You are invited to contribute to a forthcoming Special Issue of the journal Genealogy, titled “Kin: The Impact of Political Narratives on Family Histories.”
Mainstream genealogical research frequently privileges state-sanctioned archives, which often function as instruments of “abyssal thinking” that systematically erase subaltern existences. From a Critical Global South perspective, this Special Issue I am putting together seeks to interrogate how macro-political narratives—such as nationalism, coloniality, and state-building—function as epistemic agents that censor or annihilate the “collective interpretive resources” of the family.
I am particularly interested in scholarship that moves beyond traditional documentation to explore the “collective archive”—the living, breathing, and often suppressed repositories of memory that families cultivate in defiance of state-imposed erasure. We aim to create a space that treats kinship as an “ecology of knowledges,” validating alternative ways of knowing that have been systematically suppressed by Western-centric power structures.
I would be most glad if you would consider a contribution that engage with themes including, but not limited to:
- Political Rupture and the Fractured Collective Archive: Analyzing how systemic shocks, such as forced displacement or state-sponsored violence, disrupt the continuity of family memory.
- Epistemologies of Kinship: Investigating how families preserve legal, ecological, and spiritual knowledge when dominant frameworks label them “irrational”.
- The Coloniality of the Document: Exposing how bureaucratic instruments (e.g., passports, citizenship papers) are used to police the boundaries of the family and erase non-Western forms of belonging.
This issue aims to transform our understanding of how power is negotiated from the kitchen table to the international stage, asserting the collective archive as a primary site of geopolitical contestation.
Submission Details:
We invite you to submit a first draft of your contribution by September 15th, 2026.
I truly believe your work would provide an invaluable perspective to this project. Please let me know if you are interested in contributing or have any questions about the Special Issue’s scope and objectives.
I look forward to the possibility of collaborating with you on this important endeavour.
I do need a 300-word abstract and a one-paragraph biographical summary by July 7th, if you are able to contribute to submit to the journal board.
To apply, please email Ester Nergis Canefe, nergiscanefe67@gmail.com.