KINGSTON, R.I. – Jan. 29, 2016 – Nikole Hannah-Jones, an award-winning reporter for The New York Times Magazine who covers racial injustice and civil rights, will be the keynote speaker during Black History Month at the University of Rhode Island.
Her talk, free and open to the public, will start at 3 p.m. Feb. 15 at 95 Upper College Road on the Kingston campus, formerly known as the UClub.
A nationally acclaimed investigative reporter, Hannah-Jones has written extensively about race, class, equity and school resegregation. Before joining The New York Times, she worked as a reporter at the nonprofit news source ProPublica in New York City, where she investigated policy-driven segregation in housing and schools.
A native of Iowa, Hannah-Jones started her journalism career at The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C., covering the majority-black public schools. She has also written for The Oregonian, The Atlantic, Mother Jones and New York magazine.
Her talk is made possible through the “Marlen Bodden Annual Lecture in Africana Studies,” which brings influential people to the URI campus to highlight and celebrate the contributions of prominent individuals of the African Diaspora.
Other events during the month include:
* Monday, Feb. 1, “Oh, Freedom Over Me,” co-sponsored by the Africana Studies Program, 3 to 4 p.m., at the Multicultural Student Services Center. The musical production will feature West Warwick singer Cheryl Albright, who will share her musical journey to overcome fear and prejudice.
* Monday, Feb. 8, 6 p.m., a Black History Month featured film. Screening at 95 Upper College Road.
* Monday, Feb 22, 2 p.m., Africana Studies open house and lecture by John McCray, a professor in Africana Studies and vice provost for Urban Affairs at URI. His topic is “Urban History of African Americans in Flint, Michigan and the Water Crisis.”
* A talk by Grant Farred, professor of Africana Studies and English at Cornell University, Feb. 24, from 5 to 6 p.m., at Swan Hall. Farred is a leading voice in contemporary cultural studies and an internationally recognized writer on race.
“Black History Month is a great time of learning for all Americans and a time of celebrating the rich heritage of African American history and culture,” says Vanessa Quainoo, director of URI’s Africana Studies Program. “We ask professors to announce the lectures in their classes to encourage students to attend.”
For more information, contact Quainoo at URI, at 401-874-2536 or Vquainoo@mail.uri.edu. Also, please visit Black History Month.
URI’s Africana Studies Program is sponsoring the program. Co-sponsors are the Offices of the President and the Provost; Community, Equity & Diversity; the College of Arts & Sciences; Talent Development; the Multicultural Student Services Center; the Harrington School of Communication and Media; and the history, sociology and English departments.
Black History Month is an annual observance in the United States to remember and honor people and events in the African diaspora. It is celebrated annually in the United States in February.
Pictured above: Nikole Hannah-Jones, an award-winning reporter for The New York Times Magazine who covers racial injustice and civil rights, will be the keynote speaker Feb. 15 at the University of Rhode Island for Black History Month. Photo courtesy Vanessa Quainoo.