CFP: Lincoln's Era: The Role of Religion in the Underground Railroad

CALL FOR PAPERS
7th Annual National Conference on the Underground Railroad
<http://www.freedomcenter.org/>

Lincoln's Era
The Role of Religion in the Underground Railroad
November 6-8, 2008 / Cincinnati, Ohio

Coinciding with the Lincoln Bicentennial and the opening of "Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War" (exhibit created by the National Constitution Center), the conference will explore the roles of religion and people of faith working against the institution of slavery during the 1800s, as well as the provocative debate over Lincoln and racism. The conference also foregrounds the roles of faith in the anti-slavery movement with a special focus on Abraham Lincoln's evolution and Christian, Islamic, and Jewish anti-slavery advocates.

Conference Highlights

Ø Talks by prominent theologians (Rabbi Gary Zola) and scholars (Lerone Bennett, Jr., Harold Holzer, and Roger Billings);

Ø Panels on religion, faith, slavery, and abolitionism;

Ø Panels on Lincoln's evolving views on slavery, race, and racism;

Ø Genealogy research at the Freedom Center;

Ø Spirituals concert;

Ø Interfaith service and historical re-enactment of services from the era;

Ø Bus tours of historic faith sites on the Underground Railroad.


Break-Out Sessions on the following topics:

Ø Runaways and Cincinnati Churches

Ø Antislavery Literatures

Ø Spirituals and the Underground Railroad

Ø Lincoln's Spiritual Journey to Abolitionism

Who should attend: Religious Leaders, Lay Members, as well as Academic and Non-Academic Scholars, and Students

Cost: Participants can attend the entire conference or individual events. Registration for the entire conference, except for the bus trips, is $150 per person. Registration includes membership to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.

Individual Events: Tickets for individual activities can be purchased in advance beginning September 1: Thursday morning faith tours, Thursday night keynote address, Friday luncheon speaker, or spirituals concert.

Call for Papers: The conference committee invites scholars, faith leaders and activists from all disciplines to make presentations in Cincinnati on the role of faith or religion in the spread of anti-slavery activism in the 1800s and the lessons for today for cooperation across the faith divide.

The Freedom Center and NKU support and value all scholarship examining the history and lives of peoples involved in the Underground Railroad movement. Deadline for submissions is July 31, 2008. Please submit 250 word abstracts or paper proposals electronically to Academic Program Chair:

Dr. Eric R. Jackson
Northern Kentucky University
Department of History and Geography
Highland Heights, Kentucky, 41099
jacksoner (at) nku (dot) edu