Ubuntu Dialogues

Virtual Practitioners Symposium presented by Michigan State University

13 JULY 2021

Rethinking Sites of Memory and Dialogue: The Promises of Ubuntu, Pan-Africanism, and Decolonization

1. Welcome and Opening Remarks

Panelists:

Upenyu S. Majee: Project Manager, Ubuntu Dialogues, African Studies Center, Michigan State University (MSU)

Prof Jamie Monson: African History; Director, African Studies Center; Co-PI, Ubuntu Dialogue Project, MSU

Bongani Mgijima: Director, Stellenbosch University (SU) Museum; Co-PI, Ubuntu Dialogues Project, SU, South Africa

2. Ubuntu Pan Africanism, and Decolonization: Mapping the Landscape

Panelists:

Baruti Katembo: Co-author, UWENZI: The Pan-African Factor, a 21st Century View; and Mathematics Faculty, Florida State College at Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL

Assistant Prof Gnaka Lagoke: History & Pan-Africana Studies, Lincoln University, PA and Founding Member, Convention for Pan-Africanism and Progress (CPP)

Facilitator:

Upenyu S. Majee

3. Ubuntu Pan Africanism, and Decolonization as Concepts and as Practice: Practitioners Experiences and Insights 

Panelists:

R. Sherman McCathern: Founder & Executive Director, Ubuntu Village, Flint, MI

Ernest Johnson: Co-founder & Director, Ubuntu Village, New Orleans, LA

Kiya Green: Founder & Executive Director, Ubuntu Village School, Trenton, NJ

Facilitator:

Isaac Kalumbu

4. Sport and Art as Sites of Youth Dialogue and Engagement

Panelists:

Taylor Sharp: Producer and Co-Director, Hoops Africa: Ubuntu Matters (movie)

Dan Hedges: Co-Director, Hoops Africa: Ubuntu Matters

Olivia Furman: Artist and PhD Candidate, Curriculum, Instruction and Teacher Education, MSU

Facilitator:

Leps Malete

5. Cultural Heritage and Creative Arts as Sites of Memory and Dialogue: Mapping the Landscape

Panelists:

Asali DeVan Ecclesiastes: Executive Director, Ashé Cultural Arts Center, New Orleans, LA

Madaha Kinsey-Lamb: Director, Mind-Builders Creative Arts Center, Bronx, NYC

Zella Palmer: Chair and Director, The Dillard University Ray Charles Program in African-American Material Culture, Dillard University, New Orleans, LA

Facilitator:

Philip Effiong

6. Cultural Heritage and Arts as Sites of Memory and Dialogue: Practitioner Experiences and Insights

Panelists:

Patrina Chatman: Curator, Collections and Exhibitions, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit, MI

Greta McHaney Trice: Coordinator, Pave the Way I-496 Project, Lansing, MI

Diana N’Diaye: Curator, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Washington D.C.

Facilitator:

Monica Ramirez- Montagut

7. Closing Remarks

Panelist:

Judith Stoddart: Associate Provost for University Collections and Arts Initiatives; Senior Associate Dean of the Graduate School; and Associate Prof. of English, MSU