Cultural Conversations Series

A series of discussions regarding cultural and racial issues... CULTURAL CONVERSATIONS

story by Kimberly Brauss

Francis Marion University’s African American Faculty and Staff Coalition brings back its community discussions on ethnic understanding and diversity this fall in its effort to “stimulate and enhance cultural awareness.” “The program is a vital part of continuing the discussion of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The last two years have taught us that this is still a needed continued dialogue, amongst us all,” said Kayla Duncan, vice president of the coalition. “AAFSC and FMU want to be at the forefront of those discussions to provide researched information for individuals within our community to access and review,” Duncan said. “The motto of AAFSC is ‘together we can,’ and we feel that continuing this series annually is a way to ensure that we’re continuing that not only in the FMU community but the Florence community as a whole.” The free series will start in October with historians Dr. Erica Edwards and Dr. Louis Venters delve into “Slavery’s Legacy, Past and Future” at the FMU Performing Arts Center located at 201 S. Dargan St. in Florence. “We’ve added slotted speakers from various fields to discuss diversity, equity, and inclusion. We feel it is pertinent to discuss the fullness of how race/ ethnicity impacts various parts of individual’s lives,” Duncan said. “I’m so thrilled that we get to showcase other amazing professors here at FMU, who also share a passion for discussing diversity. The series this year will have speakers from the history departments, political science department, biology department, as well as the psychology department. Additionally, CEU(s) will be available again this year for those in the community that would like to participate in receiving them.”

CULTURAL CONVERSATION SERIES

Session 1 Speakers: Dr. Erica Edwards and Dr. Louis Venters Topic: “Slavery’s Legacy, Past and Future”

Monday, October 18

Noon to 1:30 p.m. FMU Performing Arts Center, 201 S. Dargan St., Florence

DR. ERICA EDWARDS Erica Johnson Edwards is an Associate Professor of History at Francis Marion University. She is author of Philanthropy and Race in the Haitian Revolution and co-editor of The French Revolution and Religion in Global Perspective. She has published articles in Studies in Religion and the Enlightenment, The History Teacher, Southern Quarterly, Journal of Transnational Studies, and The Journal of the Western Society for French History. She is an editor for Age of Revolutions, an open-access, peer-reviewed academic journal.

DR. LOUIS VENTERS Louis Venters began teaching at FMU in 2007. He is a co-author of the award-winning public history study, “African Americans in Camden, South Carolina (2006), No Jim Crow Church: The Origins of South Carolina’s Baha’I Community (University Press of Florida, 2015) and A History of the Baha’I Faith in South Carolina (The History Press, 2019).

(DR. LOUIS VENTERS cont'd.)

He is particularly interested in the history of race, religion, and social change in the United States, as well as issues of rural and urban planning and the intersection of cultural and environmental stewardship. A Pee Dee native, he has lived and traveled extensively in Africa, Central America, and Europe.

Session 2 Speakers: Dr. Jennifer Titanski-Hooper and Dr. Dillon Tatum Topic: “Bordering Democracy: Racial and Class Inequality in Access to Political and Public Spaces”

Thursday, November 18

Noon to 1:30 p.m. FMU Performing Arts Center, 201 S. Dargan St., Florence

DR. JENNIFER TITANSKI-HOOPER Jennifer Titanski-Hooper is an Assistant Professor of Geography at Francis Marion University. She specializes in feminist political geography with a focus on the relationships between nationalism and political economy. She has written and published on issues of identity and belonging in Croatia and is currently working on a paper examining the relationship between sports and social protests.

DR. DILLON TATUM Dillon Stone Tatum is an assistant professor of Political Science at FMU, where his research and teaching focuses on international relations and contemporary political theory. His book, Liberalism and Transformation: The Global Politics of Violence and Intervention is out this year with University of Michigan Press.

For more information and to register for the free events, visit www.fmarion.edu/aafsc.