Black Faces, White Spaces

Reimagining the Relationship of

 African Americans to the Great Outdoors

Carolyn Finney, PhD is a storyteller, author and a cultural geographer who is deeply interested in issues related to identity, difference, creativity, and resilience.The aim of her work is to develop greater cultural competency within environmental organizations and institutions, challenge media outlets on their representation of difference, and increase awareness of how privilege shapes who gets to speak to environmental issues and determine policy and action. Carolyn is grounded in both artistic and intellectual ways of knowing - she pursed an acting career for eleven years, but five years of backpacking trips through Africa and Asia, and living in Nepal changed the course of her life. Motivated by these experiences, Carolyn returned to school after a 15-year absence to complete a B.A., M.A. (both of these degrees focused on gender and environmental issues in Kenya and Nepal, respectively) and Ph.D. (which focused on African Americans and environmental issues in the U.S.) She has been a Fulbright Scholar, a Canon National Parks Science Scholar and received a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship in Environmental Studies.  

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 Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter who made a significant contribution to jazz music and pop singing. She was also a symbol of resilience and resistance for many African American women, as she faced and fought against racism, sexism, and addiction throughout her life. Here are some interesting facts about her that might inspire you:

• She was nicknamed “Lady Day” by her friend and musical partner, Lester Young, who also gave her a gardenia to wear in her hair. She made the flower her signature accessory and a symbol of her elegance and grace1

• She was one of the first black women to work with a white orchestra, when she toured with Artie Shaw in 1938. She faced discrimination and harassment from audiences and venue owners, but she refused to compromise her dignity and talent2

• She co-wrote and recorded “Strange Fruit” in 1939, a haunting song about the lynching of black people in the South. The song was considered too controversial and risky, but she sang it as a protest and a statement of her social conscience. It is now regarded as one of the most powerful songs in American history3

• She was a pioneer of vocal jazz, with an instinctive sense of musical structure and improvisation. She influenced many singers who came after her, such as Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, and Amy Winehouse4

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Dr. Cheryl Tawede Grills is a clinical psychologist but with a current emphasis in Community Psychology. She is Professor of Psychology at Loyola Marymount University, national past President of The Association of Black Psychologists, and founder and director of a non-profit program evaluation organization called Imoyase Community Support Services. Dr. Grills was the Co-Executive Director of the LA County Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection. Representing the 2nd Supervisorial District, she serves as a Los Angeles County Commissioner appointed by the LA County Board of Supervisors (2010) to the Sybil Brand Commission for Institutional Inspections which focuses on conditions and practices within County jails, probation and correctional facilities and group homes for children. In 2016 she became Vice-Chair of the Commission. In 2015 she joined the Leadership Council of the national anti-racism organization, Within Our Lifetime. 

Dr. Grills’ current work in the area of racial stress focuses on training associated with racism, racial stress, implicit bias and the development of community-based self-help models to address the negative effects of racism on people of African ancestry in the US and globally.  

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 Robert A. Pratt, (UGA Professor of history), for a presentation of his newest book Selma’s Bloody Sunday: Protest, Voting Rights, and the Struggle for Racial Equality.

Robert Pratt’s articles and essays have appeared in numerous journals and other publications. He is the recipient of several national fellowships and grants, including a Danforth Foundation Fellowship (1980-1984), a Spencer Foundation Grant (1990), and a Brown Foundation Fellowship (1995). Pratt also wrote The Color of Their Skin: Education and Race in Richmond, Virginia, 1954-89 (Virginia, 1992) which received an Outstanding Book Award from the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Human Rights. He is also known for his book on the desegregation of the University of Georgia, We Shall Not Be Moved: The Desegregation of the University of Georgia (U of Georgia Press, August 2002).

Sponsored by the Department of History and the Institute for African American Studies.

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