Greta Olson

When the U.S. sneezes, the world catches a cold.

– Khanyisile Phillips (South Africa)

With bans on reproductive rights and access to healthcare, with censorship in schools and universities, and the instrumentalization of rights rhetoric itself, diversity issues stand at the heart of the primary and general elections in the United States. The contributors examine how the American elections will influence diversity issues in the United States and elsewhere, considering reproductive and immigration rights, planetary justice, epistemic and physical violence against LGBTQIA+ people as well as efforts to abet this violence. In this way they highlight the symbolic and political weight of the 2024 U.S. elections as a watershed moment for citizens of the world.

Diversity Issues features spotlights on diversity issues by authors Melanie Kreitler (University of Giessen), Marzia Milazzo (University of Johannesburg), Sabine N. Meyer (University of Bonn), Georgiana Banita (University of Bamberg), Maik Paap (University of Giessen), Birte Christ (University of Giessen), Sara Polak (Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society), Esther Edelmann (Leiden University) and Frans-Willem Korsten (Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society), Christine M. Klapeer (University of Giessen), and Mariel Reiss (University of Marburg).

The launch featured input by:

Chia Youyee Vang (Vice Chancellor, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the Division of Community Empowerment & Institutional Inclusivity and Professor in the Department of History)

Āryā Jeipea Karijo (human, activist, storyteller and community organizer Kenya, Global Narratives Hive, TransQueer Fund and Collective)

and

K. Allison Hammer (Assistant Professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies at the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale).

It was moderated by Greta Olson (Professor of American and British Literature and Cultural Studies and Director of the Center for Diversity, Media, and Law (DiML) at the University of Giessen). Edited by Melanie Kreitler and Greta Olson, Diversity Issues in the USA marks the first volume in the transcript book series [diversity, media, and law] with the Series Editors Dr. Jutta Hergenhan, Prof. Julian Ernst, Prof. Malte-C. Gruber, and Greta Olson. It is available open access now. You can download it here.