girls as a prime audience? Why do U.S. girls who are told that they can do anything feel like they have to do everything, and perfectly? What challenges do girls across races, classes, religions, nations, and cultures face in an ever more globalized world? What is the relationship between girls and feminism? What effect can feminism have on constructions of boyhood and masculinity and how in turn can this effect girls? In the 18th annual SCSU Women's Studies conference, we will take a close look at girls' culture and girls' studies, among the most vibrant areas in women's studies. We invite individuals, groups, scholars, activists, artists, girls and all, to submit proposals for panel presentations, roundtable discussions, or artistic performances that address topics including the following:
Girls and Pop Culture
Construction of Girlhood Media and Girls' Culture
Girls & Cutting/Self-Mutilation Politics of Girls Studies
Girls & Leadership Women's Studies & Girls' Studies
Girls & Child Labor Race & Class in Girls' Studies
Girls & Performance Coming of Age Glocally
Gender Research & Girls Body Image and Girls
Girls & Disabilities Girls & Sexuality
Girls & Ink. Human Trafficking & Girls
Girls & Religion Indigenous Women and Girls
Human Rights of Girls Chick Lit
Globalization and Girlhood Girls & Sports Construction of Tween Agers/Girls Girls & Resistance
Girls & Gangs Race, Ethnicity, and Class in Girls Studies
Transnational Adoption of Girls Violence against Girls & Women
Girl Power & Feminism/Anti-Feminism Girl Power and Politics
American Girls and Beyond Girls' Studies in Academe
Girls and Grassroots Activism Reviving Ophelia, Surviving Ophelia, Resisting Ophelia Growing up Incarcerated Girls across/between Worlds Parenting/Raising Girls Representations of Girls
Girls as Parents
We also invite your ideas and suggestions. Conference sessions will juxtapose cultural, generational, and geopolitical perspectives in order to construct feminist renditions of girls' cultures, histories, and representations. Expect fun through meals, performance, and poetry slam, with girls and their allies speaking of their struggles and power. Send submissions electronically by June 12, 2008, to womenstudies@southernct.edu. Please include name, affiliation, E-mail, standard mailing address, and phone number. Proposals should be no longer than one page, with a second page for identification information.
