[URBANTH-L] ANN: Wilberforce Institute Intensive Short Course on Slavery Past and Present (UK)

Angela Jancius, Ph.D. jancius at ohio.edu
Tue May 5 15:36:10 EDT 2009


>From Joel Quirk (j.quirk at hull.ac.uk)

*Slavery in All its Forms: Historical Practices and Contemporary Problems*

A Three-Day Masterclass

Wilberforce Institute for the study of Slavery and Emancipation, Hull,
United Kingdom, 21st-23rd, September, 2009

Slavery is both a core feature of human history and a topic of increasing
public concern in the contemporary world. This intensive short course
offers participants a unique opportunity to study both historical slave
systems and modern forms of slavery in a single setting. This
interdisciplinary programme has been designed for scholars and
practitioners who are familiar which some aspects of slavery and abolition,
but would benefit from further engagement with the broader history and
modern dimensions of slavery in all its forms.

To help support postgraduate students, the Wilberforce Institute has also
secured funding for ten travel bursaries, which cover UK travel,
accommodation and course fees. The masterclass also precedes a major
international conference on 'Slavery, Migration and Contemporary Bondage in
Africa', which will take place between the 23rd-25th of September at the
Wilberforce Institute. Participants may want to consider attending both
course and conference. Further details on both events are available at
http://hull.ac.uk/wise .

*About the Wilberforce Institute*

Since its foundation in 2006, the Wilberforce Institute has established
itself as a leading voice on questions of slavery, both nationally and
internationally. The Institute seeks to improve knowledge and understanding
of both historical slave systems and modern forms of slavery, and to inform
public policy and political activism. Instead of viewing historical and
contemporary slavery as separate fields of study, the Institute starts with
the idea that the history and legacies of slavery and abolition can offer
an invaluable foundation from which to understand and eradicate modern
forms of human bondage. This integrated approach to past and present is
unique. The Wilberforce Institute is the only place in the world which can
offer specialist expertise on both historical slave systems and
contemporary problems.

*Course Structure*

This intensive masterclass will take place over three days. Over the course
of ten individual sessions, participants will receive expert instruction on
various historical slave systems, the legal abolition of slavery, modern
forms of slavery, methods for studying slavery, reparations for slavery,
and forms of public commemoration. As part of this programme, participants
will also undertake a guided tour of Wilberforce House, one of the world's
oldest museums dedicated to the history of slavery and abolition.

21st of September: Morning

Introduction: Slavery: Past and Present (Joel Quirk, Wilberforce Institute
and Darshan Vigneswaran, Forced Migration Studies Programme, WITS)

21st of September: Afternoon

Transatlantic Slavery (Simon D. Smith, Wilberforce Institute)
Slavery in Africa (Paul Lovejoy, the Harriet Tubman Institute for Research
on the Global Migrations of African Peoples, York University)

22nd of September: Morning

The Legal Abolition of Slavery (David Richardson, Wilberforce Institute)
Bonded Labour (Joel Quirk and Gary Craig, Wilberforce Institute)

22nd of September: Afternoon

Human Trafficking and the Exploitation of Migrants (Mick Wilkinson,
Wilberforce Institute)
'Classical' Slavery and Descent Based Discrimination (Benedetta Rossi,
Centre for the Study of International Slavery, University of Liverpool)

23rd of September: Morning

Repairing Historical Wrongs: Slavery and its Legacies (Rhoda
Howard-Hassmann, Department of Global Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University)
Representing Slavery at Wilberforce House (Nicholas J. Evans and Douglas
Hamilton, Wilberforce Institute)

23rd of September: Afternoon

Research Methods and Contemporary Migration (Darshan Vigneswaran)

OR

Research Methods and the History of Slavery (Douglas Hamilton)

Participants will be provided with a selection of readings on each of the
topics covered in the course. Each session will involve an introductory
lecture, followed by class participation and deliberation. Places on the
course are strictly limited. No more than 50 places will be made available.
In order to keep class sizes as small as possible, participants will be
divided into two different groups. Each morning and afternoon will involve
two parallel sessions, with one group attending one session, and a second
group attending the other. At the end of these initial sessions the two
groups will then switch, ensuring that participants receive instruction in
both topics. On the final day of the course, participants will also have
the choice of studying either historical or contemporary research methods.

*Instructors*

Dr Benedetta Rossi is an expert on slavery and migration in Niger, and is
the recent author of Reconfiguring Slavery: West African Trajectories
(Liverpool, 2009).

Dr Darshan Vigneswaran is an expert on migration in Africa, and is the
recent author of articles in Political Geography, Development and Review of
International Studies.

Professor David Richardson is a world renowned expert on the history of
Transatlantic Slavery, and is the recent co-author of Extending the
Frontiers: Essays on the New Transatlantic Slave Trade Database (Yale,
2008).

Dr Douglas Hamilton is an expert on history of the eighteenth century
British Atlantic World, and is the recent co-author of Representing
Slavery: Art, Artefacts and Archives in the collections of the National
Maritime Museum (Lund Humphries, 2007).

Professor Gary Craig is an expert on social justice and modern slavery, and
is the recent author of Child Slavery Worldwide (Special Issue of Children
and Society, 2008).

Dr Joel Quirk is an expert on links between historical slave systems and
contemporary problems, and is the recent author of Unfinished Business: A
Comparative Survey of Historical and Contemporary Slavery (UNESCO, 2008).

Dr Mick Wilkinson is an expert on migration and human trafficking in the
United Kingdom, and is the recent co-author of Contemporary Slavery in the
United Kingdom (Joseph Rowntree, 2007).

Dr Nicholas J. Evans is an expert on migration, diaspora, and 'white'
slavery, and is the recent author of articles in the International Journal
of Maritime History, Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, and
Journal of Jewish Culture and History.

Professor Paul Lovejoy is a world renowned expert on the history of slavery
in Africa and African diasporas, and is the recent author of Slavery,
Commerce and Production in West Africa: Slave Society in the Sokoto
Caliphate (Africa World Press, 2005).

Professor Rhoda Howard-Hassmann is an world renowned expert on
international human rights, and is the recent author of Reparations to
Africa (Pennsylvania, 2008).

Professor Simon D. Smith is an expert on both the history of transatlantic
slavery and the history of the Caribbean, and is the recent author of
Slavery, Family, and Gentry Capitalism in the British Atlantic: the World
of the Lascelles, 1648-1834 (Cambridge, 2006).

*Application Procedures*

The course is open to applicants who have: i) a undergraduate degree, and
ii) experience working with, or on issues related to, historical and/or
modern slavery. The Wilberforce Institute encourages applications from
postgraduate students, interested public servants, human rights activists,
researchers and policy makers in international organisations, independent
scholars, and those working in the heritage sector.

The application form can be downloaded from the Wilberforce Institute
website at http://hull.ac.uk/wise . Applicants should also submit a current
curriculum vitae.  Every effort has been made to keep course fees low. The
standard fee for the course is £250. The concessionary rate for
postgraduate students is £150. These fees include a daily lunch, tea,
coffee and drinks. All applications will be reviewed by a selection
committee.

The final deadline for applications is the 28th of August 2009. Since
places on the course are strictly limited, applicants are encouraged to
apply by the end of July in order to ensure a place. Completed applications
should be submitted via email to wise at hull.ac.uk.

*Scholarships for Postgraduate Students*

Building upon a grant from the Ferens Educational Trust, the Wilberforce
Institute is offering ten Ferens travel bursaries to help postgraduate
scholars attend the course. These bursaries are open to students currently
enrolled in either masters or PhD programmes. Successful applicants will
receive a train ticket covering their travel to and from Hull (within the
UK), four nights accommodation, and an exception from course fees. To apply
for a bursary, students must submit a completed application form, a current
curriculum vitae, and a personal statement outlining how the course relates
to their research (500 words). These materials should be submitted via
email to wise at hull.ac.uk by the 19th of June 2009. The bursaries will be
awarded by mid July. Unsuccessful applicants are likely to be offered a
place on the course, but will have to register at the concessionary rate of
£150.

*Contact Information*

Wilberforce Institute for the study of Slavery and Emancipation,
University of Hull, Oriel Chambers , 27 High Street, Hull, HU1 1NE, UK

Phone: 01482 305176
Fax:  01482 305184
Email:  wise at hull.ac.uk

Requests for further information can also be directed to either Sarah
Carter at sarah.carter at hull.ac.uk (admin) or Joel Quirk at
J.Quirk at hull.ac.uk (course content).


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