The South African Society for Critical Theory invites contributions to a special issue of Acta Academica on Pandemic Politics.
The outbreak of COVID-19 has profoundly disrupted the patterns of everyday existence, impacting upon social, legal and economic spheres. The scramble to respond to the threat posed by the rapid spread of the virus has, in many cases, led to a suspension of ordinary politics whilst at the same time throwing into sharp relief the profoundly political nature of the pandemic. In addition to the new issues that have arisen regarding detection and treatment of the COVID-19 virus, perennial political issues regarding the limits of political authority, racial and gender justice, and populism and demagoguery have thrust themselves to the forefront of mainstream political discourse.
This special issue invites papers that cast a critical perspective upon the political dimensions of the current pandemic. Whilst papers on any aspect of the pandemic are acceptable, the guest editors particularly welcome papers that focus on aspects of the pandemic in relation to the Southern hemisphere.
Possible topics might include:
· Politics by other means?: The use of pandemic for political purposes
· The COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity for progressive social politics
· Plandemic! – disease and conspiracy theories
· The politics of social distancing
· The political implications of governmental responses to the pandemic; government control of coronavirus data; exclusivist national stockpiling of COVID-19 treatments
· Disaster Capitalism: The pandemic as both disruptor and accelerant of neoliberal normality
· Virtual liberty?: Lockdown existence and the triumph of networked society
· Sex in a time of COVID-19: The impact of the pandemic on sexual relations
· Dying for capitalism: The trade-off between commercial and public health
· Home/work: the effects of working from home on domestic relations; the gendered and racial imbalance of remote labour; productivity porn
· Policing the pandemic: Authoritarianism and security; poverty and/as disease; pandemic masculinities
· Planet or people first?: Environmentalism in a time of pandemic
The editors welcome approaches from all aspects of Critical Theory, broadly construed. e.g. the three generations of Frankfurt School Critical Theory, Africana Critical Theory, Black Existentialism, Postcolonial Theory, De-colonial Theory, Critical Feminism, Critical Sociology, Critical Film Studies, Critical Race Theory, Critical Theory of Technology, Critical Legal Studies, Post-structuralism, Psychoanalysis, Critical Hermeneutics, Liberation Theory, Critical Pedagogy, Critical Theology, Critical Anthropology, etc.
Please submit papers by the February 28, 2021 via http://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/aa/about/submissions and follow the instructions there.
Alternatively, should you experience any difficulties with the journal’s electronic submission process, send your paper via email to eloffpr@ufs.ac.za.
Please make sure to clearly indicate that the submission is intended for the special issue.
Guidelines for authors are available from http://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/aa/information/authors
Please, consult them before submitting.
Should you have queries regarding any aspect of the special issue then please do not hesitate to contact the guest editors:
Ewa Latecka: LateckaE@unizulu.ac.za
Jean du Toit: jean.dutoit@nwu.ac.za
Gregory Swer: gregswer@gmail.com
