The Material World of Modern Segregation symposium
The symposium welcomes nearly two dozen speakers from around the country to explore the urban experience of race and segregation in St. Louis, expanding on a research project led by Kolk and Bernstein in 2017.
Above Image: Circa-1930-1945 lantern slides (containing photographs, infographics, and other visual content from printed reports) assembled for use by the St. Louis’s City Plan Commission. The slides were used in presentations by the CPC to explain/advocate for various urban renewal initiatives, including land clearance and public housing projects. Photo credit: St. Louis City Planning Agencies Collection: Series 6, Missouri Historical Society
Schedule
Friday, April 11
9:00 a.m.
Welcome/Opening Remarks: Mary McKay, Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Initiatives (WashU)
9:25 a.m.
Keynote Address: Rhae Lynn Barnes (Princeton University)
10:15 a.m.
Break
10:30 a.m.
Panel 1: Boundary-Making + Breaking in the Era of Emancipation
- Kimberly Wallace-Sanders (Emory University, America + African American Studies)
- Taylor Desloge (Connecticut College, History)
- Iver Bernstein (WashU, History)
11:45 a.m.
Break
12:45 p.m.
Panel 2: Public-Private Institutions + Spaces in the 20th Century
- Joanna Dee Das (WashU, Performing Arts)
- Benjamin Looker (Saint Louis University, American Studies)
- David Cunningham + Molly Schneider (WashU, Sociology)
2:00 p.m.
Break
2:15 p.m.
Panel 3: Black Interior Life + The ‘Modern’ Black Home
- Jasmine Mahmoud (UW-Seattle, Theatre + Performance Studies)
- Michael R. Allen (West Virginia University, History)
- Rayshad Dorsey (Clemson University, Architecture)
3:30 p.m.
Break
3:45 p.m.
Panel 4: The Promises of Black Suburban Life
- Patty Heyda (WashU, Sam Fox School, College of Architecture)
- Heidi Kolk (WashU, Sam Fox School, College of Art)
- Jonathan Karp (Vanderbilt, Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities)
5:00 p.m.
Break
5:15 p.m.
Wrap-up +Looking Ahead | Open Discussion
7:00 p.m.
Dinner with Contributors (off-site)
Saturday, April 12
10:00 a.m.
Welcome and Opening Remarks
Snacks and coffee provided.
10:15 a.m.
Provocation 1: Rhae Lynn Barnes
10:30 a.m.
Reflection: Vivian Gibson (St. Louis author, “The Last Children of Mill Creek”)
11:00 a.m.
Break
11:15 a.m.
Provocation 2: Andrew Hurley (University of Missouri-St. Louis, History)
11:30 a.m.
Provocation 3: George Lipsitz (UC-Santa Barbara)
12:00 p.m.
Break
1:00 p.m.
Small Group Workshops
2:15 p.m.
Break + Debrief/Discussion
3:00 p.m.
Symposium Ends
Speakers
Keynote Speaker: Rhae Lynn Barnes (Princeton)
Rhae Lynn Barnes is an Assistant Professor of American cultural history at Princeton University and the Sheila Biddle Ford Foundation Fellow at the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. Her research interests include the globalization of American music, culture, and racial formation.
Guest Speaker: Vivian Gibson (Author, Producer and Documentarian)
Vivian Gibson, a St. Louis-based producer and documentarian, is author of The Last Children of Mill Creek and a former resident of Mill Creek Valley. She currentl leads an oral history project about Mill Creek Valley that is about more than preserving history—it’s about reclaiming it.
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Guest commenters
Andrew Hurley- University of Missouri-St. Louis
George Lipsitz- UC-Santa Barbara
Presenters
Kimberly Wallace Sanders- Emory University, American and African-American Studies
Taylor Desloge- Connecticut College, History
Iver Bernstein- WashU, History
David Cunningham and Molly Schneider- WashU, Sociology
Joanna Dee Das- WashU, Performing Arts
Benjamin Looker- Saint Louis University, American Studies
Jasmine Mahmoud- UW-Seattle, Theatre and Performance Studies
Michael R. Allen- West Virginia University, History
Rayshad Dorsey- Clemson University, Architecture
Patty Heyda- WashU, Urban Design
Gerald Early- WashU, African and African-American Studies
Jonathan Karp- Vanderbilt, Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities