2018 Black New England Conference

3:45 -5:00 p.m.
Film Discussion
African Amerian Representations and Aesthetics in the Black Panther

Black Panther, with its Afro-futuristic elements challenges stereotypes by readjusting the barometer of African imagination. This panel will discuss the film's redefining of Africa's aesthetic within today's cinematic consciousness, the complexities of Black style and how the film serves as a vehicle for asserting cultural significance and identity in a culturally hostile environment.

Panelists:

• Delia Konzett, University of New Hampshire
• Kabria Baumgartner, University of New Hampshire
• Lisa Simmons, Roxbury International Film Festival

David Livingston Smith

David Livingstone Smith is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine. He is the author of seven books, as well as numerous papers on dehumanization, philosophy of psychology, philosophy of race, self-deception, philosophy of the social sciences, mass violence, ideology, propaganda, and other topics. His book Less Than Human: Why We Demean, Enslave and Exterminate Others (2011) was awarded the 2012 Anisfield-Wolf award for nonfiction, and he is currently working on a book entitled Making Monsters: The Uncanny Power of Dehumanization, to be published by Harvard University Press.
David is a strong advocate of philosophy having a role in public discourse and often writes to bring philosophical thought to a general audience. He is a regular blogger for Philosophy Talk, is a frequent contributor to Aeon magazine, has appeared in three prime-time documentaries, has been interviewed and cited on numerous occasions in the national and international media (most recently, national public radio’s Truth, Politics, and Power) and was a guest at the 2012 G20 economic summit, where he spoke about dehumanization, racism, and mass violence.

John Berst serves as the Director of Musical Theatre for the University of New Hampshire Department of Theatre and Dance, where he teaches several courses in Musical Theatre Performance, Literature and Repertoire, Musical Theatre History, and Musical Theory.  Professor Berst also regularly directs and music directs on the UNH mainstage.  He has presented at conferences internationally and domestically at several conferences, including the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), the Mid-America Theatre Conference (MATC), the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF), and the New England Theatre Conference (NETC). Berst holds a Master of Fine Arts in Acting from Purdue University’s Professional Actor Training Program, and Bachelor’s degrees in Music and Theatre from the University of Buffalo; The State University of New York.  He has extensive professional experience as a music director and actor, and he is proud to be a member of Actor’s Equity Association and an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

Kabria Baumgartner, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of American studies at the University of New Hampshire.  She is a scholar of nineteenth centry African American history, literature, and culture.  She has earned awards to support her research, including fellowships from the Library Company of Philadelphia, Massachusetts Historical Society, and the National Academy of Education.  Her work has appeard in scholarly journals such as the Ethnic Studies review, New England Quarterly, Journal of the Early Republic, and the Journal of Social History.  Her book, A Right to Learn: African American Women and Educational Activism in Antebellum America (under contract with NYU Press) tells the history of school desegragation in the early nineteenth century northeast from the perspective of African American girls and women.  Her next project is an edited volume on the experience of people of color in Essex County, Massachusetts.

Lucius T. Outlaw, Jr., professor of philosophy and of Africana and diaspora studies at Vanderbilt University. 
Prior to joining the Vanderbilt faculty, Outlaw was the T. Wistar Brown Professor of Philosophy at Haverford College and taught at Fisk University and Morgan State University. He was in residence in the philosophy department of Boston College as the Honorable David S. Nelson Professor. Other visiting appointments have included Distinguished Visiting Associate Professor at Spelman College (1986-1987); Visiting Professor of Philosophy at Howard University (1992-1993); and R. Hawley Truax Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Hamilton College (fall semester, 1994).

In addition to numerous essays, Outlaw has published On Race and Philosophy (Routledge, 1996) and Critical Social Theory in the Interests of Black Folks (Roman and Littlefield, 2005). He is a member of the editorial boards of Philosophy and Social Criticism and Speculative Philosophy. A member of the American Philosophical Association, he has served on the association's board of officers and as the chairman of various APA committees, including Committee on Inclusiveness, the Committee on Blacks in Philosophy, Committee on the Prospects and Future of the Profession, the Program Committee, and the Executive Committee of the Association's Eastern Division.

Naykishia D. Head is a former instructor of English in the Department of Languages, Literature, and Philosophy at Tennessee State University.  Professor Head also taught Cultural Diversity and Information Literacy classes, along with Composition courses at IADT-Nashville.  Her research interests include Gender and Women’s Studies, African American Literature, the LBGTQ experience, and anything HBSC-related . She has publications in Black Magnolia Literary Journal, The Researcher, Jackson States University’s Interdisciplinary Journal, Tennessee Philological Bulletin, and Meeting Points in Black/African Women’s Literature.  Furthermore, she was also a regular contributor at HBCULifestyle. Professor Head has also presented at several conferences and symposiums, and additionally served as a panelist and moderator for various literary and cultural events.  Her educational journey continues at Bowling Green State University, where she is pursuing her Ph.D. in American Culture Studies, with a concentration on Ethnicity, Gender, and Social Identities.

Petria May first published her work on dress codes after noticing that a substantial number of her Yale classmates adorned themselves mostly in black clothing. Following that first brush with the semiotics of style, May worked as a journalist and lawyer where she sometimes represented fashion companies. She left law to open an eponymous clothing boutique profiled in publications including Vogue and Essence magazines. May has also maintained personal style blogs (365 Days of Style), written a weekly column for a local newspaper and founded “Dress Code,” a monthly style column for Berkshire Living magazine. Now an English teacher at The Beacon School in Manhattan, May created and teaches "Dress Codes,” a senior English elective, and advises the student club “stylemakers.” She is working on a book about uncovering the complexities of contemporary society through the lens of adornment. For the last several years, May has also been developing writing and talks focused on what she calls "protest dress.” Last year, she presented a corner of her work in Professor Graziella Parati’s fashion class at Dartmouth College. 
 

Enrico Riley is a Professor of Studio Art at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH. Riley earned a BA in Visual Studies from Dartmouth College and an MFA in painting from Yale University School of Art. He is the recipient of a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, a Rome Prize in Visual Arts, an American Academy of Arts and Letters Purchase Prize in painting and a Jacobus Family Fellowship through Dartmouth College. Riley’s work has been exhibited extensively, including at The American Academy in Rome, Italy; Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, VA; Columbus Museum, Columbus, Georgia; The Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, Texas; American Academy of Arts and Letters in New York City; Hood Museum of Art, Hanover, NH; The Museum for the National Center of Afro-American Arts in Roxbury, MA; and the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma, Rome, Italy.

In 2016, Jada K. Hebra became the first Senior Vice President and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Southern NH University (SNHU). Prior to SNHU, and after a stint in broadcast news at ABC in New York, Jada spent 25 years working in the private secondary school sector designing and supporting diversity and inclusion initiatives while also serving in leadership roles such as Humanities teacher, Associate Dean of Students, Director of College Advising, Director of Admission, Dean of Faculty and Assistant Head of School.   A restorative practice trainer, project manager, and leader with the National SEED (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) Project, Jada works with university stakeholders to advance strategic diversity and inclusion goals.  With a BA in Sociology from Vassar College, an MS from Columbia University School of Journalism, and an MS in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from SNHU currently underway, Jada draws on her lifelong passion for people and storytelling to deepen her own and others’ understanding of bias and beauty across difference.

Akinshimaya Nnamdi is a doctoral student at the University of Miami.  She focuses mainly on race and ethnicity and criminology.  Dr. Nnamdi attended the Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida for her undergraduate studies.  A first-generation college student, Nnamdi wants to use her experience and education to speak against institutionalized discrimination in society and to help cultivate upcoming generations.  

Dorothy Clark is the editor of Historic New England magazine, a member publication of Historic New England, the oldest and largest regional cultural heritage organization in the United States. She is a fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society and a member of the board of directors of the Loring Greenough House in Jamaica Plain, MA.  Ms. Clark holds a master’s degree in historic preservation and American history, and a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Her mission is to advance the relevance of history among the public and to advocate critical and enlightening engagement with the past.

Terry Robinson is the Founder and Creative Director of HOUSE OF TESTAMENT, a streetwear brand focused on designing concepts that resonate with our demographic. As he begins his Art Studies at the University of New Hampshire, his experiences as a public speaker, having won numerous awards, including a National Championship in Public Speaking from Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) and, as a social activist winning the MLK Commission of Florida award and the Rosa Parks Quiet Courage award, he will prove to be invaluable. Robinson’s special interest in design and the arts has already led him to create opportunities for others to grow as creatives.