Call For Chapter Proposals: Book Project on Patriarchy and Gender in Africa

Globally, males disproportionately predominate leadership roles and exert power in diverse forms of social systems and institutions. Patriarchy, the supremacy of fatherhood whereby women and children rely totally on male line, is entrenched in many societies around the world. Differential enjoyment of rights and dignity predetermined for women and men, based on their social, cultural and legal disposition, typify gender inequality. Patriarchy and gender inequality are two important but complex and debatable issues facing the African continent today. Argued to be the main cause of gender inequality, patriarchy plagues Africa in spite of immense progress made in the last two decades to address the prolonged impacts of gender injustice and male dominance. On the occasion of the 15^thanniversary of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, we announce a call for chapter proposals to critically analyze the situation of girls and women in Africa. To assess the state, role and impact of patriarchy and gender inequality on African girls and women, we seek broad themes of Patriarchy and Gender. We welcome papers from all disciplines that address the following, but not limited to: 

• the roots and foundations of patriarchy and gender in different societies and cultures in Africa;
• the expressions of femininities and masculinities in religion (e.g., African Traditional Religion, Christian, Islam and others);
• power relations among, between and within the sexes;
• traditional and non-traditional roles of gender;
• issues of domestic, family and personal violence;
• various social factors affecting patriarchal and gender institutions;
• issues of gender identities, gender expressions, gender relations, and gender roles;
• inter-connections between patriarchy, gender inequality, and violent extremism in Africa;
• existing gaps and opportunities for policy, law and social reform in gender justice; and
• empirical research and case studies on regional and sub-regional best practices and solutions to addressing patriarchy and gender inequality. 

Other issues related to patriarchy and gender are most welcome with particular regard to an examination of major issues relevant to the above themes for the purpose of contributing to deeper understanding of patriarchy and gender inequality, as well as, developing long-term solutions to the problem at stake.

Guided by the core objectives of the African Studies Research Forum (ASRF), we aim for a comprehensive coverage of the African continent in our search for well-researched papers to generate knowledge on reforming discriminatory laws, benefitting human-centered public policies, promoting best practices, harnessing research rigor, and expanding academic scholarship beyond the African continent. Selected papers will be published under “The ASRF’s Book Series.”

Submission Guidelines

Chapter Proposal: All chapter proposal must contain the following: i) topic (12 words maximum), ii) name, iii) institutional affiliation, iv) a brief description of the chapter (300-500 words maximum), and v) keywords (a maximum of five). 

Submission Deadline: 30 September 2018

First Chapter Draft: 31 December 2018

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Submit chapter proposal to egodi.uchendu@unn.edu.ng and fynnbruv@seattleu.edu

Journal of Internal Displacement-IDMC Special Issue: Call For Papers

CALL FOR PAPERS

‘Getting to 2030: The Future of Internal Displacement and Sustainable Development’

Special Issue January 2019

The internal displacement of millions of people every year is a human tragedy, as well as a political, social and economic challenge for many countries across the globe. It is increasingly recognised that large-scale, protracted internal displacement is often underpinned by problematic development trajectories, and that long-term displacement has a significant, if still unquantified, impact on national and regional economies, stability and security. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development gives express attention to internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a vulnerable group not to be left behind. Moreover, internal displacement cuts across all Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), meaning that failing to address the realities of internal displacement risks holding back or even reversing progress on achieving those goals. Yet, while the negative impacts of internal displacement can hamper national progress, the evidence for how this plays out remains fragmented, and systematic studies are scant.

2018 marks the 20th anniversary of the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. A number of initiatives and events are celebrating this important milestone by taking stock of the progress made over the last two decades. While reflection is of course crucial, we must also look to how we take the internal displacement agenda forward, beyond 2018, building on what has been achieved to date. Towards this aim, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is hosting a conference in Geneva in October 2018, for which it has published a call for abstracts inviting contributions that explore the relationship between internal displacement and sustainable development. For its next issue, the Journal of Internal Displacement (JID) is collaborating with the IDMC to build on the outcomes from the conference, as well as inviting additional contributions that explore how internal displacement concerns fit into national and global sustainable development efforts and the UN prevention agenda. 

Paper themes: 

To address the identified knowledge gaps, lessons on the relationship between internal displacement and the SDGs are sought from a range of disciplines, including, but not limited to, migration and mobility studies, economics, human rights, human geography, health and political sciences, law, and area studies. By inviting contributions from across the globe, and from differing socio-economic and governance contexts, this Special Issue will unpack what it actually means to integrate internal displacement into national and regional development planning today and into the future.

Paper submissions are specifically welcome on the following themes: 

• the impact of internal displacement on long-term educational and employment outcomes; 
• the effect of protracted displacement on economic growth and inequality; 
• the interplay between sudden-onset disasters, slow-onset impacts arising from climate  change, and internal displacement; 

• the nature of access to justice and state accountability barriers faced by IDPs; 
• the challenges of collecting and aggregating data to support planning, as well as the prevention of internal displacement; 

• the existing gaps and opportunities for financing; and 
• case studies of instances where national and local authorities have integrated internal displacement into planning. 

Beyond these themes, papers that present further relevant lessons under the SDGs are welcome, as are papers that explore any other aspects of the relationship between internal displacement, sustainable development and prevention. 

Submission guidelines: 

• Manuscripts must be submitted to internaldisplacement@gmail.com no later than Thursday 8 November 2018. 
• Manuscripts must be a maximum of 30 pages (i.e. approximately 15,000 words including references). Further author guidelines are provided here. 

-->Please direct all questions on the JID Special Issue to Ben Hudson (Assistant Editor) at internaldisplacement@gmail.com. All questions specific to the IDMC conference should be directed to bina.desai@idmc.ch and christelle.cazabat@idmc.ch. For more information, visit: JID.

Gender Inequality in Global Political Leadership

Hello Everyone! I know what you're thinking: it's been way too long. Yes indeed I've not kept up with my once-per month post. I am simply overwhelmed with so much. Please hear me out. I wrote eight exam papers and completed submission of two dissertations (LLB and PhD) in 2016. Trust me, it was not an easy feat. But guess what? I did it!!! YEAH! And now that the LLB is done and I am almost done with the PhD, research, book publication, conference, and journal article review requests started to literally crash in on me. Well, it is all good,  but just busy.

OK, like most people around the world, I was also immersed into the US elections for obvious reasons. In the wee hours of 8 November 2016, I sat on the couch, resting my head on the shoulders of my husband with tears running down my cheeks as I watched the results of the election. Initially, I had anticipated being a living part of two great histories, i.e., to see the first Black President and the first Female President elected in the US. It hurt then and still hurts with every news and tweets larking around on Donald Trump. 

As I thought about topics to share on my block the global trend of rejected female leadership in politics became obvious. Each day as I introspect and think critically about social justice and equality issues, I wonder why females in leadership face ongoing challenges especially from men. Then, I started to familiarise myself with more information on these political leaders in relation to Hillary Clinton's loss of the US presidency to Trump: Dilma Rossef, President of Brazil (2011-2016), Park Geun-Hye (President of South Korea 2013-2017), Ameenah Gurib-Fakim (President of Mauritius (2015-2018) versus Jacob Zuma (president of South Africa 2009-2018) and Rodrigo Duterte, (President of the Philippines 2016-present).

I am constantly abhorred by some Americans narrow view and lack of ability to think critically about Obama's leadership. Even when there seems to be some level of objective assessment of Trump's insanity, still he and the GOP will find a way to always blame President Obama for every political problem in America. Sometimes, it is ridiculous and nonsensical how far some of these vitriolic spew can go. But for the ability to exercise independent research and examination, I wonder the fate of all those who gulp down junk media in a zombie-like fashion. Such toxic hatred definitely spilled over to inherent dislike of Clinton and the most powerful democratic nation mockery of gender equality. Well, at this point, the only logical conclusion as to why women are so fiercely examined and discriminated against by men primarily boils down to their gender. The patriarchal and paternalistic world over, men will stop at nothing to ensure they continue to assert power and control over women. But, not for too long, especially with increasing rise in women's voices.