Conference

The Global Impact of 1956: Race, Neutralism, and National Liberation

Organizers: Carole Fink, Professor of History; Rajiv Khanna, Ph.D. Student in History; Amanda Rothey, Ph.D. Student in History

Saturday-Sunday, Oct. 14-15, 2006
Mershon Center for International Security Studies
1501 Neil Ave., Columbus, OH 43201

In 1956, the world witnessed two upheavals: a major rift in European communism, with the revolutions in Poland and Hungary; and the onset of decolonization after the abortive Suez invasion by France and Great Britain. In this 50th anniversary of that momentous year, we propose to look beyond these seminal events and explore their impact on three significant issues -– race, neutralism, and national liberation -– which continue to affect the world today.

Read the 1956 Conference Proceedings (pdf file).

See the 1956 conference photos.

Conference Schedule

Saturday, October 14

9:30 a.m. -- Welcoming Remarks
Richard Herrmann, Director, Mershon Center for International Security Studies
Carole Fink, The Ohio State University and Mershon Center

10:30 a.m. - Panel 1 -- Race
Moderator: Carol Anderson, University of Missouri-Columbia.
Panelists:
Alice Conklin, The Ohio State University, "The UNESCO Resolution on Race, 1950"
John Munro, University of California, Santa Barbara, "Anti-Colonialism and Civil Rights: Rethinking Cold War Black Internationalism in the United States"
Ryan Irwin, The Ohio State University, "The International Response to Apartheid in the 1960s"

12:30 p.m. -- Lunch

2 p.m.- Panel 2: Neutralism
Moderator: Robert McMahon, The Ohio State University and Mershon Center
Panelists:
Rinna Kullaa, University of Maryland, College Park, "Tito and Non-alignment in the 1950s"
Margaret Manchester, Providence College, "Nasser and Non-Alignment"
Rajiv Khanna, The Ohio State University, "Nehru and the Aftermath of Suez"
Jason Parker, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Mershon Center, "Neutralism and Race in U.S. Foreign Policy"

8:30 p.m. -- Plenary Address
Moderator: Jennifer Siegel, The Ohio State University
Speaker: Donna Guy, The Ohio State University, "1956: The Messages of Revolution and Reaction in Latin America"

Sunday, October 15

10 a.m. - Panel 3: National Liberation Movements
Moderator: Ahmad Sikainga, The Ohio State University
Panelists:
Daniel Branch, University of Exeter, "The Mai Mau Insurgency"
William Risch, Georgia College and State University, "Dissent Within the Soviet Empire: Ukrainian Student Movements in the 1950s"

12 p.m. - Lunch and Wrap-up Session
Panelists: Carole Fink, Rajiv Khanna, Amanda Rothey