Clearing: Afterlives of Spatialized Violence Roundtable

This roundtable considers the actions and afterlives of clearing within the United States and its territories as a form of spatialized violence. Whether through the religious imaginations of sovereignty at play in the conception of terra nullius or the legal justification of eminent domain in urban renewal projects, clearing illuminates entanglements among constructions of religion, race, and space. Thinking through clearing as it interfaces with religious commitments and communities, the participants in this roundtable bring together case studies across a diverse scope of geographies, temporalities, and subjectivities: from the demolition of “blighted” neighborhoods, the draining of swamps, and the filling of land with water to the monumentality of imperial architectures. The roundtable will then open up for an extended discussion of these spaces and how they might inform our study of religion and spatialized violence. This format is designed to maximize meaningful dialogue among the discussants and audience.