Call for Papers, Essays and Artwork: Memory Work, Oral History and Radical Public History in Global Lesbian Communities: Capturing Experiences, Activism and Memories

Guest Editors:

Kris Clarke, PhD, Faculty of Social Sciences (Social Work), University of Helsinki, Finland

Heikki Tikkanen, PhD, Department of Social Work, University of Gothenburg, Sweden

Submission Deadlines:

Abstracts due: 1.3.2025

Full manuscripts due: 31.8.2025

Genealogies often appear as seamless narratives, yet these “single stories” persist largely due to what Saidiya Hartman describes as “the violence of the archive.” Archives, libraries, and museums selectively document, erase, or reshape certain histories. As Carmen Maria Machado notes, each act of remembering or forgetting in an archive is deeply political.

Since the 1990 publication of Hidden from History: Reclaiming the Gay and Lesbian Past (Duberman, Vicinus & Chauncey), there has been an exponential growth of studies of LGBTQ+ communities and histories. There has also been increasing recognition of the value of public history, a practice of memory work that often occurs outside of academia often through oral histories, as a means of recapturing the vibrancy of hidden histories that have remained undocumented in archives. Using Meringolo’s (2021) concept of radical public history as memory work that is future-oriented, committed to social justice, and aimed at redressing the absence of diverse histories through more inclusive archives, this special issue focuses on theorizations, experiences and potentialities  of memory work and public history in intersectional global lesbian communities as activist work.

Public history and memory work seeks to capture and recover  the  voices, experiences and stories of communities that might be overlooked, erased or forgotten. These narratives provide insights into the daily lives, struggles, and values of people. Traditional and official historical records might be incomplete, normative or focused on certain dominating perspectives. Oral histories can provide a more comprehensive and diverse understanding of the past in lesbian communities by connecting memory to real people and their experiences. Oral histories are also important for the future of lesbian communities as a way of maintaining identity and continuity across generations. Oral history is also a way to promote active participation in creating a collaborative process of creating memory and knowledge by empowering ownership over history.

Memory work, oral history and radical public history are interlinked in their goals to amplify underrepresented voices, recover overlooked narratives, and create inclusive histories. In this special issue, we seek to examine memory work, oral history, and radical public history in lesbian communities in a broad sense. We invite contributions that describe experiences of  memory work, oral history, and radical public history. We especially encourage work that offers innovative ways of conceptualizing and writing about these topics. We seek contributions focused but not limited to these topics:

●      Lesbian theorizations on memory work and public history in diverse global localities

●   Decolonial feminists' perspectives on unsettling historical genealogies through public history within intersectional lesbian communities

●      Perspectives on preserving experiences and hidden narratives that might otherwise be lost within lesbian communities

●      Thinking through lesbian futurities through memory work and activist public history

●      Case studies of memory work with lesbian communities, for example, during the AIDS epidemic, eras of political and social repression, struggles for reproductive rights, etc.

Submission Guidelines

We welcome articles and essays from any disciplinary perspective, of up to 7,000 words. We also encourage submissions of shorter pieces, experimental articles, as well as visual art and poetry. We especially encourage scholars and activists new to publishing and welcome submissions from around the world.

Please send your 250-500 word proposal to Kris Clarke (kris.clarke@helsinki.fi) using the subject line: Submission for JLS  by 1.3.2025. Full manuscripts are due 31.8.2025.