CFP: Reflections on Black Panther


Africology: The Journal of Pan African Studies (formerly The Journal of Pan African Studies; JPAS), a trans-disciplinary on-line multilingual peer reviewed scholarly journal devoted to the intellectual synthesis of research, scholarship and critical thought on the African experience around the world, is seeking contributions for a special edition of scholarly reflections about historical and current social complexity in Africa and the African diaspora as mirrored in Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole’s film Black Panther (Marvel Studio. Burbank, CA: 2018).

We seek submissions from those willing to self-identify at least one factor of their own uniqueness as it informs their reflection on the film Black Panther, with that diversity including factors like race, gender, sexuality, family status, continent, nationality, ethnicity, religion, age, language, scholarly rank, political persuasion, classroom audience and academic discipline. Reflections can be in the form of prose, poetry or script, must be written in English and may not exceed 1250 words including notes, bibliography or recommendations for further reading. Reflections should anticipate questions, inspire and inform subsequent conversations in the classroom, in media or any place where youth and adults exchange ideas.

General Information:

Africology: The Journal of Pan African Studies (www.jpanafrican.org) seeks work that: presents original research methods/theory, adds to a body of research, announces research findings, guides future research, explores theories, distributes new knowledge, presents new ideas, invites discussion, introduces research reviews, and provides new Africology centered concepts and terminology. Hence, submitted articles should have: an introduction, literature review (annotated bibliographies accepted), a methodological construct, results, discussion, conclusions, and suggested steps for further research that can intellectually engage scholars, students and others with interest in African world community studies. In 2011 JPAS received the National Council for Black Studies Fannie Lou Hamer & Kwame Nkrumah Award for Outstanding Academic Leadership and Service in the African World. A:JPAS is in support of the objectives of ‘The Task Force for Measuring Impact in Africology’ to implement an Afrifactor (an article/journal citation tracker that can monitor author contributions and journal ranking and qualitative metrics specific to Africology) for journals and academic units engaged in Africology (for more information on the work of ‘The Task Force for Measuring Impact in Africology’, e-mail the A:JPAS senior editor at: atjpas@gmail.com).

Frequency:

A:JPAS is published electronically four times a year in March, June, September, and December, with occasional editions to accommodate need and supplemental special editions

Indexing:

A:JPAS is indexed via Academic OneFile, EBSCO, Google Scholar, International Index to Black Periodicals, Literature Resource Center, ProQuest, Social Sciences Full Text (WilsonWeb), Thompson Gale, World History Collection, etc.

Terminology:

A:JPAS seeks to use an affirmative African centered logic and language of liberation, therefore, we have decided not to use the term ‘tribe’ or slaves in reference to the African experience. We ask that all contributors acknowledge this policy before submitting content. Hence, the preferred alternative terms-concepts include ‘ethnic group’ and ‘the enslaved’. Second, in regards to the use of the word black, when it is used to indicate people of African heritage, we recommend that it be capitalized. In regards to describing Africa, the now popular “sub-Saharan Africa” designation is discouraged; thus, our preferred description is “Africa south of the Sahara desert” or simply, “Africa south of the Sahara.”

Publishing Language:

The major publishing language of A:JPAS is English. However, contributions in languages other than English are acceptable when also presented in English.

Submission:

All contributions must address the guest editors of the special edition (Marsha R. Robinson, PhD, and Caryn E. Neumann, PhD) in a cover letter stating: your name, current public affiliation, location, e-mail address, the title of your contribution, the originality of your contribution, that your contribution is not under consideration anywhere, and that you wish to publish in Africology: The Journal of Pan African Studies. Thereafter, contributors must submit an abstract (200 word maximum) of their contribution and a single page vita or resume to both guest editors via marsha.robinson@miamioh.edu in MS word in a Times New Roman typeface via an attachment in an e-mail (etiquette: avoid capitalizing every word in the subject line). The entire work should not exceed 1250 words, double-spaced pages with a concise title, abstract, and current standard citations and references. The abstract is due on or before March 23, 2018. If your abstract is accepted, your full contribution should not include page numbers or the title of your contribution on each page; all graphics (charts, tables, photos with permissions secured where appropriate, etc.) must fit our page measurements; only use endnotes in your contribution (not footnotes), a list of references are needed for each contribution, and in regards to style (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.), use the style most relevant to your area of study/research. Deadlines: Submit your abstract before or on March 23, 2018; if accepted, full submissions are due before or on April 30, 2018.

Guest Editors (contact and profile):

Marsha R. Robinson, PhD (marsha.robinson@miamioh.edu); Visiting Assistant Professor of World History in the Department of Humanities and Creative Arts at Miami University of Ohio. She earned a doctorate in Women’s History from The Ohio State University; is author of Matriarchy, Patriarchy and Imperial Security in Africa, and she has published book chapters, articles, and has edited volumes about gender, empires, national security, and the history of ancient and modern times.

Caryn E. Neumann, PhD (neumance@miamioh.edu); Senior Lecturer in the Department of Interdisciplinary and Communication Studies at Miami University of Ohio. She earned her doctorate in Women’s History from The Ohio State University; she has published essays on Wonder Woman, aging women in comic books; and she has also served as the guest editor for the Journal of Fandom Studies issue on comics.