MEDIA CONTACT: Wendy Leopold at (847) 491-4890 or w-leopold@northwestern.edu

September 30, 2003

University Is Host to African Diaspora Conference

EVANSTON, Ill. --- Subjects as diverse as hip hop music, the struggle for racial reparations, African tourism, and rites of passage for African American girls will be explored from Thursday, Oct. 2, through Saturday, Oct 4, at Northwestern University.

The lectures and panel discussions are part of the second biannual conference of the Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora (ASWAD) that is attracting scholars of Africa and African descent from around the world to the three-day gathering at Norris University Center, 1999 Campus Drive, on the University’s Evanston campus.

Northwestern President Henry S. Bienen will welcome conference visitors at 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2. His remarks will be followed by those of Richard Joseph, director of Northwestern’s Program of African Studies that is sponsoring the event with Smith College.

“Politics, history, religion, literature and other seemingly unrelated topics are united by their abiding ties between persons of African descent and their ancestral continent,” said Joseph. “Visitors will get an introduction to the varied scholarship underway on the far-flung communities of African peoples.”

In a keynote address at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 2, Joseph will discuss ways that the African Diaspora can more effectively address the severe economic, social and political problems facing the African continent today.

For a complete program schedule or further information, contact Alex Gillies at (847) 491-2596 or visit the ASWAD Web site at http://www.aswadiaspora.org/home.html