Conference

Enslaved Muslims and Muslim Enslavers: Islam, Politics and Slavery

6-7 July 2027

Organizers:

Stephan Conermann, Spokesperson and Principal Investigator, Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, University of Bonn, Germany

Behnaz Mirzai,  Professor of Middle Eastern History, Brock University, Canada

 A two-day multidisciplinary conference titled “Enslaved Muslims and Muslim Enslavers: Islam, Politics and Slavery” will be held on July 6–7, 2027 at Brock University in collaboration with Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies, University of Bonn, Germany. The conference will explore the impact of political Islam on the enslavement of various ethnic groups from the medieval to the modern period. Furthermore, it examines the enslavement of Muslims who were taken to the Americas during the Atlantic slave trade.

The conference will bring together scholars to address topics related to slavery and Islam in the context of comparative studies. It aims to foster a deeper understanding of the political, social, religious and historical dimensions of the ‘Islamic factor’ within the slave trade with the aim of revealing its complexity.  This conference offers an inter-disciplinary framework that transcends regional studies of slavery by including the Americas, Africa and the Middle East and beyond.

Proposals will be reviewed by the conference committee. Presented papers will be published in a special issue of an academic journal or edited volume.

Please submit a proposal (350 words) and a brief CV with relevant publications to Dr. Behnaz Mirzai: [email protected]. The deadline for submissions is 30 June 2026.