"One Drop of Blood: The American Misadventure of Race" Thursday, September 6, 2001 4:00 p.m. Hall Auditorium

Scott Malcomson's book, One Drop of Blood: The American Misadventure of
Race, explores the creation and maintenance of American attitudes about
race. This highly acclaimed work examines how Americans pioneered the
notion of race, and gave it unprecedented moral and social importance.
Malcolmson's traces a journey through our racial landscape, examining the
past, present and future through history, literature and memoir. Critics
describe One Drop of Blood as "impressive, complex, disturbing, and
provocative, yielding startling new insights into our past and our
present." Mr. Malcolm's is the author of three books, and numerous
articles.

"The Role of Women in Mexico" Thursday, September 20, 2001 7:00 p.m. Hall Auditorium

Elena Poniatowska is one of Mexico's most widely translated and celebrated
living writers. Her work demonstrates a profound commitment to giving
voice to those who have been marginalized and silenced. Poniatowska began
her literary career as a journalist with the daily Excelsior in 1953, and
has since been contributing articles, essays and chronicles to other major
Mexican newspapers, and has written over 25 books. She has lectured
widely in Mexico and the United States, and has served as a visiting
professor at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and Berkeley, among others. Elena
Poniatowska is the 2001 recipient of the Alfaguara Literature Prize for her
novel La piel del cielo (Heaven's Skin). She twice receive the national award for journalism.

Elena Poniatowska has been invited as part of the Sor Juana celebration,
on the 350th anniversary of Sor Juana's birth. Sor Juana was Mexico's
most distinguished 17th century Baroque poet and playwright.

"A 'One America' Dialogue" Thursday, October 4, 2001 4:00 p.m. Williams Hall Television Studio

William Leftwich will conduct a "One America" Dialogue with members of the Miami community. These dialogues were originally designed for President Clinton's Initiative on Race; they consist of conversations designed to serve as a catalyst to bring a diverse community together. Leftwich notes "we might not be able to be a family, but we have to be family-like. We're a success when we can get a diverse group of people in a room to start a conversation, realizing the intent is not to solve all the problems, but to begin to share the concerns and gain a better understanding and appreciation for the person across the table." William Leftwich has received letters of recognition and appreciation from President Clinton and Secretary William Cohen for his contributions to the President's Initiative on Race. He is the recipient of the 1995 Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks Distinguished Award from the NAACP. William Leftwich currently is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Equal
Opportunity.

"Zambia's Role in Peacemaking in Africa: The cases of Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo" Thursday, October 18, 2001

Prior to his current appointment, Mr. Musambachime served as Head of the History Department at the University of Namibia from 1998. He was also Full Professor within the same department from 1997.

For over two decades, from 1974 to 1997, Mr. Musambachime served in several capacities at the University of Zambia. He was Associate Professor and Director, Research and Graduate Studies, from 1996 to 1997, and Associate Professor in History from 1993 to 1997.

Mr. Musambachime also served as Director, Institute of Human Relations (1991-1994) and Dean, Faculty of Education (1985-1988). From 1974 to 1985, he held several positions within the History Department.

Mr. Musambachime holds a Ph.D. in History and Agricultural Economics from the University of Wisconsin. He received a Master of Arts from the University of Wisconsin and Bachelor of Arts with merit, from the University of Zambia.

Publications:
He is the author of four books, 22 chapters in edited books, 70 articles published in journals in the U.S., U.K., Africa and Europe, 20 book reviews, and author of more than 90 unpublished papers.

Ambassador Musambachime was Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at Miami University from August 1984- June 1985. Mr. Musambachime has also been a visiting scholar and visiting research fellow at a number of universities worldwide, including Centre for African Studies, University of Cape Town, South Africa, University of Burundi, Bujumbura, Burundi, Universities in Paris, Bordeaux and Pau.

His awards include:
May 1999: Schwelien visiting scholar to Universities in Basel, Switzerland and Friebourg, Germany.

1994: Swedish scholarship: visiting scholar to Uppsala University, Sweden.

1991: MacArthur Scholar, Program in International Cooperation in Africa, Program in African studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

1975-1981: Special Research Fellow, University of Zambia, Zambia.

1975: Staff Development Fellow, University of Zambia.

Personal:
He is married with four children (including his son Mwape who currently is here with him -- many of you may remember him as a four-year-old when his father was here at Miami University) and three grandchildren.

Dr. Fisher Fishkin is professor of American Studies and English at
University of Texas, Austin. She has written extensively about racial
issues and edited many new editions of works by Mark Twain. She serves as
President of the Mark Twain Circle of America and was interviewed for and
serves as consultant on Ken Burns Film "Mark Twain," to be aired 2001.

"Music and Peacemaking" Thursday, November 15, 2001 7:30 p.m. Hall Auditorium

So far, even the most beautiful music hasn't been able to end war, yet all
over the world people are using music and the other arts to build bridges
between communities, to stretch the imagination around new possibilities,
and to encourage reflection about abiding human problems. These are
time-honored roles for music, going beyond entertainment and enrichment.
This talk will use musical examples and personal experiences with musical
projects at the Oregon Bach festival, Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music,
and Pacific Serenades to explore the use of music and musical projects to
foster understanding, respect, common purpose and other prerequisites for
peace between people. John Steinmetz is an innovative performer-composer,
a designer of new approaches to concert-giving, a consultant to computer
and record companies, and an essayist whose topics range from innovative
curricula to the predicament of concert music America.

A Talk with the Founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock Monday, January 28, 2002 11:00 a.m. Shriver Center MPR-B

Bernice Johnson Reagon --scholar, composer, singer and activist -- is Curator Emerita at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, Distinguished Professor of History at American University, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock and for 23 years, the artistic director of the group. Her publications include Voices of the Civil right Movement: African American Freedom Songs -- 1960-1965, a landmark collection by mithsonian/Folkways Recordings and We'll Understand It Better By and By: African American Pioneering Gospel Composers, published by the Smithsonian Institution Press. She has served as consultant, composer, and performer for several films and video projects including two award-winning programs for PBS, Eyes on the Prize and We Shall Overcome. Reagon served as principal scholar, conceptual producer and host of the pathbreaking radio series Wade in the Water: African American Sacred Music Traditions, and as composer and compiler of the sound for the Africans in America film series.

The Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit's National Touring Company is
returning by popular demand to present 2001 Hastings St. A swinging,
swing dancing re-imagining of life in the teenagers themselves in the Hasting St. area Detroit in the 1940s. Artistic director Rick Sperling notes the young actors "found stories that could really come alive: to portray the coming of age in Detroit's "Black Bottom" neighborhood. Founded in 1992, the internationally recognized and award-winning Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit is a multicultural arts organization whose mission has been to develop young theatre artists through comprehensive theatrical and to provide high quality performances for audiences of all ages. In 2001, Mosaic completed an Artistic Residency in Singapore, and a critically acclaimed European Tour of theatrical and concert performances.

"Making a Multicultural American: Beyond Race, Gender and Class" Monday, February 11, 2002 7:00 p.m. Wilks Conference Center - Hamilton campus

Manning Marable is one of America's most influential historians and political interpreters of the black experience. He is perhaps the most widely read intellectual within the African American community. Since 1976, he has written "Along the Color Line," a syndicated political affairs series that appears regularly in over 400 black-owned and black-oriented mass publications. Dr. Marable has been Professor of History and Political Science at Columbia University, where he also serves as the founding Director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies. Dr. Marable has authored nearly 20 books and anthologies, including Let Nobody Turn Us Around: Voices of Resistance, Reform and Renewal; Dispatches for the Ebony Tower: Intellectuals Confront the African American Experience; and Speaking Truth to Power.

Joanne Shenandoah

Wednesday, February 27, 2002 7:00 p.m. Hall Auditorium, Oxford Campus

Joanne Shenandoah is an award winning Native American composer, vocalist and performer. She is a Wolf Clan member of the Iroquois Confederacy ­ Oneida Nation. Her original compositions combined with a striking voice enable her to embellish the ancient songs of the Iroquois using a blend of traditional and contemporary instrumentation. Ms. Shenandoah’s music reflects the indigenous philosophy and culture which continues to have a profound effect on the world today. From traditional chants to contemporary ballads about Native ways, her music has been described as an emotional experience, a “Native American trance.” Joanne Shenandoah works tirelessly to protect and preserve Iroquois culture. She and her husband Doug George-Kanentiio founded Round Dance Productions as the largest archive of Iroquois music. Joanne is an outspoken advocate for the preservation of Iroquois values and traditional laws and governance. Joanne Shenandoah will also be the keynote speaker for the Women of Color Celebration on March 1, 11:00 am, Shriver Center, Oxford campus. Tickets for the Women of Color Celebration are available at the MU Box Office in Shriver Center, (513) 529-3200

“More than 120,000 Japanese American were interned behind barbed wire
during World War II. . .over half were children.” Satsuki Ina’s The
Children of the Camps documentary film captures the painful experiences
endured by six Americans of Japanese ancestry who were confined as
innocent children to internment camps by the U.S. government during World
War II. They speak honestly about internment and its continuing impact on
their lives today. This documentary is both a lesson in history and a
view of contemporary issues that sheds light on the real impact of racism
and the consequences of growing up as a scapegoated minority member. This presentation will include a screening of The Children of the Camps,
followed by comments from Dr. Ina and a question/answer discussion
session. Satsuki Ina, who was born in the Tule Lake internment camp, is
the Producer/Project Director of the documentary and a licensed marriage
and family therapist. She is the founder of the Family Study Center, a
community agency dedicated to providing community counseling services and post-graduate clinical training for marriage, family and child counselors.
Dr. Ina is currently a Professor in the Department of Counselor Education
in the School of Education at California State University, Sacramento.

"Mean Stories and Stubborn Girls: A Litany for the Living" Thursday, April 11, 2002 4:00 p.m. Hall Auditorium, Oxford Campus 288

Dorothy Allison is a lesbian feminist activist and noted author of Bastard
Out of Carolina, Cavedweller, and Two or Three Things I Know for Sure.
Her stories masterfully hark back to the brutality of her childhood in the
rural South and the women who loved and tried to protect her from her
violent stepfather. She strives to understand the struggles of women
trying to make their way in the working class South. “I write who I can
write—people I can understand. I can understand deeply wounded, hidden kinds of girls.” The first of her family to graduate from high school,
Allison went on to receive her master’s degree from New York’s School of Social Research. She credits emerging feminism with much of her
redemption. “Her refusal to pay lip service to the status quo is perhaps
her greatest gift ­ especially for those who have felt society’s contempt
because they are lower class or somehow different or queer” (Curve
Magazine).