2nd  CALL FOR PAPERS
19th ANNUAL NATIONAL ORAL HISTORY CONFERENCE 2022
DATE: 10 -14 OCTOBER 2022
VENUE: KURUMAN (Northern Cape Province)
SUBMISSION DATE FOR ABSTRACTS: 22 July 2022
 
COVID-19 NARRATIVES AND MEMORIES: 
EMERGING ORAL HISTORIES AND METHODOLOGIES IN SOUTH AFRICA
In recent memory, there is no single event or phenomenon that has touched all facets of life the world over as has the Covid-19 Pandemic. While the numbers of those infected and those who lost their lives have since subsided in 2022 and increased hope for a world free of Covid-19, one indisputable fact is that life has changed.  From socio-economic to cultural activities to international relations and to education, there are new ways of doing things aptly called the new normal.  For historians, the questions that come to mind are continuity and discontinuity.  Why were the lessons from the responses from previous pandemics not helpful?  Why were the technological and scientific advancements not adequate to combat the rapid spread of the virus to all corners of the world?  If the methodology influences the outcomes, surely there is an imperative need to re-examine the current methodologies to be able to have an adequate response to the new challenges.
This conference seeks to bring together scholars from around the discipline of Oral History to look at the lessons learned during the pandemic.  The Covid-19 pandemic caused major disruptions and challenged South Africans and the whole world to ask about the origin of the virus, the ways to avoid infection and treat it when infected, to question the efficacy of the scientific and traditional health systems, to be innovative in ways of mourning and burial.  In the confusion and fear, those in various leadership positions rose from the state of paralysis and took advantage of their followers. 
 
Papers will attempt to seek answers from many angles to show how the Covid-19 transformed society.  For Oral Historians, the use of oral sources will be maximized to establish the way the
interviewees have created new epistemologies in the face of the pandemic and how their lives have been transformed.  Such lessons presented by scholars from various angles will contribute to the building of the archives for future and present generations to have the reference.
 
SUB-THEMES:

1. Covid-19 and other stories during times of pandemics.
2. Covid-19 narrations from beyond South African borders.
3. Cultural and religious interpretations of Covid-19.
4. Cultural disruptions and economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on society.
5. The new normal narratives and experiences.
6. Healing remedies, access, exclusion, and survival stories.
7. Lockdowns, social distancing, social movements, and innovations. 
8. Gendered Covid-19 narratives. 
9. Covid-19 regulations, (Mal)administration of PPE’s and opportunism.
10. The new normal, teaching, learning and methodologies in times of Covid-19. 
11. Migrations, refugees, displacements, and isolation.
12. Navigating the preservation, archiving and protection of Covid-19 records. 
13. Ethical considerations in social media communications during Covid-19 pandemic.
14. Unspoken histories of the liberation struggle.
15. Oral History in the classroom.

 
Abstracts/Proposals are invited for contribution to the 19th National Oral History Conference. Although the conference is primarily academic, case study reports and other contributions are welcome. The contributions must be based on original work and have a clear focus on oral history. 
The envisaged end-product of the conference will be a publication of the proceedings. Interested contributors are encouraged to bring along to the conference papers that are photo ready for publication. 
 
 
NB:  THIS IS AN ORAL HISTORY CONFERENCE: PAPERS DELIVERED MUST BE BASED ON ORAL HISTORY RESEARCH, AND NOT ONLY ON PUBLISHED SOURCES
 
If you are interested, please send us a short proposal including: 

1. An abstract of your paper or case study report (100-300 words). 
2. The relevant conference sub theme. 
3. The title of your paper.
4. A short biography of yourself (50-100 words). 
5. Your contact information (name and surname, affiliation, postal address, e-mail address, phone, and fax numbers). 

 
*Please see template for submission of abstracts on page 4
The duration of a presentation may not exceed twenty (20) minutes, and this will be followed by a ten (10) minute discussion.
It is our intention to publish refereed/peer reviewed conference proceedings. The papers shall not be longer than 5000 words. It is a requirement that finished papers be submitted by 30 September 2022 to Ms Brenda Kotze on ohasaexco@gmail.com. 
 
THE DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS/ABSTRACTS  - 22 JULY 2022 
 
The conference organising committee will confirm acceptance or rejection of your proposal by
8 August 2022. 
Please note that abstracts that are not submitted in the correct template will not be accepted.
 
Send proposals/abstracts to: 
Ms Brenda Kotze 
National Archives and Records Service of South Africa 
Cell: 082 600 5646 
Email: ohasaexco@gmail.com 
 
Convener: 19th Annual National Oral History Conference 
Mr Andrew Geweer 
Northern Cape Department of Sport, Arts and Culture 
Northern Cape Provincial Archives and Records Service Cell: 0839802285 geweerandrew@gmail.com 
 
TEMPLATE FOR ABSTRACTS/PROPOSALS
 

NAME AND SURNAME:
 

AFFILIATION:
 

CONTACT DETAILS:
E-MAIL:
TELEPHONE NUMBER:
CELLPHONE NUMBER:
POSTAL ADDRESS:
 

RELEVANT CONFERENCE SUB THEME:
 

TITLE OF YOUR PAPER:
 

ABSTRACT OF YOUR PAPER OR CASE STUDY REPORT (100-300 WORDS):
 

SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF (50-100 WORDS):