Hundreds of visitors, historians and luminaries will gather in Montgomery this week for a three-day national summit focused on Black health and wellness and the impact of racial disparities throughout American history.
The Association for the Study of African American Life and History will hold its first in-person conference since the start of the pandemic starting Sept. 29 at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel and Convention Center. Featured speakers include Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan Stevenson; Deirdre Cooper Owens, author of “Medical Bondage: Race, Gender and the Origins of American Gynecology”; Montgomery artist and The Mothers of Gynecology sculptor Michelle Browder; author and educator Stephanie Y. Evans; and Kimberly Jeffries Leonard, immediate past president of women’s service organization The Links Inc.
The conference will also feature a session led by Alabama musician Fred Wesley and educator Scot Brown called “Remembering the Roots of Funk: An Oral History” as well as several presentation on Alabama culture and history, including one titled “Southern State Legislation 2022: The Panic Over Critical Race Theory and the Future of Academic Freedom.” The latter panel will feature Alabama State University professor Darren E. Moten joined by a group of scholars from Florida, Virginia, Mississippi and Alabama to discuss efforts to limit the teaching of African American history.
A discussion of the book Justice Deferred: Race and the Supreme Court will feature authors Orville Vernon Burton and Armand Derfner, who will be a joined by a panel including famed civil rights attorney Fred Gray and former ASALH President Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. Other events and discussions include a film festival, a discussion of the past and future of the Black Belt, there will be a film festival and plans to visit historic sites in Selma and Tuskegee.
You can see the full schedule at https://asalh.org/conference.
“The theme … is also a historical examination of the financial and economic health and wellness of African Americans,” ASALH President W. Marvin Dulaney said in a release. “Broadening and expanding the theme to address what some historians and health care professionals call the ‘social and economic determinants’ of health and wellness allows us to show the interconnectedness of a number of historical, social and economic factors on Black health and wellness.”
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Browder plans to unveil what she called an “extreme” new piece Oct. 1 at the site here where J. Marion Sims once conducted medical experiments on slaves, and where she’ll also announce wider expansion plans in downtown Montgomery.
A Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce spokesperson said more than 500 people are expected to travel here for the summit.
Brad Harper covers business and local government for the Montgomery Advertiser. Contact him atbharper1@gannett.com.