Deborah Gray White, acclaimed author, will lecture tonight on powerful cultural movements in American history during the turn of the millennium.
She will explore what these movements reveal about black women's changing identities.
"She uses these events to not only explore the ideas and feelings of African-American women, but also [to] investigate the politics and culture of the United States in the midst of this transformative decade," Aram Goudsouzian, director of the Marcus W. Orr Center for the Humanities, said.
There were many public demonstrations in the U.S. during the 1990s, including the Million Man and Woman Marches, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender marches and the Million Mom March. White will discuss how these events shed light on the beliefs and experiences of black women.
This lecture is set to take place in the University Center and includes a reception at 6 p.m. prior to the main event at 6:30 p.m.
Free and open to the public, it is the keynote address of the 14th annual Graduate Conference on African and African-American History, sponsored by the Graduate Association for African-American History.
"We are proud to partner with the Graduate Association of African-American History, an especially active and ambitious student group that puts on a conference every year that attracts top-flight young scholars from across the nation," Goudsouzian said.
The conference will also include a roundtable event with pizza at noon Friday, during which speakers will share advice with students on a variety of topics, including graduate school, dissertation and entering the job market.
