Books published by Lexington Books

Enforcement of Actions in Corporate Law by Non-Shareholder Constituencies: Lessons for the Common Law World from South Africa advocates for a complementary enforcement regime for the current (and proposed) corporate legislative measures in the Anglo-American corporate law. Doing so would empower non-shareholder interests in corporate decision-making. Mongalo argues that corporate legislative initiatives ought to provide for non-shareholder constituencies' considerations in decision-making within corporate entities, and that failure to enforce such frameworks reduces the law to lip service. By offering a comprehensive critique of corporate constituency statutes and benefit corporation statutes in US and the enlightened shareholder value approach in the UK, Mongalo makes the case that a shift from the current enforcement philosophy in Anglo-American jurisdictions-which is based on the preference of those to whom fiduciary duties are currently owed-is necessary and that the Actionable Enlightened Shareholder Value (AESVA), with its origins in South Africa, should be preferred.

Through meticulous research, interviews, and documentation,Gullah Geechee Muslims in America: Exploring Islamic Identity in the African Diaspora presents a unique and significant contribution to religious studies, Africana studies, and anthropology by shedding light on a previously understudied aspect of the Gullah/Geechee community and culture. Previous studies of enslaved African Muslims have claimed that Islam, as a conscious practice, vanished by the eve of the Civil War. However, Muhammad Fraser-Rahim highlights the continuity of Islamic belief and practice in the Lowcountry. For scholars who have spent decades researching the retention of African culture among the enslaved and their descendants, this book reveals certain challenges and poses new avenues of research.

Present-day Evangelicalism represents a microcosm of tensions between male and female gender roles, with some denominations carefully delineating women leadership roles, especially the female pastor, and many others supporting them. The letters attributed to Paul the Apostle contain several divisive passages on the meaning of manhood and womanhood. Dated and dubious readings of these have led some, Christians and non-Christians alike, to conclude that Paul wrote with misogynistic intent. Others quote them to justify Christian patriarchalism. Beyond the Evangelical Gender Roles Gridlock: Reimagining Paul's Views on Women, Marriage, and Ministry reassesses what Paul said about women, reinterpreting his claims on marriage and ministry leadership in light of his first-century worldview. This book proposes a nuanced theological egalitarian approach with significant implications for renewing twenty-first-century congregations, homes, and society.

Pursuing Transformative Inclusion in Higher Education shares the story of the Becoming Community Initiative, a multi-year effort to pursue transformative inclusion on college campuses. The concept of transformative inclusion posits that true inclusion across higher education requires dismantling oppressive structures and an ongoing process of co-creating community. The contributors share the vision of transformative inclusion and Becoming Community, grounding theoretical frameworks, and how they implemented and communicated this inspiring vision. The book then highlights three main prongs of change through Professional Development Practitioner Certificate Programs, Research and Practice Projects, and Dialogue and Contemplative Action Groups, along with inclusive evaluation. Through this work, Amanda Macht Jantzer, Anna Mercedes, and Brandyn Woodard hope to inspire others to engage a broad coalition of changemakers and to establish an ongoing web of influence to begin to dismantle oppression and foster inclusive community formation in colleges and universities.

This book is a provocative and fresh look into how Black women display an authentic identity in the face of constant negative images and portrayals of themselves in the media over time. Idrissa N. Snider explores noteworthy occurrences when prominent Black women, including First Lady Michelle Obama, Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis, and Grammy-winning songstress Beyonce Knowles, have used their platforms and notoriety to push back against age-old stereotypes used to justify their subjugation and mistreatment, such as the mammie, angry black woman, jezebel, or the tragic mulatto. Snider emphasizes and honors how Black women uniquely identify as a form of resistance and positive self-actualization and argues that both everyday and socially elite Black women and girls can - and do - utilize self-definition to disrupt and reject inauthentic and harmful representations of themselves.

Creative Responses to Environmental Crises and Aesthetics in Nordic Art and Literature gives a broad perspective on artistic responses to climate change and other environmental crises in the Nordic countries. Showcasing examples of environmental literature, visual art and entertainment from Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands, the chapters of the volume reflect the complex interplay of the local, regional and global in environmental art and activism. Authored by established and notable scholars in the field of Nordic ecocriticism, the volume highlights the complex and vital role art, literature, and other creative activities assume in times of crisis.

Child Activist Literature at the Turn of the 2020s: From Kids You Read About to Kids You Read looks at how today's child activists are not just followers in their forekids' footsteps, but blazers of new pathways, employing sophisticated rhetorical strategies that invert and subvert conventional thinking on the roles of children in politics. These young activists situate their work within a dense web of texts-the ones they read, the ones they write, and the ones that they expect adults to deploy to dismiss them. Nance-Carroll analyzes texts authored by child activists alongside narratives of youth activism in literature and media and the stories activists tell about themselves and their work, exploring issues of influence, inspiration, and authorship in child activist literature, as a growing body of work challenges not just adults' assumptions about children and politics, but also some fundamental disciplinary tenets of children's and young adult literature.

The United States is a bastion of commercial surrogacy. Intended parents from all over the globe travel to the United States seeking to build a family. However, they must navigate a complicated, convoluted industry that consists of hundreds of fertility clinics, surrogacy, and egg donor agencies, as well as new forms of business that have appeared to ease the efficiency of a long, drawn-out process. Mobility in North American Surrogacy: A Fertile Global Industry examines the multiple players involved in global surrogacy contracts between international intended parents who opt to create a family with the help and labor of surrogates from the United States. This market remains the final frontier of commercial surrogacy, while other reproductive hubs only allow for altruistic surrogacy. The author considers the mobility and immobility experienced by intended parents, egg donors, surrogates, and professionals whose intimate labor fosters connections across economic, geographic, and social divisions. Based on four years of ethnographic research that also spans the globe, the author argues for a more nuanced consideration of the ethics of surrogacy.

The Indigenous musicians from the surrounding pueblos de indios took on a leading role in urban musical activity. Musical Practices and Mobility in Asunción: Indigenous Musicians in Colonial Paraguay sheds light on dynamics that go beyond the studies centered on the doing of Jesuits in missionary contexts and provides a more thorough comprehension of the urban musical models that were imposed and adapted. Indigenous musicians were transferred to the city from the Jesuit reductions and the pueblos under the care of secular and Franciscan priests for festivals and celebrations. Without them, and without the mobilities that placed them in both contexts, Laura Fahrenkrog Cianelli argues the urban institutional-musical model would not have been possible to maintain in that distant corner of the empire. By transcending the city limits imposed by urban approaches, this book enables a novel reading of musical practices in a city connected with its hinterland, revealing the different musical physiognomies of the empire in distant contexts.

Folkloric Horror in Medieval Literature: New Discussions and Approaches focuses on the medieval and early modern precursors of what is now frequently described as Folk Horror. Part of the argument staged in this book stems from an observation that much of what is currently excluded from the conversation about folk horror, if not all horror generally, could be considered folkloric or folkloresque in many cases and would be worthy of inclusion in the discussion. The argument here is that the recurrent use of medieval literature and tropes as elements of the modern Folk Horror revival in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries stems in part from a modern repulsion and fascination with the premodern. It is also an outgrowth of traditional narrative fascinations with the abject and the rejected sense of past and place which is present in recognizable forms in premodern literatures globally.

Sectarian Roots of Jihad: Religious Conflicts in the Middle East examines the sectarian dimension of jih¿d and delves into the under-researched sectarian-inspired discursive employment of the notion by radical Islamist groups. It explores the transformation of the basic Islamic principle of "striving in the Path of God" into a radical foundation upon which some of the most fanatic and atrocious organizations are based in terms of thought, ideology, discourse and course of action. This book investigates sectarian-based interpretations and connotations of jih¿d as a concept and practice by means of exploring similarities and differences between Sunni and Shia approaches to the notion and its fundamental principles. It analyzes the way sectarian-guided Islamist organizations employ jih¿d in their propaganda activities and exploit it as a brand to religiously legitimize their cause and emotionally manipulate the recipients of their ideological discourse. It also delves into the development of sectarianism, Islamism, Salafism and Jihadism in order to scrutinize and analyze the rise of sectarian-guided extremism in the Middle East.

Often rejected out of hand as the enemy of clarity and convincingness, ambiguity-in thought, speech, writing, analysis, or theory-should not be overlooked. Donald A. Crosby explores the innumerable positive contributions of conceptual and discursive ambiguity in situations where ambiguity can be the amicable friend of intelligibility and convincingness rather than their sworn enemy. While people have been willing to acknowledge the positive role ambiguity can play in poetry, story, myth, ritual, oratory, and song, Crosby argues that its positive roles extend far beyond these modes of reflection and expression and into the whole of life. Amicable Ambiguity: The Indispensable Value of Vagueness, Open-Endedness, and Uncertainty shows how, why, and when this claim may hold true and needs to incorporated both across academic disciplines as well as in the more ordinary areas of thought and experience.

This book interrogates the altered nominating processes of the 2020 U.S. election, illustrating the importance of the national nominating convention, both as an ongoing custom that speaks to the unique political structure of the nation and as a source of valuable information that goes well beyond the explicit purposes conceptualized by the parties.

Visual Cultures in India: Contesting the Sites of Sights delves into our visual experiences through diverse media, while unpacking how we encounter and interpret the visual, moving beyond simple "seeing" to deeper levels of meaning. This book explores our experience of visual media that reveals the complex interplay between sight, meaning, and contestation. The authors delve into the very "sites" where visuals are born, displayed, and interpreted. This nuanced approach sheds light on how visual media shapes our understanding of the world and ourselves. From the captivating world of film and photography to the enduring artistry of sculpture and dance, and even the visual tapestry of everyday life, this book weaves a compelling narrative of the complex relationship between media and visual culture in India. It is a timely and significant contribution in an age saturated with imagery. This book equips scholars, researchers, students, and media professionals with a framework to navigate the power of sight and gain a deeper understanding of visual cultures in India.

Entanglements, Narratives, and the Environment: Inter-American Perspectives provides an interdisciplinary ecocritical reading of narratives and environmental entanglements from an Inter-American perspective, predominantly providing literary, film, and cultural analysis of texts from the Americas. In light of Amitav Ghosh's (2016) exploration of "a crisis of the imagination" in the face of climate change and environmental degradation, this book addresses the potential of literature, history, and politics in comprehending the profound dimensions and violence of these challenges. The chapters show, among others, that the Anthropocene demands fresh narratives and theoretical perspectives, particularly within the framework of Inter-American Studies, which can offer a new venue to discuss pressing issues and to provide intersectional and inter-regional considerations. Thus, drawing on Inter-American perspective with its hemispheric perspectives opens the possibilities for an ecocritical reading of the complexities and relationalities of the climate crisis in the humanities as well as the social sciences. As a result, the book includes historical and political analysis, as well as literary, cultural and film analysis of texts from the Americas. The chapters engage in deconstructing popular myths, de-centering Western approaches, and eventually show through these critical engagements how the climate crisis demands multi-dimensional readings.

In Social Media Cultures, Dhiraj Murthy provides a theoretically-grounded, historical exploration of the social media landscape. Uniquely tracing the evolution of social media - from traditional media like letters, postcards, and the telephone to new media and platforms - Murthy argues that these contemporary phenomena are not divorced from their analog antecedents. The historical and theoretical frameworks employed in this book allow readers to better understand the intricacies of nuanced modern dynamics like cancel culture, self-expression, and celebrity influence. Focusing on mobility, political discourse, and the power of witnessing from global perspectives, Murthy uses empirical case studies from both the Global South and North to demonstrate the profound impact of social media on culture, politics, and everyday life. Ultimately, Murthy encourages readers to reflect on their roles within the broader social media ecosystem and to consider the far-reaching consequences of social media engagement on a global scale. Scholars of communication, media studies, social media, and sociology will find this book of particular interest.

The Genocide against the Tutsi witnessed the deaths of close to a million Tutsis and non-extremist Hutus within a 100-day period. While the genocide is extensively researched, the war that led to its conclusion is relatively unexplored. The Strategy to End the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda: Understanding the War in Kigali by Jonathan Beloff addresses how the Rwandan Civil War impacted the rate of killings and how the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA)-the military wing of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF)-liberated Rwanda's capital city, Kigali. Through archival research, the testimonies and experiences of eight genocide survivors, and the testimonies of military personnel, this book also provides unique insight into Rwandan history and a chronological examination of the war. Utilizing Strategic Theory as a theoretical framework for warfare, Beloff examines the various tactics and operations used by the RPA to provide critical insights into decision-making during the war and genocide.

In Christian Ethics and Biomedical Innovation, Stephen Goundrey-Smith outlines a strategy for future adoption of human enhancement technologies which will ensure that such technologies are a common good, a strategy which is appropriate for a pluralistic society, yet consistent with Christian ethical principles. Drawing on the history of biomedical innovation to date in pharmaceutical medicine, he argues that technological capability alone is not enough, and that the responsible adoption of enhancement technologies will require active ethical deliberation and robust public policy discourse. Goundrey-Smith argues that biomedical technology, ethics, and public policy together form an essential triad for appropriate future enhancement technology adoption. This approach helps to ensure that biomedical technologies introduced will be common goods, and to reduce the risk of their instrumental use. The use of any technology is closely linked to its sociopolitical and cultural context and, drawing on Augustine's The City of God, Goundrey-Smith presents a theological vision for good biomedical technology innovation in human society.

This book assesses canals as a major technological system re-shaping Britons' relationship with their landscape and environment between 1760 and 1968, and argues this 200-year arc of historical experience is essential to understanding canals as sites of recreation, leisure, heritage, and experience of the natural environment.

The philosophy of human rights has stalled over a debate between orthodox theorists committed to a moral understanding of human rights and political theorists who adopt a positivist approach. A New Philosophy of Human Rights challenges both, offering a novel deliberative account that bridges this divide.

This collection presents a reframing of ecocomposition theory in light of catastrophic climate change, including the possibility of civilizational collapse, as well as the practical impacts this has on the classroom.

This book argues that literature and cultural studies are crucial for understanding ecological issues, promoting sustainability, and fostering interspecies communication. It further advocates for a practical shift from theory to action, emphasizing the interconnectedness of human and non-human life forms.

This volume is located at a crossover between posthumanism and environmental humanities.

This book presents a Roman Catholic theology arguing God's grace abounds beyond the gender binary. In response to the sex abuse crisis, clericalism, and rigid gender complementarity, the author offers a vision of theological anthropology and ecclesiology that affirms the holiness and fecundity of all bodies across sexual difference.

This study of the virgin birth affirms the doctrine of the Apostles' Creed and seeks to follow in the footsteps of Athanasius of Alexandria by using exegetical typology. It builds an exegetical, theological, and Catholic case for understanding Jesus' incarnation as an act of divine temple construction.

This book reflects on the paradoxes in ancient Israelite literature, with a focus on narratives of the garden of Eden. Contributions approach the subject not only from Jewish but also Christian and Buddhist perspectives and include new research on the nature of Israel's religion as well as science fiction approaches to biblical exegesis.

This volume offers original analyses of capitalism and coloniality while proposing new critical and decolonizing approaches to education. Grounding teaching in the fundamental logics of radical thought, contributors propose rigorous and imaginative modes of pedagogical praxis applicable in a variety of contexts.

This volume applies the newest insights from cognitive psychology to the study of Russian literature. Chapters focus on writers and cultural figures from the Golden to the Internet Age including: Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Sologub, Bely, Akhmatova, Nabokov, Baranskaya, and contemporary online discourse.