This session will consider the ways in which “difference” makes a difference in broaching zones of contact between religious studies and the digital humanities. I am proposing an open conversation to address silences as well as critically rethink the problems and possibilities of engaging race (as well as ethnicity, gender, sexuality, nationality, ability, and class) for digital humanities and the study of religion. Potential topics for discussion include this overly ambitious but hopefully fruitful list:

• Representations of people of color and the religion-related cultural productions created by people of color on the Internet.
• The recovery/preservation of works about and by people of color in the study of religion.
• Sharing ways that we might incorporate digital tools, coding and software applications (i.e. Blogs, Live Group Video Broadcasting, Virtual Environments , Cloud Computing, and Augmented Reality) into teaching and collaborations in race and religion research.
• The development and application of digital research methodologies for the study of race and religion.
• Questions concerning how identities (gender, race, class, sexuality, religious identifications) could inform and transform the theory and practice of digital humanities.

  Note: This session is limited to afternoon scheduling times. 1:00-2:30 pm or 2:45-4:15 pm.