One example of the network's participation in conferences organized by other organizations was its presence at the 5th biennial conference of the Afroeuropean Studies Network ("Afroeuropeans: Black Cultures and Identities in Europe V"), which took place in Muenster (Germany) from September 16 to 19, 2015.
The network organized its own panel: “The Black Diaspora and Germany: Migrations, Imaginaries, Interventions”
The panel presented samples of the research that was being done by some of its long-standing members and more recent contacts and associates. It began with a case study from the colonial period, where historian Robbie Aitken explored the lives of Black people who came to Germany as personal servants before World War One. A second case study on migration experiences focused on the contemporary period: working with approaches from the field of Human Geography, Inken Carstensen-Egwuom discussed discourses on masculinity, intimate relationships and power in the Nigerian diaspora in Germany. The next two papers provided more directly interventionist perspectives, giving insight into current issues of racism, discrimination, education, body politics, and the use of space. Modupe Laja, a grassroots activist with a background in Literary and Cultural Studies, traced trajectories of racism among German children and adolescents, addressing the intersectionality of discrimination forms and tackling issues of colorism, racism and sexism. Anthropologist Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck reflected on the fascination of white people with Black hair, exoticisation, white invasions of Black personal space, and Black resistance. Although these two papers mainly dealt with contemporary issues, they also reflected on continuities between prevalent white discourses and older racist imaginaries stemming from the colonial period with which this panel began. The political and educational activist Eleonore Wiedenroth-Coulibaly acted as an official respondent.
Panel organisers:
Dr. Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck (Independent scholar and diversity consultant & trainer, Berlin)
Dr. Silke Stroh (University of Muenster)
Papers:
Dr. Robbie Aitken (Sheffield Hallam University):
“Masters and servants:
The precarious lives of personal servants caught between Africa and Germany”
Inken Carstensen-Egwuon M.A. (University of Flensburg)
“Masculinity, intimate partnerships and global inequalities in the Nigerian diaspora in Germany”
Modupe Laja (community organiser & activist, Munich),
“Wie Rassismus betrifft / How racism concerns”
Dr. Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck (Berlin),
“‘Don’t touch my hair’! Black hair, white people and the invasion of personal space in Germany.”
Respondent:
Eleonore Wiedenroth-Coulibaly (political and educational activist, Frankfurt am Main)
In addition, our network member Robbie Aitken curated a small exhibition on Black German history which was also shown at the conference.
For more information on the conference, see the conference website.
The network organized its own panel: “The Black Diaspora and Germany: Migrations, Imaginaries, Interventions”
The panel presented samples of the research that was being done by some of its long-standing members and more recent contacts and associates. It began with a case study from the colonial period, where historian Robbie Aitken explored the lives of Black people who came to Germany as personal servants before World War One. A second case study on migration experiences focused on the contemporary period: working with approaches from the field of Human Geography, Inken Carstensen-Egwuom discussed discourses on masculinity, intimate relationships and power in the Nigerian diaspora in Germany. The next two papers provided more directly interventionist perspectives, giving insight into current issues of racism, discrimination, education, body politics, and the use of space. Modupe Laja, a grassroots activist with a background in Literary and Cultural Studies, traced trajectories of racism among German children and adolescents, addressing the intersectionality of discrimination forms and tackling issues of colorism, racism and sexism. Anthropologist Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck reflected on the fascination of white people with Black hair, exoticisation, white invasions of Black personal space, and Black resistance. Although these two papers mainly dealt with contemporary issues, they also reflected on continuities between prevalent white discourses and older racist imaginaries stemming from the colonial period with which this panel began. The political and educational activist Eleonore Wiedenroth-Coulibaly acted as an official respondent.
Panel organisers:
Dr. Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck (Independent scholar and diversity consultant & trainer, Berlin)
Dr. Silke Stroh (University of Muenster)
Papers:
Dr. Robbie Aitken (Sheffield Hallam University):
“Masters and servants:
The precarious lives of personal servants caught between Africa and Germany”
Inken Carstensen-Egwuon M.A. (University of Flensburg)
“Masculinity, intimate partnerships and global inequalities in the Nigerian diaspora in Germany”
Modupe Laja (community organiser & activist, Munich),
“Wie Rassismus betrifft / How racism concerns”
Dr. Cassandra Ellerbe-Dueck (Berlin),
“‘Don’t touch my hair’! Black hair, white people and the invasion of personal space in Germany.”
Respondent:
Eleonore Wiedenroth-Coulibaly (political and educational activist, Frankfurt am Main)
In addition, our network member Robbie Aitken curated a small exhibition on Black German history which was also shown at the conference.
For more information on the conference, see the conference website.
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