Call for Book Chapters and Book Chapter Proposals
Working Title: The Hidden Lives of African Americans
Living Abroad Series, Book 1: Articulating the Opportunities and Challenges of Living Internationally.
Edited by Kimberly D. Campbell, Ph.D.
Rationale: For years African American writers, entertainers, soldiers, diplomats, activists, artists, and intellectuals have travelled, and at times, have relocated to countries outside of the U.S.A. W.E.B. Dubois moved to Ghana, James Baldwin and Josephine Baker moved to Paris. Despite the well documented impact and contributions of African American celebrities to countries outside of the U.S.A., and despite increased global market integration which has dramatically increased the number of Americans projected to work in overseas locations during the 21st century, little understanding of the “everyday” communicative, cross cultural experiences of African American expatriates is understood. While anecdotal data indicate that the experiences of African Americans living abroad qualitatively differs from those of European Americans, there is a substantial lack of scholarship that investigates the ways in which national and ethnic identities are expressed (and experienced) cross culturally by Black Americans living overseas. In many ways, the everyday lived experiences of African American expatriates living abroad remain unknown – and largely neglected by mainstream media and academic research. This series seeks to examine and highlight what life is like for African Americans living abroad.
The African Americans Living Abroad series has one goal: to be the best source of authentic reflections on the lived experiences of African Americans living abroad. Book one seeks to address a scholarly gap by articulating the contemporary “everyday” experiences and meaningful interactions of African Americans who live, work, love, and raise families while navigating personal, cultural, racial, and national identities in countries outside of the U.S. for extended periods of time (e.g., nine consecutive months or more). Essays that highlight critical incidents and experiences of African Americans living in Africa, Asia, Australia/Oceania, South America, Europe, North America, and Antarctica are welcomed. This call solicits engaging essays that encompass a range of authentic experiences abroad – the good, the bad, the ugly, the insightful, and especially the life-enriching and transformational. Essays that vividly highlight the experiences of African American expatriates!
in previous and contemporary eras are welcomed.
Target Audience: The target audiences of this text are both popular and academic. The teacher or business professional contemplating overseas employment will find the essays engaging and useful in providing frames of reference for imagining overseas life. The scholar interested in cross cultural communication and identity research will find the essays authentic, multidisciplinary, contemporary, and suitable for undergraduate and graduate students. Artists, playwrights, and practitioners in the fields of communication studies, journalism, training and development, anthropology, sociology, Black studies, American studies, international affairs, history, geography, and cultural studies will find the essays suitable for engaging contemporary issues of race, class, gender, and culture in a global context. Additionally, the book will be a useful reference for anyone interested in global learning, studying abroad, and/or traveling overseas.
Suggested Chapter Topics
Submissions focusing on (but not limited to) the following topics are encouraged:
• Defining African American: (re) Negotiating cultural and national identity overseas
• What it’s like to be the only African American in the country
• “But you don’t have blonde hair or blue eyes” : Encountering and overcoming stereotypes of the “All American” image abroad
• “How do they treat Black people there?” Addressing the pre-departure fears of friends
• The African American and the European American Expats: Similarities & Differences
• The African American and the European Expat: Similarities and Differences
• Perceptions of African Americans abroad
• When the new neighbor is African American: Living in non-expat neighborhoods abroad
• African American Image in Overseas Advertising
• The Obama Effect: African Americans overseas in the era of the Obamas
• Renting and buying property overseas
• Raising African American children overseas: challenges and opportunities
• Dating and loving overseas
• African American sexuality: encounters relating to perceptions of AA body type, masculinity, femininity, and/or other aspects of sexuality
• The African American woman overseas and/or The African American man overseas
• African American families overseas
• African American gays and lesbians overseas
• Gendered experiences of African Americans living overseas
• Professional experiences of African Americans working overseas
• African American students living and learning abroad (student and parent perspectives)
• Returning to the U.S. and Readjusting to Home
Submission Guidelines: Prospective contributors should submit an abstract, approximately 100 words in length, explaining the purpose, objectives, and/or focus of the proposed chapter on or before August 15, 2012. Abstracts should include contact information for all authors, a C.V. or resume, and a brief 50-word bio for each author. Authors of accepted proposals will be notified by September 15th.
Chapter submissions of original work should be no more than 8,000 words, including title, abstract, and references, and should be submitted as one document. Completed chapters are required by October 15th and must be APA formatted with 12-pt Times New Roman font. Works should not be previously published or under review for publication elsewhere.
All inquiries and submissions should be sent to Kimberly Campbell.
Center for Intercultural Dialogue 