From the SFRA Executive Committee
From the Vice President
Sonja Fritzsche
Michigan State University
As I enter my final year as Vice President, I continued to be thrilled and honored to serve in a professional society where such innovative work is being done by its members, and those members continue to create such a supportive and creative, scholarly space for all even in the middle of a pandemic. We are all dedicated to furthering the study of science fiction and its associated scholarly communities in all corners of the globe and in all languages. For this very reason, I too would like to echo Gerry Canavan’s statement of apology for lack of diversity on the original conference keynote line-up. We failed and must always remain vigilant in these matters as it is never enough what we are doing. I am looking forward to the virtual conference this summer for that very reason as it will be accessible to a greater variety of scholars than ever before.
The SFRA Conference 2021 proposal deadline is April 1, 2021. In the spirit of its theme—“The Future of/as Inequality”—please consider helping new scholars who are working on science fiction by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) by organizing panels on topics they are working on. Senior scholars need to help with the organizational labor to make this happen. Note too that part of the conference will take place on Juneteenth also known as Emancipation Day, a holiday that celebrates the freeing of the slaves in the United States. Seeing as BIPOC is perhaps a US-American context phrase, please consider adapting the spirit of it to your own country’s/region’s linguistic, cultural, and historical context to contribute to the theme. If you are looking for contacts, please reach out to the ever-growing number of SFRA Country Representatives. We are so thankful for Graham Murphy of Seneca College in Toronto, Canada who is hosting the virtual conference. Be sure to submit your 300-500 word abstracts to Graham (graham.Murphy@senecacollege.ca) or through the Abstract Submission form by the deadline. Please pass the cfp on to scholars who you think would be interested! Each new location brings the promise of new contributions and members to SFRA! Propose a panel that includes someone who has never attended an SFRA before to bring them into a broader conversation.
If you are an SFRA member and interested in becoming an SFRA Country Representative, please contact me (fritzsc9@msu.edu). More details are on the website. We have been meeting every three months by Zoom. The conversations are engaging, illuminating, and productive across many time zones. Please also send me your announcement for the SFRA Facebook and Twitter accounts. I’m happy to pass them on or feel free to post yourself!
SFRA Review 