By JW Mcnay/editor-in-chief
As a part of Connect Campus’ Black History Month events, two speakers will each present in a different format, one online and one on-campus.
Kehinde Andrews will speak in an online lecture Feb. 16, and Bob Ray Sanders will speak Feb. 21 on TR Campus.
Andrews is a black studies professor at Birmingham City University in Birmingham, England. He is a scholar, activist and public intellectual, said Anthony Squiers, Connect government associate professor.
Squiers reached out to Andrews to speak as part of Black History Month after he read Andrews’ book, Back to Black: Retelling Black Radicalism for the 21st Century.
“He’s going to have a live event in the U.K., in Birmingham, where he’s going to invite some people,” Squiers said. “And then, we’re going to broadcast on YouTube.”
The event is sponsored by the Connect behavioral and social sciences department and will be hosted by Squiers. Students from all campuses as well as the community are invited to watch the lecture, he said.
This is an event to allow students to hear and learn from an expert from a different area and college, he said, adding that Andrews’ lecture will also be easily understandable and accessible.
“It’ll be a smart talk. It’ll be an intelligent talk, but it will be a talk that anyone can appreciate,” Squiers said.
On Feb. 21, Bob Ray Sanders will speak in the Connection Bay (TRWF 2200). Sanders is an award-winning journalist whose career spans four decades across television, radio and newspaper.
“I plan to speak about black history since I grew up in this area, and my family goes back 150 years here,” Sanders said. “I plan to talk about those experiences among other things and hopefully challenge the audience to hopefully more make progress than we’ve made in the last hundred years.”
There are people who don’t like the idea of a Black History Month, he said. And if someone says “There’s no ‘White History Month,’” then he said his answer is “Yeah, there are 12 ‘White History Months.’”
“Our history for the most part is not taught and particularly our local history,” he said. “And I think people ought to know a little more about the local history as well.”
Many institutions have gotten away from this kind of program because it’s easier to ignore than engage, he said.
“I’m the kind of person who likes to have discussion,” he said. “I don’t just like to lecture without having feedback from the audience.”
Sanders said he is used to disagreements and challenges after having a long career in the media.
“So, I would hope to have an interesting discussion with the audience concerning a lot of issues,” he said.
Sanders said he hopes something at the lecture will keep students and faculty talking about the issues for several more days or weeks.
“I don’t want the discussion to stop that night,” he said.
Black History Month Lecture: Kehinde Andrews
Noon Feb. 16 at https://youtu.be/pPIGwzNtXc0
Connecting with the Human Experience: Bob Ray Sanders
6-7:30 p.m. Feb. 21 in the Connection Bay (TRWF 2200) on TR Campus.
