A Day of Collective Engagement: Racism and Antiracism, Our Realities and Our Roles

Opening Remarks:

Robert A. Brown
President

Jean Morrison
University Provost and Chief Academic Officer

Opening Plenary:

A discussion among four scholars whose expertise, disciplinary perspectives, and insights will help unpack the complex and pernicious history of racism and how and where it manifests in contemporary society.

Ibram X. Kendi (Moderator)
Professor of History (as of July 1, 2020), Founder, BU Center for Antiracist Research

Paula Austin
Assistant Professor of History and African American Studies

Louis Chude-Sokei
Professor of English, George and Joyce Wein Chair in African American Studies, Director of the African American Studies Program

Saida Grundy
Assistant Professor of Sociology and African American Studies

This panel of leaders from across the University will explore the haphazard/difficult/uncertain journey to becoming an ally; in what way humility and curiosity play roles in allyship; discuss the mistakes they’ve made along the way, what they’ve learned from those mistakes, and how they’ve grown from them; and strategies for how to successfully leverage one’s own privilege on behalf of creating more equitable practices, policies, and cultures.

Carrie Preston (Moderator)
Professor of English and Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, Arvind & Chandan Nandlal Kilachand Professor, Director, Kilachand Honors College

Emelia Benjamin
Professor, School of Medicine, Assistant Provost for Faculty Development for the Boston University Medical Campus; and Vice Chair for Faculty Development and Diversity for the Department of Medicine

Ken Freeman
Interim Vice President for Human Resources; Dean emeritus and Professor of the Practice, Questrom School of Business

Kim McCall
Professor and Chair of the Department of Biology

Stan Sclaroff
Dean of Arts & Sciences, Professor of Computer Science

This panel will feature a discussion of the psychological and physiological effects of racism and exclusion. Panelists will discuss racism and exclusion as chronic stressors that affect individuals’ biological, psychological, and social functioning across the lifespan, including the mechanisms through which racism is linked to disparities in health outcomes.

Kristin Long (Moderator)
Assistant Professor, Psychological & Brain Sciences, Boston University

Donte Bernard
Postdoctoral Scholar, Medical University of South Carolina

Tessa Dover
Assistant Professor, Portland State University

Karin Schon
Assistant Professor, Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University

Despite the laudable ideals expressed by this nation’s founders, the United States has been built on violence against people of color since the first European colonists arrived on the shores of this country. Over the course of this nation’s history, laws have routinely been written, enacted, and interpreted by those in power in ways that have enabled and legitimated continued violence against people of color, and reinforced the status quo. In this discussion, we will examine how US legal doctrine has helped to perpetuate violence against people of color and continues to do so, to this day.

Angela Onwuachi-Willig (Moderator)
Dean of the School of Law; Professor of Law

Gerald Leonard
Professor of Law

Tracey Maclin
Professor of Law

Karen Pita Loor
Associate Dean for Experiential Education; Clinical Associate Professor of Law

David Rossman
Director Criminal Law Clinics Program; Professor of Law

Hear from BU faculty, across disciplines, whose research investigates racism, antiracism, racial inequity, and racial injustice. Closed captions will be available. Welcome by Gloria Waters, Vice President and Associate Provost for Research.

Welcome

Gloria Waters
Vice President and Associate Provost for Research

Presentations

Poverty and Race in Prisons: Stories of Hope and Despair

André de Quadros
MEd, EdD, Professor of Music, CFA

Black Preterm Birth Rate(s) Through a Public Health Critical Race Lens

Candice Belanoff
ScD, MPH, Clinical Associate Professor, SPH

Troubling The Natural: Toward Anti-Oppression Vocal Pedagogies

Christine Hamel
MFA, GPC, Assistant Professor, Voice & Acting, CFA

Does This Happen To Everyone?: Women Professors of Color Reflect on Experiences in the Academy, a Duoethnography

Christine Leider
PhD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Wheelock

Christina Dobbs
EdD, MEd, Assistant Professor, Wheelock

Framing and its Potential for Detecting Biases in Communicating Text

Derry Wijaya
PhD, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, CAS

Confronting Racism and Mass Incarceration

Jessica Simes
PhD, Assistant Professor, Sociology, CAS

Letters of King Afonso I of Kongo (1506-1542)

John Thornton
PhD, Professor, African American Studies & History, Director of Graduate Studies, CAS

How Affirmative Action Myths Mask White Bonus

Jonathan Feingold
JD, Associate Professor, LAW

The Boss is Watching: How Monitoring Decisions Hurt Black Workers

Kevin Lang, PhD
Professor, Economics, CAS

Racism and Violence in Comparative Perspective: Lessons from Rwanda

Timothy Longman
PhD, Associate Professor, Political Science, CAS

We hope to garner the wisdom of faith traditions and clergy who are interested in addressing the violence of racism in American society. Participants will share their views as religious practitioners from the perspective of their faith traditions.

Rady Roldán-Figueroa
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Associate Professor of the History of Christianity, School of Theology

Rev. Milagro Grullon
Pastor of Community Christian Fellowship-Lawrence and Secretary of the Board of AMEDAL (Associación Ministerial Evangelica del Area de Lawrence)

Rev. Jordan Harris
Pastor of Connexion, United Methodist Church

Imam Asif Hirani
Resident Scholar of Worcester Islamic Center in Massachusetts

Rabbi Elie Lehmann
Jewish Chaplain at Boston University and Campus Rabbi for BU Hillel

Rev. Daryl Paul Lobban
Director of Justice and Advocacy for the Episcopal Diocese of Washington; Senior Fellow for the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute; and on the pastoral staff of the Mt. Olive Baptist Church, Arlington, VA

A conversation exploring the daily practice of arts and activism, ongoing initiatives that celebrate Black and Diasporic culture, and the importance of creating opportunities for our community to experience the stories of underrepresented populations.

Harvey Young
Dean, College of Fine Arts

Ty Furman
Managing Director of the BU Arts Initiative

Alumni will share their varied experiences about racism and antiracism on BU campus through the decades. Hear their stories and hopes for a more diverse and unified BU.

Anthony Harrison (Moderator)
(COM’81)

Joel Gill
(CFA’04)

Pauline Jennett
(STH’05, Wheelock’17)

Ina Joseph
(COM’20)

Jonathan Priester
(COM’10)

D.A. Whatley
(Questrom’15)

Structural racism contributes to significantly higher morbidity and mortality for people of color. Research has also demonstrated that healthcare providers exacerbate these disparities by providing racially biased treatment. Join this panel of clinicians to discuss racism within health care and how clinicians can incorporate the practice of racial justice into their work.

Shelly Debiasse (Moderator)
Program Director, Nutrition, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Health Sciences, College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College

David Coleman
Wade Professor, School of Medicine; Chair of Medicine, School of Medicine

Laura Driscoll
Director of Faculty Diversity and Inclusion; Clinical Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy, College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College

Samantha Kaplan
Assistant Dean, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, School of Medicine; Assistant Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, School of Medicine

Cassandra Pierre
Assistant Professor, School of Medicine; Medical Director of Public Health Programs, Infectious Diseases, Medicine, Boston Medical Center Associate Hospital Epidemiologist, Infectious Diseases, Medicine, Boston Medical Center

We’re Sorry. The video for this session is unavailable and will not be posted.

Inclusive Pedagogy refers to a network of pedagogical issues and strategies that center or learner outcomes and equal access. Advocates of Decolonizing the Curriculum recognize that university knowledge systems remain rooted in colonial and Western-centric worldviews and encourage faculty to alter and expand these ways of producing knowledge. Panelists will discuss how they have made inroads in their curriculum regarding Inclusive Pedagogy and Decolonizing the Curriculum.

Karin Hendricks, (Moderator)
Associate Professor of Music and Chair, Music Education, College of Fine Arts

Yvette Cozier
Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion and Associate Professor of Epidemiology, School of Public Health

Davena Jackson
Clinical Assistant Professor of English Education Wheelock College of Education & Human Development

Takeo Rivera
Assistant Professor in English and core member of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, College of Arts & Sciences

Lisa Sullivan
Associate Dean for Education and Professor of Biostatistics, School of Public Health

Megan Sullivan
Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning, College of General Studies

Continuing the Conversation: Building the Inclusive Classroom, Faculty-Focused Lightning Talk

Hosted by Digital Learning & Innovation and the Center for Teaching & Learning

*This session is intended for faculty, graduate students, and teaching fellows.*

Inclusive learning environments promote connectivity and growth while creating experiences and spaces for all learners to thrive. The faculty panel from campus-wide diversity, equity, and inclusion spaces will discuss the remote teaching and learning landscape and offer a variety of inclusive teaching strategies.

We’re Sorry. The video for this session is unavailable and will not be posted.

There are multiple individuals at BU who are formally charged with overseeing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. This conversation will focus on their work and strategies, the opportunities they see as being possible at BU, common challenges, and the ways in which faculty, staff, and students can be effective partners. Closed captions will be available.

Crystal Williams (Moderator)
Associate Provost for Diversity & Inclusion; Professor of English, College of Arts & Sciences.

Tiffany Enos
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Questrom School of Business

Rady Roldán-Figueroa
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Associate Professor of the History of Christianity, School of Theology

We’re Sorry. The video for this session is unavailable and will not be posted.

We describe antiracist and advocacy practices that can be undertaken outside the academy much of it involving partnerships with communities as well as with non-governmental and governmental organizations to influence and change racist programs and policies that largely impact some of the most disenfranchised communities in our society.

Jorge Delva (Moderator)
Dean, SSW, and Director and Paul Farmer Professor CISWH

Douglas Luke
SSW Director of Finance and Administration

Dawn Belkin Martinez
Clinical Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Equity & Inclusion, School of Social Work

Linda Sprague Martinez
Associate Professor and Chair of the Macro Department, School of Social Work

Judith Scott
Assistant Professor, School of Social Work

We’re Sorry. The video for this session is unavailable and will not be posted.

The Initiative on Cities, in collaboration with the Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground, hosts a discussion on the ways BU can nurture and inspire a generation of leaders on racial, social, and criminal justice issues. Panelists will discuss areas where BU must improve, and how BU faculty, students, and staff can make a difference through the classroom, practicums, volunteering, activism, campaigning, convenings, and research.

Cati Connell (Moderator)
Associate Professor and Director of We Gender & Sexuality Studies

Andre de Quadros
Professor of Music; College of Fine Arts

Jessica Hamilton
Master of Divinity Student at STH and Graduate Intern at the Howard Thurman Center

Spencer Piston
Assistant Professor of Political Science

Sarah Sherman-Stokes
Associate Director of the Immigrants’ Rights & Human Trafficking Clinic and Lecturer and Clinical Instructor, School of Law

We’re Sorry. The video for this session is unavailable and will not be posted.