Translating Resistance: Literary Activism in Conflict and Solidarity

Translating Resistance: Literary Activism in Conflict and Solidarity

Hosted by the Translation Research & Instruction Program (TRIP) at Binghamton University (SUNY), New York
October 3–4, 2026

Funded by The International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies (IATIS) Regional 
Workshop Fund

Confirmed Plenary Speakers:
▪ Professor Samah Selim (Rutgers University, USA)
▪  Dr. Ruth Abou Rached (University of Manchester, UK)

Call for Papers
Scholars, researchers, and practitioners are invited to submit papers for this two-day workshop, 
hosted by Binghamton University (SUNY), to be held in New York on October 3–4, 2026.
All submitted abstracts will undergo a peer-review process, and acceptance will be based on 
scholarly quality and relevance to the workshop theme.

Abstract Submission Deadline: April 30, 2026

Translation is never neutral; it frames, amplifies, and contests narratives, particularly in 
contexts of conflict and solidarity (Baker, 2006; Venuti, 2013). While a substantial body of work 
has examined translation and interpreting in war, crisis, and diplomacy (Salama‑Carr, 2007; 
Inghilleri & Harding, 2010; Pérez‑González, 2012; Ayyad, 2025; Todorova & Ruiz Rosendo, 2025), the 
activist functions of literary translation remain comparatively under-examined. Recent scholarship 
argues for clarifying the contours of literary translation activism (LTA) and mapping its practices 
and ethics (Washbourne, 2024).
In activist settings, literary translation can document testimony, reframe public discourse and 
enable transnational solidarities. Solidarity itself is forged in struggle and actively connects  places  and  communities  (Featherstone,  2012).  Volunteer  subtitling  and grassroots 
circulation illustrate how digital infrastructures mediate activist texts (Díaz Cintas & Muñoz 
Sánchez, 2006; Pérez‑González, 2014).

This workshop addresses this gap by bringing scholars, practitioners, and activists together to 
theorize and exemplify literary translation as a form of activism and solidarity—both within 
conflict zones and through acts of transnational solidarity from afar. While the workshop is 
anchored in the Middle East, with particular attention to conflict-affected contexts such as 
Palestine, Yemen, Sudan, and Syria, it also welcomes contributions that enable comparative 
reflection across other regions, including Ukraine, Myanmar, and Latin America.

Key sessions will examine the socio-political and material conditions shaping literary translation 
in contexts of conflict, including questions of visibility, ideological contestation, publishing 
infrastructures, and solidarity networks.
We invite scholars, practitioners, and activists with experience in literary activism in contexts 
of conflict and solidarity to submit abstracts addressing one or more of the following themes:

▪  Literary translation in/around conflict zones (poetry, fiction, drama, life writing): 
political/material constraints; situated case studies (e.g., Palestine, Yemen, Sudan, Syria, 
Ukraine, Myanmar, Latin America).
▪  Solidarity-driven literary translation: poetry, fiction, and theatre; readings or performances; 
community-based and independent publishing practices.
▪  Translators as activists: agency, ethics, and risk, including questions of visibility and 
anonymity, security, censorship, and paratextual strategies.
▪  Retranslation as political intervention: feminist, gender-aware, and decolonial retranslations; 
reclaiming suppressed or marginalized meanings.
▪  Digital circulation and activist infrastructures: volunteer subtitling, social media 
dissemination, metadata and hashtag politics, and grassroots archiving.
▪  Form and political possibility:  why certain literary forms—such as poetry, testimony, and 
experimental prose—travel as modes of resistance.
▪  Representation and voice: selection biases and gatekeeping practices, avoiding exoticization, 
and collaborative translation to mitigate appropriation.

Proposals should be submitted by April 30, 2026, via the Google Form

We look forward to receiving your contributions! Further information about the workshop, including 
registration and the workshop website, will be shared soon.

Important Dates:
•  Accepted abstracts will be confirmed by May 15, 2026
•  Registration opens May 15, 2026 and closes June 15, 2026
•  The draft program will be available from June 15, 2026

Registration Fees(In-person attendance, including morning & afternoon sessions + coffee breaks):
▪  Full registration: $50 USD
▪  Discounted registration (student/unwaged): $20 USD
A limited number of micro‑grants are available for precarious or Global South presenters (for 
travel or registration support). Each grant is $100 per applicant. Details are provided in the 
Google Form.

Workshop Conveners:
▪  Ahmad Ayyad (Binghamton University)
▪  Abdel Wahab Khalifa (Queen’s University Belfast)