Amistad’s 2017-2018 Conversations in Color season is in full swing, and based on the public response to recent Conversations, we are pleased to announce that all previous events in the series are now available for viewing through Amistad’s Vimeo channel. Conversations in Color is a free public cultural series that features artists, educators, and community activists in talks about their work and its impact on social change.
This past fall, we were treated to a series of lively discussions, beginning with Zena Howard, the architect of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, who discussed her unique perspective on facilitating community through architectural spaces. Jodie Patterson and Tiq Milan explored race, gender, and identity issues for African American transmen through the lens of James Baldwin in their discussion, “Notes of Native Mother and Son.” Literary scholars Nancy Dixon and Jerry Ward, along with writer Michael Zell, and capped off 2017 with their takes on the life and legacy of Chester Himes in conjunction with Amistad’s “Lonely Crusade” exhibition on the author.
The start of the new year celebrated the creative and activist legacy of New Orleans poet, playwright, and oral historian Tom Dent with a discussion between Ishmael Reed and Kalamu ya Salaam at Dillard University in January. The talk coincided with the publication of the Salaam-edited volume New Orleans Griot: The Tom Dent Reader by The University of New Orleans Press, as well as Amistad’s new digital exhibition on Dent. Most recently, Elizabeth Alexander, the newly appointed president of the Mellon Foundation, and Black Lives Matter co-founder and activist Alicia Garza sat down for a candid talk on shaping activist movements through cultural narratives and the roles they play as Black women in society.
In partnership with Dillard University's Ray Charles Program in African-American Material Culture, Amistad also hosted Madame Barbara Trevigne and Zella Palmer for a conversation on the topic of the Global Impact of the 19th Century Headdress for Women of Color. This event was part of the HBCU Material Culture Conference held at Dillard University on February 22-24, 2018.
Images from Amistad’s website, newsletters, and blogs cannot be reproduced without permission.