Conference on Pan-Africanism, April 16-21

"Women and the Africana World" is the topic of the second annual Knox College conference on Pan-Africanism. Knox College will present a series of speakers and events during the conference, April 16 ? 21, on the Knox campus. All events are free and open to the public.

According to Eric Edi, conference organizer and visiting assistant professor of Black Studies at Knox, the large number of students writing about Black women in two different African studies classes [Intro to Africa Studies and History of Modern Africa] played a part in selecting the conference's theme. "The students' papers focused on the victimization of women instead of recognizing those women becoming proactive in their own stories," Edi says. "Women in impoverished countries with expectations in conflict resolution are reinventing their space." The closely fought democratic election of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the first woman president in Africa, also inspired this year's theme.

The conference will feature keynote speaker Cora Presley, associate professor of African-American studies at Georgia State University.  Presley is the author of two books Mau Mau's Daughter: A Life History co-authored by Wambui Otieno and Kikuyu Women, The Mau Mau Rebellion and Social Change in Kenya. She has presented a number of talks to university, community, public, and private school audiences on African culture and society; women and children under apartheid; the civil rights movement; and Kikuyu women and missionaries, to name a few.

Entertainers will include the Knox Jazz Combo and Pocomania Jamaican Dance Company.

Students who have conducted research on women's issues will present their findings on Saturday. Session moderators will include Edi and several Knox student moderators: Chris Guthrie, Emily Putnam, Brian Chung, Alice Lema, Valerie Morris, and Katrina Daoudi.

In addition to the students, faculty, and staff, the Galesburg community is invited to join in the cultural exchange at Knox. Last year's inaugural conference was attended by the Knox College and Galesburg communities. This year, organizers, who Edi admits are deliberate in their planning, have invited the Associated Colleges of the Midwest schools. "We are in the initial stage and do not want to expand too fast," he says. "Quality is the key. We love the level of participation and involvement."

Conference schedule:

Monday April 16?Thursday April 19, 2007
Kresge Recital Hall, Center for Fine Arts (CFA)
7:30 p.m.: Movie Showcase

Friday April 20, 2007
Lincoln Room, Seymour Union
5:00 p.m.: Jazz Combo
5:30 p.m.: Welcoming Address
  Dr. Konrad Hamilton, Associate Professor of History, Co-Chair of Black Studies Program
5:40 p.m.:  "Women and the Africana World"
   Dr. Eric Edi, Assistant Professor of Black Studies, Conference Chair
6:15 p.m.: "African-American Women in the Civil Rights Movements"
   Dr. Frederick L. Hord, Director of the African American Cultural Center, North Carolina State University, Director of the National Association of Black Cultural Centers

Saturday April 21, 2007
Ferris Lounge, Seymour Union
9:30 a.m.: Knox College Jazz Combo
  Student Poetry
10:00 a.m.: Round Table Discussion
   Dr. Magali Roy-Fequiere, Associate Professor of Gender & Women's Studies, Co-Chair of Black Studies Program
10:45 a.m.: Break
11:00 a.m.: "Women and the Africana World"
   Dr. Eric Edi, Assistant Professor of Black Studies, Conference Chair   
11:45 a.m.: Break
12:00 p.m.: Student Presentations
1:00 p.m.: Break
1:15 p.m.: Luncheon and Keynote Address
   "Liberation Narrative of African Women: The Cases of Winnie Mandela and Wambui Utieno"
   Dr. Cora Presley, Georgia State University

Kresge Recital Hall, Center for the Fine Arts (CFA)
4-6 p.m.: Cultural Performances featuring the Pocomania Jamaican Dance Company