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MONMOUTH UNIVERSITY HOLDS INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE ON RACE NOVEMBER 8-10

The idea of race continues to be controversial and the meaning of race and its significance remains an open issue. These topics and others will be discussed during Monmouth University’s third biennial conference on race taking place from Thursday, November 8 through Saturday, November 10.   The conference is open to the public.

With a theme of “Access and Privilege in Higher Education,” the conference will explore subjects such as why the issues that surround race continue to be important and how systems of racial classification and identity are manifested in social institutions and relationships. Individual papers, panels, workshops and posters will focus on areas including: White Privilege in U.S. Society, Race/Gender/Class, Gender and Privilege and more. The conference is coordinated by Monmouth University Professor Julius O. Adekunle and Monmouth University Lecturer on African American History Hettie V. Williams.

Dr. R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy will give the keynote speech at the conference dinner on November 9 at 6:30 p.m. in Wilson Hall.

Dr. R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy is an assistant professor of Sociology and Black Studies at the City College of New York.  His research concentrates on issues of educational inequality, the role of race in contemporary society and gender equity. Through his writing, speaking and commentary his work analyzes some of the most pressing issues facing the African diaspora. With specializations in race and ethnic relations, his research and activism grapple with the areas of education, youth culture and public policy.  Dr. R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy’s commentary has been featured in media outlets such as U.S. World News Report, National Public Radio, Ebony, theRoot.com and the Detroit Free Press.  .

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Thursday, November 8

1:00pm – 2:15pm      Opening Ceremony. Wilson Hall Auditorium

2:30pm – 3:45pm      Panel Session 1A: Global Race Issues, Magill Commons

Chair: Maryanne Rhett – Monmouth University, “Transracial American Adoption”

David R. Papke – Marquette University Law School

“‘To Purify Ourselves From The [Sephardic-Mizrahi] Ethnic Filth:’ Shame and the Racialization of Mizrahim in Palestine/Israel, 1925-1955”

Yehuda Sharim- University of California, Los Angeles

“‘On est tout-a-fait bloqué’: Symbolic and Structural Obstacles to the Integration of Students of North African Descent in France”

Nadeen M. Thomas – City University of New York, New York, New York

Friday, November 9

10:00am – 11:15am            Roundtable Discussion – Gold, Diamonds, and Plutonium: Imperial and National Wealth in Human History, Magill Commons

6:30pm – 9:00pm     Conference Dinner and Keynote Lecture by Dr. R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy, assistant professor of Sociology and Black Studies at the City College of New York, Wilson Hall

Saturday, November 10

10:30am – 11:45am            Panel Session – Race, Pedagogy, and Predominately White Institutions of Higher Education: Challenging Assumptions, Negotiating Resistance, and Reframing Conversations, Magill Commons

Chair: Karanja Keita Carroll – SUNY, New Paltz

Michael Smith – SUNY, New Paltz

Danielle Wallace – William Paterson University

The conference is open to the public. Tickets are $100 per person or $30 dinner only. Full schedule of events and more information available at www.monmouth.edu/race/.

For more information and reservations, contact Hettie Williams at hwilliams@monmouth.edu.

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Media contact: Petra Ludwig at 732-263-5507