Stony Brook University Africana Studies Department

10/24/2026

On Aug. 6, 1972, legendary filmmaker William Greaves invited roughly two dozen Harlem Renaissance luminaries to Duke Ellington’s apartment on Riverside Drive. He threw a cocktail party for the aging artists, writers and intellectuals, with an unusual request: He wanted to film their lively conversations and have several of them return the next day for one-on-one interviews.

Some of the attendees hadn't seen each other since the 1920s. Greaves ended up with 60,000 feet of 16 mm film capturing their reflections on what it was like to be part of such an influential artistic movement. He worked on the film for the remainder of his life, editing short segments and filming some additional B-roll, but died in 2014 without ever completing the project.

https://gothamist.visitlink.me/5-oUxo

10/16/2026

Richard B. Moore is a highlight …

10/11/2026

Wow

A Black MIT professor is accusing the university of punishing him for his pro-Palestinian activism after rejecting his proposed course and removing him from its linguistics department.

Michel DeGraff, a tenured professor who has taught at MIT since 1996, proposed a course exploring language, liberation and connections between Palestine and Haiti.

MIT rejected the course, citing questions about his qualifications to teach it. DeGraff pushed back publicly, calling the decision part of a “new McCarthyism.”

The university later sanctioned him over allegations of disruptive conduct and violations of school procedures, reassigning him to a “faculty at large” position.

DeGraff says he has been denied a scheduled raise, access to new mentees and teaching opportunities.

He has filed a federal lawsuit accusing MIT of violating his academic freedom and punishing his political activism. MIT denies the allegations.

The dispute has also involved accusations of antisemitic harassment from a former student, which DeGraff denies. Claims against him in that student's lawsuit were dismissed, though appeals remain possible.

Source: New York Times

10/09/2026

Sharing a few moments from a wonderful afternoon of art, conversation, and community! 📸✨

Thank you to everyone who joined Stony Brook’s Department of Africana Studies on September 30 for Noel W. Anderson’s talk on Black Excellence in the Richard B. Moore Library.

Special thanks to Noel for sharing his work and insights, to Dr. Rita Nezami for introducing him, and to the Zuccaire Gallery for co-sponsoring this event. We’re grateful to the students, faculty, staff, and friends who made the afternoon so special.

Your presence and curiosity bring Africana Studies to life. Africana Studies is for everyone! 🖤❤️

10/06/2026

📚 Happening TODAY at Stony Brook!

We’re pleased to share today’s interdisciplinary roundtable presented by The Humanities Institute at Stony Brook (HISB):

“Beyond Boundaries: Translation as Research and Practice”

The conversation brings together faculty from across Stony Brook to consider how translation functions across disciplines—as research, methodology, and practice.

We’re especially proud to see Africana Studies represented by Rita Nezami alongside Simone Brioni, Nancy Hiemstra, Valentina Moro, and Eriko Sato, with Loredana Polezzi serving as respondent.

📅 TODAY — Tuesday, October 6
⏰ 12:30–1:50 PM
📍 1008 Humanities

Come out and support this important interdisciplinary conversation! Humanities Institute at Stony Brook University Stony Brook University The Center for Italian Studies

TranslationStudies InterdisciplinaryResearch SBU

10/05/2026

The conference may have come to a close, but the work of Black history does not stop when we leave Norfolk. As we move into October, carry the conversations, connections, and history from the 111th Annual Meeting & Conference into the year ahead. For more than a century, ASALH has carried forward the work Carter G. Woodson began in 1915: studying, preserving, teaching, and advancing Black history.

There is a place for you in that work.

GENERAL MEMBERSHIP
Stay connected to ASALH’s programs, educational opportunities, resources, and national community of people committed to Black history.

LIFE MEMBERSHIP
Make a lasting commitment to the organization Woodson founded and help sustain the work of Black history for generations to come.

INSTITUTIONAL MEMBERSHIP
Bring ASALH’s mission into your school, library, museum, college, university, cultural organization, or community institution.

Renew or join this October. Memberships renewed after October 1 apply to the next full membership year.

Join ASALH and help keep Black history studied, taught, preserved, and remembered.