Guest Editors:

Faiza Hirji (McMaster University) & Evangeline Holtz Schramek (McMaster University)

Call for Abstracts: 300-word abstracts submitted by the deadline of August 31st, 2026 to
Evangeline (Vange) Holtz Schramek: holtzsce@mcmaster.ca

Upon abstract acceptance, full-length articles (8k inclusive) to be submitted for peer review in
spring 2027.

Canadian cultural critics of United States’ popular culture – since the dawn of the field of Canadian Culture Studies as we know it – have written from a relatively privileged standpoint. As America’s “hat” we only need to peak off of our brims to encounter an easy flow – often a deluge – of U.S. cultural products. Our identity as cultural critics stems from a positionality described by behemoths in our field as “borderline” (McLuhan), as concerned with margins (Berland, Innis), and as driven by an impetus to set ourselves apart by continuously asking who we are, and sometimes where we are (Frye), in relation to our southern neighbour. Yet, until quite recently, such a cathexis has continued without hindrance; by which we mean, the U.S. seemed more or less indifferent to our efforts to distinguish ourselves from them. A thinkpiece or article by a Canadian writer offering critique of an American cultural product or value would go
unnoticed. At a conference in the U.S., a Canadian scholar extolling such a critique might be smiled at, patted on the head; maybe engaged with as one does a student of lower rank to oneself. This is to say, our ideas were unthreatening to their cultural identity – a hat something one had on and forgot one was wearing. But with recent political changes accorded to an authoritarian directionality, our privileged vantage looks marked for extinction. While we remain somewhat protected at home by Section 2(b), Freedom of expression, under our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, our unfettered ability to project our critiques southward – at conferences, in U.S.- centric journals and venues – is diminishing. So, what do we do with our critiques now, especially given that our own Cultural Studies enterprises prioritize home-grown products?

In this proposed Special Issue of Canadian Review of American Studies, we seek to create a space for Canadian scholars of American cultural products under Trump 2.0 to share their critiques, given the diminishing opportunities to do so on the North American continent. While “cultural products” are heterogeneously imagined here and might include: television, film, photography, literature, comedy, music, podcasting, performance, cartoons, etc., we are particularly interested in Cultural Studies approaches to these diverse texts that focalize social justice values and concerns currently under threat in the American context such as: feminism, racism, disability and im/migrant justice, sex and gender discrimination, etc. Projects that locate their critiques within this outlined political shift and its ramifications for Canadian critique of American culture are especially welcome.