Few events are so engrained into the American psyche and popular culture as the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Despite the attack’s centrality in America’s road to war narrative, most Americans know very little about the causes of the event. The abridged understanding goes something like this: on December 7, 1941, the empire of Japan launched a sneak attack against the United States for no reason. Japan’s ambassadors had been engaged in discussions with American diplomats as a smokescreen, masking the “evil empire’s” true intentions—world domination.

This retelling of the events is not only inaccurate, it does disservice to history.

The 2016 Utica College’s Center for Historical Research symposium, Pearl Harbor@75, will examine the attack on Pearl Harbor from diverse perspectives—cultural, economic, military, national, political, and social—with the intention of creating a sustained dialog to facilitate a greater understanding of this seminal event in world history.

Rather than following a typical conference format, the organisers limit the number of presenters to between six and eight for the day. Each presenter will have one hour to deliver his or her work and exchange ideas with the audience. The intention is for presenter and audience alike, to gain a greater understanding of the road to Pearl Harbor through an extended discussion.

Abstracts may be submitted to CHR@utica.edu. Please limit abstracts to a 500 word description of your research/paper. The organisers encourage submission of papers that not only challenge the orthodox view of the event, but that raise provocative questions and interpretations.

Conference Venue:  Utica College Center for Historical Research, 1600 Burrstone Road, Utica NY 13502, USA

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Contact:

David G. Wittner, Ph.D.

Professor of History

Utica College Center for Historical Research

+1 315 792 3332

dwittne@utica.edu