The conference—organized by Katja Kanzler, Ella Ernst, Laura Pröger, Anna Gaidash, Annika Schadewaldt, and Stefan Schubert—was part of the Institute’s current DFG-funded research project on “Enfreakment as an Invective Mode in US-American Popular Culture,” which is meant to (re-)conceptualize enfreakment as a longstanding, malleable, and powerful practice in US-American popular culture. The program aimed to shed light on enfreakment as a performative practice and a conceptual tool to examine depictions of non-normativity, deviance, and extraordinariness, both as negative and positive signifiers of difference (find the full program in the download section).
We would like to give thanks to all the speakers for their thought-provoking contributions and lively discussions. We are also grateful for the strong attendance from ASL students and other members of Leipzig University, whose presence and engagement enriched the conference’s atmosphere. The event sparked productive conversations and opened up new perspectives—both for ongoing research and for thinking critically about cultural narratives of difference. We look forward to continuing the dialogue in future events and publications.
