I’ve had some tremendous educational experiences in my life — and some of my favorites happened because a guest speaker came to a university at the exact moment their work felt relevant to the world. That’s exactly what’s happening at Rutgers-Camden this Thursday. Nikole Hannah-Jones, who coordinated and was a lead author on the 1619 Project, is speaking at Rutgers.

Here’s the link. (1)

Because the event is on Zoom, anyone can attend and there’s no caps — so sign up!

It’s a particularly interesting moment to see Hannah-Jones speak. Here are my thoughts from when I saw her last year at the Penn Law School (2) — where she was incredible, but when her work was in its honeymoon stage. It’s now become highly politicized and attacked, including directly by the president — so much so that I find myself asking folks who are criticizing it, have you read it? 

In particular, there has been a lot of discussion about the idea that the nation was “founded” in 1619 through the bringing of slavery here — something that Nikole Hannah-Jones has herself tweeted or said, but something that’s contested as being central to the 1619 project. 

It’s the ideal moment to have such a powerful speaker addressing race issues, and I’m proud of Rutgers for bringing her in. See to you there (well, virtually)!

1: https://rcit.rutgers.edu/apps/payment/register.php?event_id=531

2: https://danley.camden.rutgers.edu/2019/10/01/slavery-segregation-and-where-these-critiques-take-us/