The Association for Queer Anthropology welcomes proposals for sessions to be included in AQA’s program for the 115th AAA Annual Meetings to be held in Minneapolis, November 16–20, 2016. The AAA conference theme this year is ‘Evidence, Accident, Discovery’. As a politically engaged section, AQA promotes communication, encourages research, works to develop teaching materials, and serves the interests of queer and trans anthropologists within the association. We invite proposals for standard papers, panels, conference posters, workshops and special events that aim to forge connections between academics and broader queer and trans communities.

 
Here is this year’s AAA conference theme: ”’Evidence, Accident, Discovery’, raises issues central to debates within both anthropology and politics in a neoliberal, climate-changing, social media-networked era: What counts as evidence? What does evidence count for? What are the underlying causes and foreseeability of violence and catastrophes? How is misfortune interpreted, and causality, attributed in cases of humanly-preventable harm? And in the give and take of relationships on which anthropological evidence typically depends, Who gets to claim that they discovered something? We welcome proposals that debate these and other questions stimulated by the conference theme, in the opportunity that our annual meeting provides for ‘big tent’ debate.”

 
In an effort to spur engagement between academics and community organizations, AQA asks that organizers consider including activists and public figures from outside the world of anthropology. If you wish to organize sessions and off-site events with participation from individuals who are not anthropologists, please contact the AQA Program Co-chairs, Vanessa Agard-Jones (vanessa.agard-jones@yale.edu) and Michael Connors Jackman (mcj@clerk.com), before the submission deadline to discuss logistics.

 
Collaboration within the AAA network is also strongly encouraged. In order to promote exceptional sessions and to strengthen ties between AQA and other sections, we encourage panel organizers to seek out opportunities for co-sponsorship. This allows panels to reach wide audiences and to ensure that members of other sections are aware of the work of AQA members.
As with previous years, everything goes first to AAA through their online submission system. For details on this year’s procedures see: AAA Call for Papers (www.americananthro.org/AttendEvents/Content.aspx?ItemNumber=1695&navItemNumber=696), and for more information on the conference and specific guidelines see: Annual Meeting FAQs (www.americananthro.org/AttendEvents/Content.aspx?ItemNumber=12814&navItemNumber=635).

 
The submission deadline is April 15 at 5:00pm EDT for all invited, volunteered, and installation sessions, as well as individual volunteered papers and posters. Presenters, Discussants and Chairs must also be registered by the April 15, 2016 final deadline in order to appear on the 2016 Annual Meeting Program. The online abstract submission system is now open.