John Long, Ed.D. : The Lilydale First Baptist Foundation, a small, but caring, 501 C3 faith- based organization, located on the far south side of Chicago, is requesting your financial investment in an intercultural and interfaith camp, bringing together youths from different cultures and religions and bridging two national shores.
It is an historic undertaking, because it will take place in a primarily African American neighborhood and is one of the very few programs that connect youths from disadvantaged neighborhoods from two countries in the name of peace and nonviolence. The 20 German youths, primarily of Turkish and African descent and 30 African American youths, ages 12-15, will participate in this camp that integrates sports, i.e., basketball, and German/English language training peace, leadership, and cultural exposure. Read More
Film Screening & Discussion
Doctoral student Kevina King (far left) on a panel this weekend with Jemele Watkins (far right) at the third Black German Heritage & Research Association International Conference held at Amherst College.
AMHERST, Mass.—In an effort to recognize a relatively young academic discipline that many in the academy have never heard of before, nearly a hundred students and scholars gathered at Amherst College over the weekend to discuss their research and ideas for how to grow Black German Studies.
This marks the third year that the Black German Heritage & Research Association sponsored the international conference, which highlighted a variety of interdisciplinary topics ranging from Black Germans during the Third Reich to their ongoing presence in German theater.
Like African American, Women and Queer studies, Black German Studies has an admitted social justice focus, says Dr. Sara Lennox, a professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and an early founder of the Black German Studies movement in the U.S. “We’ve made the field legitimate. You can now do this work and get tenure,” says Lennox, who was chiefly responsible for jumpstarting the Black German Studies concentration at UMASS Amherst. “It’s kind of a burgeoning field and movement. The other thing that’s really cool is there is a pretty strong connection between activism and scholarship and a really strong connection with the experimental … Black Germans talking about their stories.”
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