BGSU Africana Studies Conference hosts distinguished Africanist

BOWLING GREEN, O.—Obioma Nnaemeka, one of the foremost distinguished Africanists, will be the keynote speaker for Bowling Green State University’s 16th annual Africana Studies Research Conference on March 28. She is the Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of French, Women’s/Gender Studies and African/African Diaspora Studies and director of the Women’s Studies Program at Indiana University, Indianapolis, and president of the Association of African Women Scholars and president/CEO of the Jessie Obidiegwu Education Fund.

Hosted by the Africana Studies Program, the conference will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in 101 Olscamp Hall. The theme is “Emerging Perspectives in Africana Studies.” The event showcases the research and creativity of undergraduate and graduate students from Ohio and surrounding states as they address issues affecting Africana people around the world.

Presentations will take place in the morning and afternoon, with Nnaemeka’s keynote talk, “African Studies, Hegemonies and the Diaspora Question” presented during the noon luncheon.

To make reservations for the luncheon, contact Lisa Sokoloski at 419-372-7814 or sokolol@bgsu.edu. Meat and vegetarian options are available. Those wishing to come just for the free talk or presentations are welcome.

Nnaemeka has received numerous national and international awards as well as grants and fellowships from several foundations and agencies, including Rockefeller, MacArthur and Carnegie, along with others from international organizations. She is a member of the board of directors of many nongovernmental organizations.

As an expert on development, literary studies, African/African diaspora studies, women's/gender studies, human rights, peace and conflict resolution, she combines research and consultancy for the United Nations, the World Bank, UNESCO, and other agencies. She has delivered more than a hundred keynote addresses, lectures, and papers in over 60 countries on five continents.

She is the author of over 60 scholarly articles and book chapters, editor of the 10-volume “Women in Africa and the African Diaspora,” and author/editor of 13 books, including “Engendering Human Rights: Cultural and Socio-economic Realities in Africa and the African Diaspora,” “The Politics of (M)Othering: Womanhood, Identity, and Resistance in African Literature,” “Female Circumcision and the Politics of Knowledge: African Women in Imperialist Discourses,” “Sisterhood, Feminisms, and Power: From Africa to the Diaspora,” and “Women, Creativity and Dissidence.”

For more information, contact Dr. Apollos Nwauwa, director of Africana Studies, at 419-372-9483 (nwauwa@bgsu.edu) or Dr. Rebecca Skinner Green, world art and culture faculty member, at 419-372-8514 (rlgreen@bgsu.edu).