Lova Journal #46 will be published at the end of 2025. Next to the regular section a special section is scheduled. We invite authors to contribute.
Regular section
In this part we publish research articles, essays, columns, interviews, book reviews, and multimodal material, such as illustrations, photographs, videos, drawings, maps, info-graphics – all of which can be experiential and experimental. In order to foster innovative thinking, inclusive research, and intergenerational solidarity within the academic world, Lova particularly encourages everyone within and outside of academia to submit, including Master and PhD students.
Special section on Feminist Analyses of War and Genocide
In the special section we want to focus on feminist analysis of war and genocide in light of current events. The ongoing genocide in Gaza, as well as the civil wars in Sudan, Ukraine, Myanmar, Ethiopia, and other affected areas, call for urgent feminist reflection and critique. Not only because sexual violence has been widely used as weapon of war, but also because of their particular gendered consequences: the Israeli state, for example, targets the social reproduction of Palestinians (Dieng 2023; UNICEF 2024). Feminist and decolonial analysis of war and genocide may shed light upon the silences and silencing in Western circles surrounding this issue (Aldossari 2024; Kynsilehto 2024), but also to the violence witnessed in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Yemen, and other places. From a feminist standpoint, silence is not solely oppressive, but can also include strategically resisting oppression by offering possibilities for transformation, resistance and creation (Rowe and Malhotra 2013). Yet, how can these silences be conceptualised in the midst of witnessing genocide and other mass atrocities? And how does this relate to academic freedom and our situated senses of accountability and responsibility (Kynsilehto 2024)?
We invite reflections on – but not limited to – the following:
- What does contemporary feminist liberation entail?
- What is the role of silence and silencing in (feminist and decolonial) critiques of genocide?
- How can a feminist mode of analysis provide insight on pro-Palestinian protests around the world, and responses thereto in the public (political) debate, including academia?
- What possibilities remain for (everyday) feminist and decolonial praxes in the midst of violent conflicts and genocide?
Submission of contributions
Submission, both pertaining to our regular section as well as our themed section, will be selected based upon their (ethnographic) quality, originality, and methodological and/or theoretical novelty. Research articles are peer-reviewed by experts in the field. Lova Journal invites authors who wish to publish to submit an abstract of no more than 200 words to journal@lovanetwork.org before 15 February 2025. Please clarify in the submission what kind of format your contribution will be (article (6,000 words), essay (2,000 words), column (500 words), multimodal, etc.) and provide a short author bio of max. 50 words. Once your abstract has been accepted, the deadline for submitting the completed version is 30 April 2025. Final acceptance is subject to peer review.
References
Aldossari, Maryam. 2024. “For feminists, silence on Gaza is no longer an option.” Al Jazeera, January 4, 2024. https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/1/4/for-feminists-silence-on-gaza-is-no-longer-an-option
Dieng, Rama Salla. 2023. “Why Palestine is a feminist and an anti-colonial issue. Review of African
Political Economy.” Blog. November 21, 2023, Why Palestine is a feminist and an anti-colonial issue – ROAPE
Kynsilehto, Anitta. 2024. “Feminist silences and silencing the critique of Gaza genocide.” Gender, Place & Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography 2024 (10): 1-10.
Rowe, Aimee Carrillo, and Sheena Malhotra. 2013. Silence, Feminism, Power: Reflections at the Edges of Sound. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
UNICEF. 2024. “Whole generation of children ‘lost’ amid ongoing Gaza war, UNICEF warns.” UNICEF, September 19, 2024. https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/09/1154546