TAMIU Presents Series of Lectures Honoring Black History Month
A series of events honoring Black History Month are taking place at Texas A&M International University (TAMIU). Organized in conjunction with students and faculty, the events are free and open to the public.
A lecture, Carnivalizing Slavery: African Diaspora Festive Celebrations and Black History," will be led by Dr. Asligul Berktay, assistant professor of History, Monday, Feb. 26, from 3:20 - 4:20 p.m. in Student Center, room 230. The lecture is sponsored by the TAMIU Student Government Association.
Dr. Berktay said her lecture will explore contemporary festive celebrations across the African Diaspora, with specific focus on the Caribbean. It will demonstrate that the historical experience of slavery continues to shape the Trinidad Carnival, Jamaican Jonkonnu, Bahamian Junkanoo, Haitian Rara, Trinidadian Hosay, and New Orleans Mardi Gras, which in many ways also belongs within the cultural sphere of the Caribbean, she added.
"The sheer survival and continued vivacity of African Diaspora festive celebrations constitute pure evidence for the historical 'opposition' of the descendants of enslaved Africans, and of their fight for cultural preservation, adaptation, and re-creation within the worlds of Atlantic slavery," Berktay said.
Also, TAMIU's Office of Student Orientation, Leadership and Engagement (SOLE) will present a lecture, "Reconstructing Identity to Fight Genocide Ideology in Rwanda," featuring Dr. Celine Jacquemin, professor of International Relations at St. Mary's University, Wednesday, Feb. 28, from 3:20 - 4:20 p.m. in AIC, room 128.
Earlier this month, Dr. Peter Haruna, TAMIU Public Administration professor, initiated the month-long observance with his lecture, “Marginalization in Politics and Policy.” The lecture examined how political cultures and administrative practices sometimes leave people behind.
On Feb 20, Dr. Emily Vanchella, visiting lecturer, TAMIU College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Fine and Performing Arts, led the screening of the film "The Summer of Soul." The award-winning film tells the story of the Harlem Cultural Festival and its disappearance from and reintroduction to music history.
For more information, please contact the TAMIU Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services, at 956.326.2180, email prmis@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in the Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library, room 268.
More on the University’s story is shared at tamiu.edu and on TAMIU’s social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter-X, and YouTube.
