6th Annual "State of Black Writers" Symposium at Essex County College

On Thursday and Friday, October 23-24, Essex County College’s Africana Institute, in partnership with the Akoma Newark Sister Circle, the Frances E.W. Harper Literary Society at the Newark Public Library, and the Humanities Division ,with support from Student Life and Activities, will host the Sixth Annual State of Black Writers Symposium at the main campus of Essex County College in Newark, NJ. The entire schedule is listed below. All events will be held in Smith Hall.

I will be moderating the Humanities Panel on Thursday, October 23, at 10:00 am. Our panel is titled "Site of Spectacle: Representing the Black Body." The black body has been the site of Humanities discourse (literature, theater, music, fine arts, media) for centuries—as spectacle, as commodity, and as symbol of resistance. Our panel seeks a fresh exploration of how the black body has been presented (and represented) in literature, media, and fine arts in the ongoing critical conversations of the 21st century, how cultural institutions shape the perceptions of the black body, and how these representations can be read as directly responding to the cultural climate in which they are produced.

Thursday, October 23:
10:00 – Humanities Division – “Site of Spectacle: Representing the Black Body” A Panel
11:30 – Dr. Randal Pinkett – “Black Faces in White Places” Feature Presentation
1:00 – Dr. Thomas Page – “Body Image and Spirituality” amongst African American males”
2:30 – Kofi Ayim – “Reflections on Jack Cudjo”
3:30 –Akoma Newark Sister Circle – “Women's Sexuality Sensuality and Power in Black Public Presentation – A Panel Discussion

Friday, October 24:
10:00am – Oloye I Karade – Writing Fantasy & Sci-Fi from the African perspective Workshop
11:30am – Willie Cooper – Forgotten Black Soldiers and Sailors, who fought in the Civil War
1:00 – Nashid Al-Amin – “The Black Vikings of the Middle Ages”
6:00pm – Sharpe James – “Political Prisoner”
8:30pm – Akoma Newark Sister Circle – “DJEMBE – A conversation on Wellness for men of color” Workshop

The symposium is FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, and will convene in Smith Hall of the A. Zachary Yamba Building (Main Campus at 303 University Avenue) in the heart of Newark's University Heights.