Hello Cleveland!
AWP 2027 will be March 5th to 7th at the
Marriott Cleveland Downtown Key Tower.
Our Bodies are Still Battlegrounds:
Fighting Against Dominance Control, and Erasure.
Proposals can be submitted online starting October 1, 2026.
The priority deadline is November 7 and proposal submitted by this date will be given top priority for inclusion in the program.
Submissions will be accepted through November 14.
This year's theme is “Our bodies are the battleground: Fighting against dominance, control, and erasure. This theme was chosen in the current political climate where so many of us are besieged by attempts to repeal rights, limit access to resources, roll back supports, whitewash abuse, and pretend pain and suffering do not exist or are expected outcomes. Each of these attacks is meant to dominate, control, and even erase our bodies, our humanity, and our very existence.
This message of control is intentional; those in power seek to define what bodies are and are not acceptable, and in doing so give themselves permission to abuse, eradicate, incarcerate, and exile those who fight against oppression or do not serve the current narrative. They use these definitions as ways to cover ongoing criminal and institutional cruelty. Their messages become propaganda, working to enlist strangers, neighbors, and even families as agents of oppression.
We also see how these tactics are weaponized against our own mental health disciplines or how mental health providers are being pressured by those with power to enforce what they see as 'acceptable behavior,’ ‘acceptable bodies’, and even ‘acceptable consequences’ for those who stand up to tyranny.
As scholars, psychologists, mental health professionals, and as feminists, we know the impact of this coercion in lost lives, and lost futures. We know that these social pressures become internal struggles, creating control that can be invisible, even to those negatively impacted by it.
Additionally, we also know that the body is not only a site of oppression, but also a site of opposition. Empowerment can be achieved through the reclamation of and insistence on bodily autonomy. We can fight for our own as well as others’ rights of self-definition and self-determination. Through this lens, caring for and fighting our and others’ bodies within oppressive systems becomes an act of resistance.
It is in this spirit that we look forward to coming together for mutual support, empowerment, ongoing validation, and even hope.
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
This year’s conference focuses on how bodies are the battleground for social issues. We invite proposals that highlight the impact on our bodies, the ways in which our bodies are targeted, and the battle lines drawn over and upon our bodies. We also welcome proposals that celebrate bodies as cites of resistance, rebellion, and joy.
We welcome submissions addressing immigrant bodies, non/gendered bodies, unruly bodies, dis/abled bodies, non/reproducing bodies, imagined bodies, and more. We invite discussions focused on downtrodden, excluded, targeted, and otherwise marginalized bodies.
All proposals related to feminist psychology are welcome and will be reviewed. If your proposal does not directly address one of the populations listed above, we encourage you to discuss the relevance of your work to the broader conference theme.
Ready to submit your proposal?
Click here!
General Questions?
Email Conference Chairs Wendy and Chris at conferences@feministpsych.org.
What Types of Presentations Can I Expect?
AWP offers many different opportunities to share research and creative projects. In addition, AWP often has upwards of 30 CEU’s available!
You’ll find workshops where you can practice skills and share knowledge. We also have the usual symposia, paper presentations, and poster presentations.
In addition, there are lightning talks (7-minute presentations on topics) and book blitz for authors to share their work published between Jan. 2024 and March 2027.