Critical Conversations
This year, our national climate has brought us to a reckoning moment in history, where we are talking deeper about racism, inclusion, and equity. For many, dealing with the effects of systemic racism are a part of everyday life. It is essential that we have honest and productive conversations about race, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the impact not only on individuals, but our institution.
Starting Fall 2020, Critical Conversations will grapple specifically with these topics, as well as the impacts of COVID-19, the 2020 elections, and the U.S. borders. Our topics will evolve with today's realities, and we urge you to help us select future conversations. Submit an event or input on a future critical conversation.
» View Critical Conversations Calendar.
» View & Register for "Telling Truer Stories" at CofC and Beyond Series.
» View CofC Women's History Month Events.
Join the Conversation
#LasVidasNegrasImportan: Colonization and Blackness in Puerto Rico
April 15, 4:30 PM ET: Join on Zoom
Dr. Monica Styles welcomes Dr. Bárbara I. Abadía-Rexach of San Francisco State University, a writer and expert on the topic of Afro-Latinxs, who will speak on “#LasVidasNegrasImportan: Colonization and Blackness in Puerto Rico.” Co-sponsored by HISP, LACS, AAST, and FYE.
The archipelago of Puerto Rico was a Spanish colony from 1493 to 1898; since then, it has been a colony of the United States. Anti-Black racism is a cruel reality that evidently Black Puerto Ricans suffer on a daily basis. Outside Puerto Rico, lighter skinned Puerto Ricans are interpellated and racialized as non-white citizens meaning they are not categorized as neither Americans. Bárbara Abadía-Rexach explores racialization in Puerto Rico through the #BLM movement and other antiracist, decolonial, and Afro-feminist initiatives.
Dr. Bárbara I. Abadía-Rexach is an Assistant Professor of AfroLatinidades in the Latina/ Latino Studies Department at San Francisco State University. She received her Ph.D. from the Anthropology Department at The University of Texas at Austin. She is a native Black Puerto Rican writer and public intellectual. Her research focuses on Afro-Latinxs, Latinxs in the U.S., Latin American Studies, Racialization, Blackness, Identity Formation, Popular Culture, Music & Race in Puerto Rico, Media Studies, Black Hispanic Caribbean & African Diaspora. She is the author of Musicalizando la raza. La racialización en Puerto Rico a través de la música (Ediciones Puerto, 2012). She is currently working on a book manuscript, Saluting the Drum! The New Puerto Rican Bomba Movement, that examines discourses of blackness and its intersectionalities with national, cultural, racial, and gender identities in Puerto Rico through bomba music. Abadía-Rexach is a member of the Black Latinas Know Collective and Colectivo Ilé. She collaborates with Afroféminas (https://afrofeminas.com/), Todas (https://www.todaspr.com/), and produces the radio program NEGRAS (https://www.wrtu.pr/programas/negras/). After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
"Restorative Responses Beyond CofC" - Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston Critical Conversation, Part II
April 7, 5:00 - 6:30 PM ET: Register
Hosted by the College of Charleston Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston.
- Ashley Schmidt, Universities Studying Slavery Consortitum, University of Virginia
- Felice Knight, The Citadel’s Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT)
- Rhondda Thomas, Clemson University
- Amber Johnson, EIRC (Equity, Inclusion, and Racial Conciliation) City of Charleston
- Tina Singleton, YWCA of Greater Charleston Racial Equity Institute
- Arthur McFarland, CAJM (Charleston Area Justice Ministry)
Audience Q & A
Migrants of the Mediterranean - Online Conversation
April 6 at 9:25 AM ET - Join via ZoomZoom Meeting ID: 935 0489 9387 and Passcode: 3p715q
"Telling Truer Stories at CofC" - Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston Critical Conversation, Part I
April 1, 2:30 - 4:00 PM ET: Register
Hosted by the College of Charleston Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston.
Not A Thing of the Past: Conversation on the roots of systemic racism. Moderated by Matthew Cressler with members of C of C’s Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston:
- Shannon Eaves, CofC
- Aaisha Haykal, CofC
- Julia Eichelberger, CofC
- Hidden Hands Garden (Annette Watson & HHG students)
- If These Walls Could Talk project (Charissa Owens, Office of Institutional Diversity)
- Students on President’s Historical Review Taskforce (Anthony Greene, co-chair, and PHRT students)
Join us for a virtual Ziegler Lecture featuring Regina Römhild of the Institut für Europäische Ethnologie, Humboldt University of Berlin. This talk is co-sponsored by the UBC Centre for Migration Studies and the UBC Institute of European Studies. RSVP details here: https://migration.ubc.ca/events/regina-romhild. The making of Europe can be studied through the lens of complex processes of “Othering”, i.e. processes of world-making through borders and boundaries defining a hegemonic “Europeanness” against subaltern formations of “Otherness”. However, these borders and boundaries are constantly contested and undercut in practices of (post)migrant mobilities and mobilizations. Hence, the un- and re-making of Europe can also be studied by looking at these destabilizing movements and their worlding projects. Seen through that lens, Other Europes are constantly in the making as well, if only in certain moments of unforeseen resistance, allience and conviviality. The talk will explore such moments along three ethnographic vignettes in which an improvised social imagination of “Post-Otherness” can be shown to be at work pointing to the presence of unknown futures beyond borderland Europe. It will be argued towards a radicalized perspective that focuses strongly on such subversive, convivial moments rather than merely on the making of borders and differences that especially critical research is predominantly concerned with.
Untangling Campus Histories of Slavery
March 25, 6 PM ET - Email eavessc@cofc.edu to register
"The Long Afterlife of Lynching in African American Southern Memory”
March 31, 4:30 PM ET: Join on Zoom
CofC's Associate Professor Mari Crabtree is giving a public lecture at Princeton about her forthcoming book, MySoul is a Witness: The Traumatic Afterlife of Lynching, 1940–1970. Lynchings in the American South left in their wake deep psychological scars andunshakeable, and often unspeakable, memories that haunted generations ofAfrican Americans. Under the strictures of Jim Crow, African Americans knewthat merely speaking of lynchings within earshot ofwhites—much less overtly demanding that whites reckon with their violentacts—could have deadly consequences. In response, African American southernersdeveloped a wide range of narrative strategies to register their moralcondemnation of these unresolved crimes but also to go on living and to mournthe dead. For instance, denied legal justice because southern sheriffs andcourts refused to prosecute known lynchers, some African Americans found ameasure of spiritual justice in ghost stories and tales of divine retribution.These and other narrative strategies were rooted in the African Americancultural sensibility of the blues, a sensibility that compelled a return totragedies large and small, not to wallow in one’s pain, but, in an ironictwist, to confront and relieve that pain, if only for a spell. African Americansoutherners conjured up these spirits as acts of remembrance, acts of love, andacts of defiance, echoing Lucille Clifton when she wrote, “but they want me toremember / their memories / and i keep on remembering / mine.”
Zoom MeetingID: 928 3328 3885
Passcode:973593
Join the Mroz Institute LCWA World Affairs Colloquium with Lisa Carty presenting “Global Health and the U.S. Role.” Lisa Carty is the director of the United States Liaison Office of UNAIDS. In this role she works to maximize UNAIDS’ policy and programmatic engagement with a cross-section of United States partners to help build support for an effective and sustainable global AIDS response. Carty has devoted most of her career to international health and humanitarian issues, including serving as UNAIDS’ country coordinator for the Russian Federation. Prior to joining UNAIDS, she helped lead the work of the Global Health Policy Center at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan Washington, D.C., think tank.
Roots of Racist Policing: A Conversation with Simon Balto
April 13 at 7 PM ET - Register
Adam Smith Week
March 15-19: go.cofc.edu/ASW
Hosted by the Center for Public Choice and Market Process, join us for Adam Smith Week 2021! More info at go.cofc.edu/ASW
The Life and Legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
March 18, 7 PM ET: Register
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg changed the world for American women. One of the most prominent figures on the Supreme Court, she worked tirelessly in her fight for justice and equality. Join CofC's session with Rabbi and scholar David Dalin, author of Jewish Justices of the Supreme Court: From Brandeis to Kagan (2017), on Zoom for a conversation with moderator Ellen Steinberg about Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s life and legacy.
Forum: Lessons from Survivors of Gun Violence
March 24, 6 PM ET - Join
Is Capitalism Sustainable? The Platform Economy: Problems for Policy
March 15 at 2PM ET: Register
Hosted by the Center for Public Choice and Market Process and sponsored by the Duke University Philosophy, Politics, & Economics as the kickoff event for Adam Smith Week 2021! More info at go.cofc.edu/ASW
The Coddling of the American Mind: How Three Very Bad Ideas Shape American Education
March 15, 4 PM ET: Register
An Adam Smith Week 2021 event. More info at go.cofc.edu/ASW.
Believe in People: Bottom-Up Solutions for a Top-Down World
March 16, 3 PM ET - Register
Gender Equity Week
March 8 - 12: View Events
“The purpose of Gender Equity Week is to build community and invite reflection on the many ways that gender shapes our identities, experiences and societal structures locally and globally,” says GSEC Interim Director Kristi ‘Kaj’ Brian. “The events throughout the week are designed to inspire and empower our students and our community. Students will have the opportunity to learn from the authors, panelists and presenters while building the awareness and skills necessary to negotiate for equitable wages, to navigate gender dynamics at work and to explore the importance of gender pronouns and expansive gender identities.
Black Women Transforming Politics & Power in the Deep South: Lessons from Georgia
March 10, 6-8 PM ET: Join via Zoom
Join us for Black Women Transforming Politics & Powers in the Deep South moderated by Dr. Archie-Hudson and Carlotta Scott. Registration is required.
International Women's Day Panel
March 8, 6-7 PM ET - Join Online
We Gon' Be Alright, But That Ain't Alright: Abolitionist Teaching and Pursuit of Educational Freedom
March 11: Join Online
Join Women's and Gender Studies and the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture for a special virtual lecture with Bettina Love, associate professor of educational theory and practice at the University of Georgia and author of We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom (Beacon Press, 2019).
Excuse Me, I'm Speaking - Open Mic Celebration for Gender Equity Week
March 12, 6 - 7:30 PM ET: Join via Zoom
No registration required. See details.
"Shared Legacies" and Interactive Discussion with Film's Director, Shari Rogers
March 8, 6-7 PM ET - Register online
The Impact of Race, Gender, and Politics on the Medical World - Jacqueline Antonovich
April 14, 12 PM ET
The April 2021 Student History Club (SHC) Noon Lecture, sponsored by the Waring Historical Library, will be held Wednesday, April 14, 2021, at 12 PM virtually on Zoom. Dr. Jacqueline Antonovich will present, "The Impact of Race, Gender and Politics on the Medical World." Dr. Antonovich is a historian of health and medicine in the United States, with particular interests in how race, gender, and politics shape the medical field and access to health care. Her teaching interests include histories of public health; alternative medicine; disability; reproduction and childbirth; and epidemics. She also focuses on the history of the American West, nineteenth-century America, and the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Seating is limited and registration is required by Tuesday, April 13, 2021, at 12 PM to reserve your seat and receive log in information. This event is free and open to the public.
Bitter Knowledge (Event Updated)
March 10, 12 PM ET
The March 2021 Student History Club (SHC) Noon Lecture, sponsored by the Waring Historical Library, will be held Wednesday, March 10, 2021, at 12 PM virtually on Zoom. Dr. Suman Seth will present, "Race-Medicine in the Early Nineteenth Century: The Place of South Carolina." Professor Suman Seth works on the social, cultural, and intellectual history of science and medicine. His interests include the history of medicine, race, and colonialism, the physical sciences (particularly quantum theory), & gender and science. He is the author of Difference and Disease: Medicine, Race, and Locality in the Eighteenth-Century British Empire, (Cambridge University Press, 2018) and Crafting the Quantum: Arnold Sommerfeld and the Practice of Theory, 1890-1926 (MIT, 2010).
EVENT UPDATE: The March 2021 Student History Club (SHC) Noon Lecture, sponsored by the Waring Historical Library, will be held Wednesday, March 10, 2021, at 12 PM virtually on Zoom. Ms. Alyssa Peterson will present, "Bitter Knowledge: The Localization and Embodiment of the Environment in Early American Medicine." The original speaker, Dr. Suman Seth, will be unable to attend due to a family misfortune. Our speaker from last month, Ms. Alyssa Peterson will be making up her canceled lecture this month. Seating is limited and registration is required by Tuesday, March 9, 2020, at 12PM to reserve your seat and receive log in information. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact the Waring at 843-792-2288 or waringhl@musc.edu.
Punch Drunk Slugnuts: Violence and the Vernacular History of Disease - Stephen Casper
March 11, 6 PM ET
BSU Black Love/Sex Session
Feb. 11, 6:30 PM
Students are invited to join the CofC Black Student Union for the BSU Black Love/Sex Session talk titled “Let’s Talk About Sex Baby.” Led by Regina Duggins, founder of the nonprofit Charleston Black Pride, this talk will focus on the history and efforts to improve inclusivity of LGBTQ people of color as well as provide information on sex education and safe sex practices. The talk can be viewed via this Zoom link. Check Cougar Connect and @cofcbsu on Instagram for more information.
Laughing to Keep from Dying
Feb. 24, 4:30 PM - Zoom
The African American Studies Program presents the 2021 Conseula Francis Emerging Scholar Lecture: a conversation with Danielle Fuentes Morgan, assistant professor of English at Santa Clara University. Morgan, who specializes in African American literature in the 20th and 21st centuries, will discuss her book, Laughing to Keep from Crying: African American Satire in the Twenty-First Century. Attendees must register via Zoom.
BSU Fashion Show: Celebration of Black Fashion and Culture
Feb 27, 6:30 PM - Zoom
Systemic Racism's Roots & How Universities Participate in Repair
April 1 and 7 - View Details
The College of Charleston's Center for the Study of Slavery will host upcoming Critical Conversations on Systemic Racism's Roots and How Universities Participate in Repair.
Part I: April 1, 2:30-4 PM ET
Part II: April 7, 5:00-6:30 PM ET
One People, One Blood
Feb. 16, 7 PM - Register
Join us on Zoom for a conversation with Prof. Don Seeman (Emory University), author of One People, One Blood: Ethiopian-Israelis and the Return to Judaism, about the journey Ethiopian Jews have been through on their way to becoming Israelis and the challenges they still face today.
Personal Skills for a Diverse Campus, Part I
Feb 23, 12:30 PM - Zoom by Invitation
Bakari Sellers: Attorney. CNN Political Analyst. Father.
Feb. 11, 7 PM - Register and Join
CNN analyst, attorney, and politician Bakari Sellers joins assistant professor Ashley Walters (College of Charleston) to discuss his recently published memoir: My Vanishing Country. Sellers was the youngest elected member of the South Carolina state legislature and the youngest African American elected official in the nation. His memoir tells the story of growing up in Denmark, South Carolina. It illuminates the pride and pain that continues to fertilize the soil of one of the poorest states in the nation. He traces his father’s rise to become a civil rights hero, a friend of Stokely Carmichael and Martin Luther King, and a member of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). His work explores the plight of the South's dwindling rural, black working class.
Sponsored by the Pearlstine/Lipov Center for Southern Jewish Culture
All are welcome. Full details are at https://jewish-south.cofc.edu/event/1574/.
Admitted Students: Inclusion at CofC
Feb. 16, 6 PM - Register
Admitted Students are invited to join us for a virtual presentation and conversation regarding institution-wide diversity inclusion initiatives and the student experience at the College of Charleston. Each session will feature a guest speaker as well as staff from the Office of Institutional Diversity, Multicultural Student Programs and Services and the admissions access & diversity team.
In Other Words: A Century's Reflections
Feb 5 and 6 at 7:30 PM - Join the ShowIn Other Words: A Century’s Reflections, a devised piece of pandemic theater, is an examination on a collection of themes from pandemics to civil rights, and even on the nature of theater itself. Created by a company of seven students and utilizing text derived from first-person accounts, it explores the possibilities for theater in a Zoom world and for all of us in this time of challenge. Read more at https://go.activecalendar.com/cofc/event/cofc-online-theatre-in-other-words---a-centurys-reflections/.
Black History Month at the College of Charleston
February 2021
Please join the College of Charleston #averydigitalclassroom throughout the month of February for several important Black History Month events and conversations.
CAB Black History Month Movie Series
February 2021
Join CAB through the month of February for our Black History Month Movie Series. Details for each movie screening and how to connect with other students attending are at https://cofc.edu/wowevents/schedule-of-events.php.
CofC on NBC News 2 - What the International Holocaust Day of Remembrance means to Charleston
Jan 27 - Explore the CofC Holocaust Quilt
Uncontrollable Blackness: African American Men and Criminality in Jim Crow New York
Feb. 16 at 5:00 PM EST - Register and Join
Please join the Department of History at CofC in welcoming Dr. Douglas Flowe for its inaugural Black History Month lecture and Q&A entitled, "Uncontrollable Blackness."
Dr. Douglas Flowe is an Assistant Professor of History at Washington University in St. Louis where he teaches courses on urban history, criminality, masculinity, and other subjects relating to race, crime, and gender. He has recently published his first book, Uncontrollable Blackness: African American Men and Criminality in Jim Crow New York (UNC Press). His work has appeared in publications such as the Journal of Urban History and the Journal of African American History, and he is currently working on a second book that will trace the experiences of black inmates in the mid-twentieth century carceral state. Register at this link by Feb. 15.
This event is organized and moderated by Elisa J. Jones and Shannon Eaves, Assistant Professors of History at the College of Charleston.
SC Women in Higher Education - Refresh, Renew, Refocus in Challenging Times
Feb. 25-26 - Register Online
SCWHE is proud to announce this year’s conference theme as “Refresh, Renew, Refocus in Challenging Times.” The 2021 conference is scheduled for February 25 – 26, 2021, beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday and Friday and concluding at 11:30 a.m. daily. Each morning the conference will host a break-out session, keynote speaker, and wellness activity that focuses on the conference’s theme of Refresh, Renew, Refocus in Challenging Times. Please consider joining SCWHE for the two-morning conference to refresh, renew, and refocus your career in higher education.
The conference will be virtual and FREE to everyone. The registration deadline is February 17, 2021.
Register to attend this year’s virtual conference online. Please contact Jocelyn at evansj@cofc.edu if you have any questions.
The Workers Cup - MSPS Movie Screening
FEb. 10 at 6:00 PM - Join via CougarConnect
Previous Conversations & Related Events
Safe Zone 101
Jan. 27 at 3:00 PM EST - Register and Join
A Safe Zone 101, creating places where one can feel free to talk about being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, allied, asexual or intersex without fear of criticism or hatred. Visit https://safezone.cofc.edu/ for details. Upcoming dates are listed below. Please register for a date at https://forms.gle/8BzqMYNEZnDeNvbK6.
Reflections on the 2020 Election & the Future of American Democracy
Jan. 19 at 5:00 - 6:30 PM EST - Register and Join
The Department of Political Science invites you to a virtual panel discussion Gibbs Knotts, Karyn Amira, Christopher Day, Jordan Ragusa and Claire Wofford, moderated by Hollis France.
Register and join via Zoom at https://tinyurl.com/yyfqo49l
Tribal Justice - MSPS Movie Screening
Jan. 20 at 6:00 PM - Join via CougarConnectWGS Book Club with author Bettina Love
Jan. & Feb. - Contact WGS to join
This special TEA with WGS book club will meet monthly in January and February in preparation for a special virtual visit with author Bettina Love in March! Open to all CofC faculty and staff – space is limited, so sign up soon to pick up your free copy before winter break!
The 31st Annual MLK Celebration
Jan. 19 at 6:30 PM EST - Join Live Online Event
Join CofC, MUSC, Trident Technical College, The Citadel and Charleston Southern University as we celebrate 31-years of partnership during Black History Intercollegiate Consortium's annual Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration. The virtual event will feature gospel choir performance, tributes from each institution remembering Martin Luther King, Jr., and recognition of this year's Martin Luther King, Jr. honorees. With CofC’s Chief Diversity Officer Rénard Harris delivering the opening remarks, the College will host the virtual event from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at go.cofc.edu/MLK.
The Art of Diversity: Creative Growth for Social Change
Jan. 20 at 3:30 PM ET - Register & JoinThis panel has been coordinated by arts management graduate assistant, Simone Liberty, and the graduate assistant for the Office of Institutional Diversity, Taylor Holloway. Both Simone and Taylor are students in the Master of Public Administration program and the Graduate Certificate in Arts and Cultural Management.
How can we help foster the growth of women of color entrepreneurs in the Lowcountry?
November 19, 2020 at 5:30 PM EST - bit.ly/woceforum
Women of Color Entrepreneur event, to take place via Zoom on November 19th, 5:30 – 7:30+ (main program 6:00 – 7:15). The four themes of Global Entrepreneurship Week https://www.genglobal.org/gew/2020-global-themes: Education, Ecosystems, Inclusion, and Policy as a different lens through which to address the question “How can we help foster the growth of women of color entrepreneurs in the Lowcountry?”.
Anti-racist Education Through Digital Local History - A Virtual Roundtable
Nov. 19 at 3:30 PM EDT - Register
A roundtable on antiracist and digital local history, featuring experts Mary Battle, Aaisha Haykal, Marina Lopez, and Leah Worthington.
The public health crisis caused by COVID-19 and the nationwide uprisings regarding racial and social justice have challenged public history professionals. Practitioners have had to expand their use of technology without training while urgently considering how to effectively create antiracism within their practice. For these reasons, we are offering a virtual roundtable that will bring together experts in local public history, archives, museums, and digital history. By sharing their experiences, we intend to provide a map of best practices for antiracist education in local public history using digital tools and platforms.
The long struggle for racial equality is deeply embedded in Charleston’s past and present as a major destination of heritage tourism, and this struggle is increasingly being acknowledged in the city’s sites of public history. Public historians can push this effort even further by learning antiracist education tools from other practitioners who have been engaged in this field. The range of accessible strategies for antiracist digital programming that we will discuss can be implemented in various public history programs in Charleston and the Lowcountry region.
Epidemics Past and Present: COVID-19 in Historical Context
Nov. 12 at 6:00 PM - Join via CougarConnect
The False Cause: Conversation on Fraud, Fabrication and White Supremacy
November 10, 2020 at 7:00 PM EST - Zoom Link & Facebook Live
In The False Cause, Dr. Domby (Assistant Professor of History, CofC) examines the role of lies and exaggeration in the creation of Lost Cause narratives of the Civil War. The book examines such issues as Confederate monument dedications and myths and their relationship to white supremacy. In this conversation, Program Director Dr. Ayalon will explore with Dr. Domby the broader implications of his findings and what they can teach us about our world today.
Please join the discussion and Q&A about the Lost Cause narrative of the Civil War and how the lies on which it is based continue to haunt the country today and still work to maintain racial inequality. Students, faculty, staff, and the community are invited to join.
Click here to register and join via Zoom or join via Facebook at: https://fb.me/e/4O3uD7Q3X.
Co-sponsored by Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim Lifelong Learning
Queering Black Atlantic Religions - Talk with Author Strongman
Nov. 12 at 12:00 PM EDT - Email for link
Hosted by The Carolina Lowcountry & Atlantic World Program. Join Author Roberto Strongman and Dr. Lenny Lowe, Assistant Professor in Religious Studies in a conversation about Queering Black Atlantic Religions: Transcorporeality in Candomblé, Santería, and Vodou. Examine how religious rituals of trance possession allow humans to understand themselves as embodiments of the divine. Join a conversation about the study of religious cultures of African and African Diaspora People.
Email Sandy Slater for invitation to zoom: slaters@cofc.edu
Details at https://claw.cofc.edu/event/book-talk-with-roberto-strongman/.
Conversation with Renée Stout and Thetyka Robinson
Nov. 12 at 7:00 PM - Facebook Live Event
The 2020 Presidential Election: Conjectures and Consequences
November 10, 2020 at 4:00 PM EST - Join at https://bit.ly/33BThmT
The Bully Pulpit Series will co-host Part II of the virtual “The 2020 Presidential Election: Conjectures and Consequences” panel with the School of Humanities and Social Sciences on November 10th at 4:00 PM. Live remarks will be followed by Q&A with the audience. Moderated by Dean Gibbs Knotts (School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Professor of Political Science). This event is part of the Cougar Campaign 2020 series at the College of Charleston. Join via Zoom at https://bit.ly/33BThmT.
Panelists:
Dr. Michael Lee, Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies of Communication (full bio here)Dr. Karyn Amira, Assistant Professor of Political Science (full bio here)
Dr. Jordan Ragusa, Associate Chair and Associate Professor of Political Science (full bio here)
Dr. Claire Wofford, Associate Professor of Political Science (full bio here)
Education for Liberation: Beyond Diversity & Other Metaphors
Nov. 12 at 9:00 AM EDT - bit.ly/eduforlibtea
What does it mean to “decolonize” the curriculum? How can you practice “equity” in a syllabus? Whom does “inclusivity” in the classroom serve?
Join us to explore these questions in the next T.E.A. with WGS (TEA = Teaching to Engage and Activate). Our conversation will be facilitated by members of the Transformative Teaching Collective. Meet us on Zoom (LINK HERE) – registration is required.
T.E.A. with WGS is a series of faculty development workshops that WGS has hosted for faculty affiliates since 2018. This year our T.E.A. sessions are open to all faculty regardless of rank, school, status, or discipline.
Daring and Doing: Designing a Legacy of Presence, Empathy, Compassion and Power
Nov. 14 at 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM EST - Register & JoinAvailable to all students. Program led by Executive coach, Pearl Alexander, JD, CPCC, Certified Dare to Lead Facilitator™ whose coaching and leadership development practice combines her expert knowledge on the “Science of Inclusion,” “Social Intelligence,” and contemplative practices to foster social change, inclusion, and innovation. Two virtual 90-minute interactive sessions are separated by a personal lunch break that includes audience raffles. Read more about these interactive sessions on Cougar Connect.
In alignment with the college’s core values, this Higdon Center Student Leadership program welcomes diverse attendees who are committed to supporting and advancing women’s leadership development without regard to gender, gender identity, or gender expression.
Critical Conversations on Healthcare Disparities & Ways that Future Medical Professionals Can Combat Them and Create Change
November 19 at 6:30 PM EST - Join Online
Join Charleston Miracle and Minorities in Medicine for a virtual panel discussion about healthcare disparities and effective ways that future medical professionals can combat them and create change.
What Happened on November 3rd? And What it Means for U.S. Leadership Abroad
Nov. 10 at 7:00 PM EDT - Join: bit.ly/31XwkKE
Join a conversation with Ambassador John B. Emerson, vice chairman of Capital Group International Inc. with 19 years of experience in the investment industry. Ambassador Emerson currently serves as chairman of the American Council on Germany and on the boards of the Pacific Council on International Policy and the German Marshall Fund. He is a long-serving member of the Council on Foreign Relations and also served as deputy assistant to the President in Bill Clinton’s administration (1993-1997). Active in California and national politics, he served as Gary Hart’s campaign manager in 1988. This is an LCWA World Affairs Colloquium Series - Microsoft Teams Live Event. Click here to join the event: https://bit.ly/31XwkKE
Antigone (Livestreamed Show + After-the-show Conversations Online)
Nov. 19 and 20 at 7:30 PM EST -Get Tickets"How can one penetrate the absolute certainty and righteousness of political or religious leaders who refuse to listen?" "What happens when neither side in a conflict agrees to yield?" Viewed as a contest between equally determined and fierce competitors, both right and both wrong, Antigone is an intense examination of these questions.
TICKETS - $25 (Groups of 3 or more), $15 (Adults), $12 (Seniors, Military 18 and under) and $8 (CofC Faculty, Staff and Students) This is a livestreamed performance on these two nights only. Presented by the Department of Theatre and Dance, Sophocles’ classic Greek tragedy “Antigone” will be retold with a modern twist in an adaptation penned by multiple Tony-nominated and Peabody Award-winning playwright, Emily Mann. The Antigone production concept was inspired by images of destruction and civil unrest as seen around the country during the recent protests.
Details about critical conversations after the show will be posted soon. Learn more.
Epidemics Past and Present: COVID-19 in Historical Context
November 5, 2020 at 6:00 PM EST - Join online
Dr. Steere-Williams will be addressing the History Club regarding the historical context of COVID-19 and outlining the history of epidemics, both within and without the United States.
Let's Talk about the Impact of Racial Trauma and the Next Steps
Oct. 29 and Nov. 12 at 4:00 PM EDT - Join online
Many of our students are impacted by experiencing and witnessing race based inhumane violence and injustices. Be heard by the Counseling Center and your fellow students in a brave space that encourages understanding, validation, and next steps. Virtual open sessions available every other Thursdays starting September 17th at 4:00 pm. Zoom Registration Required. Some sessions may include guest professionals in addition to the Counseling Center. The Counseling Center has experts in trauma and processing experiences. As white professional counselors we are and will continue to commit to furthering our knowledge and actions we can take against racism and racial injustices.
Post-Election Virtual Panel of Student Campaign Workers
Nov. 11 at 4:00 PM EST - Zoom Meeting ID: 91079817520Co-sponsored by the Department of Political Science and the Political Science Club.
Join the conversations with students about the election.
How Innovation Works and Why It Flourishes in Freedom
November 5, 2020 at 4:30 PM EST - Register & Join
Innovation is the main event of the modern age, the reason we experience both dramatic improvements in our living standards and unsettling changes in our society. Forget short-term symptoms like Donald Trump and Brexit, it is innovation that will shape the twenty-first century. Yet innovation remains a mysterious process, poorly understood by policy makers and businessmen alike.
The Center for Public Choice & Market Process is pleased to announce its upcoming Free Market Speaker Series featuring best-selling author Matt Ridley, Nov. 5th at 4:30 PM. Ridley will discuss his latest book, How Innovation Works and Why it Flourishes in Freedom. Our speaker is a biologist, newspaper column
2020 Presidential Election: Conjectures and Consequences (Part I)
Nov. 3 at 4:00 PM EDT - https://bit.ly/33BThmT
The Bully Pulpit Series will host a virtual panel comprised of School of Humanities and Social Sciences faculty. Live remarks will be followed by Q&A. Event Zoom link: https://bit.ly/33BThmT
Moderator: Gibbs Knotts, dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and professor of political science
Panelists:
- Elijah Siegler, chair and professor of religious studies (full bio here)
- Karyn Amira, assistant professor of political science (full bio here)
- Jordan Ragusa, associate chair and associate professor of political science (full bio here)
- Kendra Stewart, director of Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Center for Livable Communities and professor of political science (full bio here)
Conversation on the Distinctive Divide: African American Religious Diversity
Nov. 10 at 6:00 PM EST - Join OnlineJoin the College of Charleston African American Studies Program, Department of Religious Studies, Office of Institutional Diversity and Office of Multicultural Student Programs and Services for a Microsoft Teams conversation with Jason E. Shelton, associate professor of sociology and director of the Center for African American Studies at the University of Texas-Arlington. Read more.
History of Violence Toward the Black Church
October 29 at 6:00 PM - Click link to join event: https://bit.ly/2TaRVKP
Join Anthony Greene, associate professor of African American studies, via Microsoft Teams for this exciting LCWA Signature Series lecture, "History of Violence Toward the Black Church: From 16th Street Baptist to Mother Emanuel."
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
RETHINKING POLICING: Why do we need to reimagine public safety?
October 26 at 6:00 PM EST - Join via Zoom with Meeting ID: 955 4325 1261 or directly at https://cofc.zoom.us/j/95543251261.
Join panelists: Mari Crabtree (Associate Professor African American Studies CofC), Aparna Polavarapu (Executive Director South Carolina Restorative Justice Initiative), Joshua Parks( Peoples Budget Coalition), Frank Knaack (Executive Director ACLUSC) for an interactive conversation about rethinking the police.
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Safe Zone 101 Training
October 28 at 6:00 PM EST - Register and JoinA Safe Zone is a place where one can feel free to talk about being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, allied, asexual or intersex without fear of criticism or hatred. Visit https://safezone.cofc.edu/ for details.
Divesity Leadership 101: Tolerance, Competence, and Acceptance
October 28 2020 at 6:00 PM EDT - Join via this link
We live in a very incessant world and the College of Charleston aims to build global citizens. Participate in this event to learn more about the importance of diversity and using your leadership skills to build community.
Presenter: Elijah MCCoy, Western Carolina University
Women + Power: PEOPLE POWER
October 6 at 7:30 PM EST - Register and Join
From Suffrage to Black Lives Matter to the fight for Indigenous sovereignty, women of color have been at the heart and forefront of social justice movements for generations. The final installment of Women + Power turns its gaze to the struggles of today, the leading roles that women of color continue to play, and the search for the solidarity that can put systemic oppression on the ropes. Join a panel featuring Enei Begaye, executive director of Native Movement; Kandace Montgomery, executive director of Black Visions Collective; and Toni-Michelle Williams, executive director of Solutions Not Punishments Collaborative. Moderated by activist, writer, and Director of Communications for the Ms. Foundation Raquel Willis.
"Dis/placements" Conversation | Hung Liu and Katie Hirsch
December 3 at 7:00 PM EST - Join live
Join the Halsey Institute on Facebook Live for a conversation with Hung Liu and Katie Hirsch, one of the 10 artist-respondent pairs in the virtual project, Dis/placements: Revisitations of Home. This is an online project that features 10 artists whose works deal with issues of displacement from their ancestral homeland in various capacities.
Each artist was asked to submit works that speak most directly to their reminiscences of home. Artists were paired with writers who have offered their own reflections on the work and its relationship to the concepts of home and displacement. When taken together, this collection of work provides an opportunity to consider the traits and aspects that are both similar and jarringly disparate – from Asia to Africa, from Europe to the Middle East.
From Past to Present: Teaching Problematic Disciplinary Scholars
October 28 at 3:00 PM - Join via Zoom
Please join us for an interactive conversation with colleagues across disciplines, on Wednesday, October 28th, 3pm (tea time!). We will discuss strategies for teaching about problematic disciplinary contributors – you know, the ones that espouse racist rhetoric but have offered important theories to our disciplines, or the ones that have been outed during the #MeToo movement yet whose work remains important to cover, or the disciplinary underpinnings that are rooted in white supremacy and which we need to address with students, and then also students’ responses to these ideas. We will be talking about all of these situations and how to navigate them in our curriculum.
Our conversation facilitators include: Vivian Appler, Theater & Dance; Hollis France, Political Science, Chris Korey, Biology, and Lisa Young, English. Zoom link: https://cofc.zoom.us/j/98501559684.
T.E.A. with WGS is a series of faculty development workshops that WGS has hosted for faculty affiliates since 2018. This year our T.E.A. sessions are open to all faculty regardless of rank, school, status, or discipline.
Interactive workshop for CofC FACULTY only please.
A Conversation with Cecilia Gentili on Trans Womanhood, Community, & Resilience
October 20 at 4:00 PM EST - Register and Join
Join WGS in celebrating International Pronouns Day for a special conversation featuring Cecilia Gentili, Founder of Transgender Equity Consulting. Hosted by Kaj Brian (WGS, GSEC) and Kris De Welde (WGS), with CofC’s PRISM leading a pronouns exercise from 5:30-6:00! (see flyer)
Let's Talk about the Impact of Racial Trauma and the Next Steps
Oct. 29 and Nov. 12 at 4:00 PM EDT - Join with CougarConnect
Many of our students are impacted by experiencing and witnessing race based inhumane violence and injustices. Be heard by the Counseling Center and your fellow students in a brave space that encourages understanding, validation, and next steps. Virtual open sessions available every other Thursdays starting September 17th at 4:00 pm. Zoom Registration Required. Some sessions may include guest professionals in addition to the Counseling Center. The Counseling Center has experts in trauma and processing experiences. As white professional counselors we are and will continue to commit to furthering our knowledge and actions we can take against racism and racial injustices.
Social Justice Coffee Hour
October 29, 1:00 PM - Register and Join
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Cross-Cultural Collaborations Bringing Indigenous Knowledge to Bear on the Climate Crisis
October 23 at 1:00 PM EST - Join at go.cofc.edu/ClimateFridays.
Join Dr. Annette Watson on Zoom. Dr. Watson will share her experience as a non-Indigenous person developing collaborations with Alaska Native tribes & Gullah/Geechee communities who aim to use their Indigenous Knowledge systems in addressing the climate crisis. Register at go.cofc.edu/ClimateFridays. Can’t make it? All Climate Fridays will be recorded & uploaded to the CofC Sustainable Development YouTube.
Gullah/Geechee Freedom Celebration
October 24 at 1:30 PM EST - https://today.cofc.edu/2020/10/22/cofc-hosts-gullah-geechee-freedom-celebration/
There is power in connecting the past with the present. It lends perspective for the future and helps shape our understanding of the struggles and hopes of cultures different from our own.
That’s why on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020, from noon to 1:30 p.m. the College of Charleston’s graduate program in Environmental and Sustainability Studies will host a livestreamed choreopoem performance titled “Gullah/Geechee Freedom Celebration” at the College’s recently restored Sottile Theater. The performance is in recognition of October’s designation as Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Month.
The event is free, but donations can be made through the Event Brite listing. The livestream can be viewed at iframe.dacast.com/b/15725/c/439329. A recording of the performance can also be viewed at www.facebook.com/cofcenvstudies.
View more conversations and related events for students at https://cougarconnect.cofc.edu/events.
Evening with Francisco Cantú, award winning author of The Line Becomes a Rivers: Dispatches from the Border
October 22, 7:00 PM - Link to join Francisco Cantú will be posted online here the day of the event
The College Reads! presents an Evening with Francisco Cantú, an online public lecture. The Line Becomes a River will open a conversation about the ambiguous nature of borders. In particular, this book is a memoir of Cantú’s experience growing up around the border in the desert southwest, studying the border as an international relations major at American University, and his decision to join the Border Patrol (2008-2012) and later leave it--all in an attempt to better understand the dynamics of natural and unnatural borders. The committee believes this will allow students from a variety of experiences to join an important and timely conversation about borders, immigration, migration, and our shared humanity.
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Race and the Legacies of Slavery at the College of Charleston
October 20 at 3:00 PM EST - WATCH A RECORDING
Join Dr. Benard Powers, Int. CEO International African American Museum, Director for the Center for Study of Slavery in Charleston (CSSC) , CofC Professor Emeritus, and national expert on black history, and Dr. Julia Eichelberger, Marybelle Higgins Howe Professor of Southern Literature, affiliate faculty member in African American Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies, the director of the Southern Studies minor, and a member of the Executive Board for CSSC. The conversations begins at 3:00 PM. You many pre-register or join immediately at the time of the event at the link provided.
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Critical Conversation on Racial Justice
Alaina Beverly, former White House official, commentator on MSNBC, expert in urban policy, civil rights, and community mobilization . Join Alaina Sept. 23 at 6:00 PM.
No pre-registration required. Everyone is welcome. Link to join: https://bit.ly/3il9J0M .
Constitution Day Event hosted by the Race and Social Justice Initiative, Avery Research Center, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Pre-Law Advising Program at CofC, The Citadel Inn of Court.
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Virtual Conversation | Dis/placements
October 8, 2020 7:00 PM EST - Join on Halsey Institute’s Facebook page
Join us on Facebook Live to hear Dr. Fahamu Pecou and Ruth Rambo in conversation. Pecou and Rambo are one of the ten artist-respondent pairs in Dis/placements: Revisitations of Home . Viewers will be able to ask questions via comments on Facebook Live. If you do not have a Facebook account, send your questions to halsey@cofc.edu. The video will be archived on the Dis/placements website and shared on our social media channels. The event will occur on the Halsey Institute’s Facebook page, and there is no need to RSVP. Make sure you follow the Halsey Institute on Facebook!
Men of Color in the Classroom
October 13, 12:00 PM EST - Register and Join via Zoom.
Join Anthony James, Call Me MISTER progam at the College and Rénard Harris, vice president of access and inclusion and chief diversity officer, in our monthly Beyond DiversityEDU conversation. This is an extension of our inclusion learning platform available to students on OAKS and employees on CougarEd starting in October 2020. All faculty, staff, and students are invited to join whether or not they have completed the associate module online.
Exploring Black History at the College of Charleston and Beyond
October 14, 7:00 PM EST - Register
The College of Charleston Alumni Association invites alumni, parents, students, faculty, staff, and members of the community to participate in two webinars devoted to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion at the College of Charleston and in our community. Registration is free.
The first of these webinars is "Exploring Black History at the College of Charleston and Beyond" on Wednesday, October 14, at 7 pm, featuring Professor Emeritus Bernard Powers, PhD, Director of the College's Center for the Study of Slavery in Charleston and Interim CEO of the International African American Museum. This webinar is hosted by Derrick Williams '99, President, College of Charleston Alumni Association. Additional webinars on diversity, equity, and inclusion will be scheduled throughout the year.
Anti-racism and anti-opression practices along with how to incorporate self-care
October 21 AND 22 at 4:00 PM EST - Click here to join the conversation online
Join us at 4 pm on Wednesday, October 21st and Thursday, October 22nd for "In Agreement" with Kennae Miller of Transformation Yoga. Explore anti-racism and anti-oppression practices along with how to incorporate self-care. RSVP for the event at https://forms.gle/yEKNNqqtMiT4p7RE7. Feel free to email me at kellerlj1@cofc.edu with any questions.
Safe Zone 101
October 14 at 6:00 PM EST - Register to join via https://forms.gle/dkdyqgmDQqG48wkJA
A Safe Zone is a place where one can feel free to talk about being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, allied, asexual or intersex without fear of criticism or hatred. Visit https://safezone.cofc.edu/ for details.
Divided We Fall: Civility in Political Debate
October 22, 2020 at 11:00 AM EST - Join online at https://bit.ly/35JmqyW
The Bully Pulpit Series will co-host the virtual “Divided We Fall: Civility in Political Debate” panel with the Department of Communication and their Advisory Council on October 22nd at 11:00 AM. Live remarks will be followed by Q&A with the audience. This event is part of the Cougar Campaign 2020 series at the College of Charleston. Visit https://bullypulpitseries.org/ for details.
Everyone is invited. This event is open to the entire campus community.
Black Women Warrior Week
October 19-23, 2020
Join nteractive conversations via Avery Center's online series held the week of October 19-23, 2020.
Intersectionality and Climate Justice
September 23, 2020
An interactive guest talk by Wadzanai Motsi-Khatai from the Center for Intersectional Justice in Berlin on the topic of “Intersectionality and Climate Justice.” The talk will be followed by a Q&A session. The following resources are recommended: CIJ Intersectional FAQ and Crenshaw Ted talk on Intersectionality.
Abolitionist & Ecofuturist Perspectives to End Environmental Racism
September 25, 2020
Register Hosted by the Center for Sustainable Development, featuring the Tranformative Teaching Collective, Drs. Kristi "kaj" Brian and Hollis France
Voting 411 ("Cougar Votes")
October 1 and 2 from 2:00-3:00 PM EST - Click link to join: https://cofc.zoom.us/j/98801477622
Join CougarVOTES, a nonpartisan group reply to help every CofC student register to vote, order their absentee ballot, and vote on issues they care about. CougarVOTES ambassadors will be present on Zoom to answer any questions about voting.
RGB
September 24, 4:00 PM EST - Join via MS TEAMS LINK
Join WGS for a screening of RBG (2018) in celebration of the life of feminist icon Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. With opening remarks from Dr. Claire Wofford (Political Science). Moderated by Dr. Claire Curtis (Political Science).
Interrupting Racism in the Classroom
September 29 at 3:00 PM EST
Join WGS for our first fall 2020 T.E.A. with WGS (T.E.A. = Teaching to Engage and Activate). Please join us for an interactive conversation with Dr. Charissa Owens, from our Office of Institutional Diversity, on Tuesday, September 29th, 3pm (tea time!). We will learn more about “Interrupting Racism in the Classroom,” including strategies for self-reflection, engaging students, and addressing racism and practicing anti-racism in our classrooms (or zoomrooms). We are asking that you RSVP for this T.E.A., after which you will receive a zoom link to join the session. Furthermore, our T.E.A. sessions this year will be open to all faculty across all schools, not only WGS affiliated faculty as is usually the case. Please share this information with your colleagues and encourage them to attend.