Call for Proposals War and Society Mini-Conference

This one-day conference provides an opportunity for people to present their research and participate in discussions related to warfare, armed conflict, militarized resistance, and other forms of mass violence. Wars have transformative—sometimes liberatory, more often devastating—effects on societies, borders, environments, political solidarities, social institutions, and national economies. Along with political turmoil, armed conflicts may involve mass atrocities, gender and sexual-based violence, genocide, or regime change. We invite proposals that tackle the social and political causes and/or consequences of various types of conflicts—including long wars, civil wars, dirty wars, asymmetric wars, and other forms of mass violence. Suggested topics may include: How are specific societies or regions or even the global order altered by war? How is law implicated in and affected by armed conflict? How do societies and communities participate in or oppose or survive warfare? How do specific social forces or political actors intervene with the goal of ending armed conflicts or pursuing peace or disengagement agreements? Has the notion of “after war” become outdated or irrelevant in the face of durable violence, militarization, and the profitability of instruments and technologies of warfare? Our objective is to create a forum where people can share their knowledge and expertise, engage in constructive debates on themes and paradigms related to war and society broadly construed, and network with others. We welcome anyone who does work in the broader landscape of “Peace, War, and Social Change.”

This mini-conference will take place on the first day of the 2023 meeting of the American Sociological Association, but we invite scholars and practitioners from any discipline or field to submit proposals and attend. The format will include paper panels and a session of simultaneous roundtables. We invite proposals for individual papers or roundtable topics. Please create a document that includes your name, affiliation, email, a title (paper) or theme (roundtable), and an abstract of approximately 300 words. Send your proposal to Program Committee Chair Ori Swed, ori.swed@ttu.edu, with the subject line: War and Society Conference proposal. Deadline for proposals is March 31, 2023. The conference registration fee will be $35 ($10 for students), which includes a catered lunch on site.

The Peace, War, and Social Conflict Section of the ASA (https://www.pwsc.us/home) is a community of scholars and practitioners dedicated the study of issues related to peace, war, and social conflict as social phenomena.