“Pa Bliye Nou Rasinn”; “Lest We Forget Our Roots”;
“Afin Que Nos Racines ne se Perdent”

Conference for Mauritian of the Diaspora
Mauritius: July 16 through July 23, 2006

Call For Papers

Rassin

Someone once said, “The most important thing parents can give their children is roots and wings!” Our national anthem glorifies Mauritius as “motherland.” Undoubtedly, Mother Mauritius has over the centuries given roots to many of her children—suggesting that each one of us is a vehicle of the history which has produced us. She has also given us wings to freely fly away to other skies and migrate to other pastures where the grass seems to be greener. In the 1960’s, while Mauritius was in the process of redefining its constitutional make-up that led to independence in 1968, important migration waves that dramatically affected the demographic balance of the island began to take place. The exodus resulted in the Mauritian diaspora, from which our country men and women were scattered to various countries in Europe, Australia, Southern Africa, and Canada. Under the hospices of “La Pastorale du Tourisme et des Migrants,” a symposium entitled: “Pa bliye nou rasinn” or “Lest we forget our roots” is being organized. Participants of the symposium will be Mauritians of the diaspora who migrated to Europe, Australia, Africa, North America, and Asia following the independence of Mauritius.

We are happy to invite proposals for papers that will be presented at the International Symposium of the Mauritian Diaspora. Some of the topics for the conference may include but are not limited to the following:

  • Acculturation strategies of Mauritian emigrants (assimilation, integration, separation)
  • Loss and maintenance of the Creole language among Mauritian emigrants
  • Mauritian emigration history
  • Mauritian diaspora and religious, spiritual and cultural experiences
  • Preservation / compromise / loss of Mauritian values
  • Gender issues
  • Interactions among Mauritian emigrants and others in their adopted countries and among members of different waves of Mauritian emigrants
  • Mauritian diaspora and identity development.
  • Mauritian emigration / memory / identity
  • Mauritian emigration as a common human experience
  • Mauritian emigration as part of our histories
  • The effects of Mauritian emigration on culture/family
  • Representations of Mauritian emigration in folklore/ literature/cinema
  • Self-definition in novels/movies concerned with Mauritian emigration
  • Civic responsibilities of Mauritian emigrants
  • Contribution of Mauritian emigrants to their adoptive cultures
  • The emergence of new identity space for Mauritian emigrants
  • The re-shaping of collective identities for Mauritian emigrants

We welcome proposals from a variety of disciplines including anthropology, demography, economics, education, film studies, geography, history, international relations, linguistics, art and literature, media studies, philosophy, political science, psychology, sociology, urban studies, religion and spirituality.

PROPOSAL GUIDELINES

All proposals that are accepted will require the submission of a paper to be presented during the symposium.

The proposals must include the following criteria:

  • Title of the paper
  • Abstract of not more than 200 words (double spaced)
  • Name(s) of the presenter(s) and affiliation (where applicable)
  • E-mail and mailing addresses of all presenters
  • Brief biography of all presenters (not more than 50 words each)
  • Proposals may be submitted in French, English, or Creole
  • Proposals must be sent as an attached MS word document and should not appear in the body of the email message

**The deadline for submission of proposals including abstract is February 28, 2006.**

PAPER GUIDELINES

  • All papers should be submitted in an attached, MS document.
  • There are not page limitations to the paper; however, oral presentation of papers will be limited to 45 minutes.
  • Submissions should be double-spaced.
  • Submissions should include all references.

PRESENTATION GUIDELINES

  • Accepted proposals and papers will be allotted a 45 minute time slot for presentation.
  • Presentations may be made in French, English, or Creole.

SUBMISSION

The selection of papers for the conference will be made by the symposium planning committee on the basis of the abstract due by 28 February, 2006. Papers should be submitted electronically via e-mail to: gregoire@duq.edu. All papers accepted for presentation will be published in the proceedings of the conference. It is imperative that all presenters and co-presenters, except for invited keynote speakers, register for the conference.

IMPORTANT DATES

Proposals due
Notification of acceptance
Final papers due  
Registration deadline
Conference in Mauritius  
28 February, 2006
28 March, 2006
15 May, 2006
15 May, 2006
16-23 July, 2006

Fr. Jocelyn Gregoire. Email

 
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