NOMMO African American Authors series

On Thursday, April 23, the NOMMO African American Authors series concludes its 2008-2009 season. Professor Alexs Pate hosts fiction writer and cultural commentator Ntozake Shange at 7:00 PM in Cowles Auditorium (located in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center.) Ntozake Shange is author of the play for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf: a choreopoem, which won an Obie and was nominated for Tony, Grammy, and Emmy awards. Shange has also published four novels, including Pen-Faulkner nominee Indigo. Her poetry collections include: A Daughter's Geography, Nappy Edges, Ridin' the Moon in Texas, and The Space Love Demands.

The Somali Refugee Experience

Getting Here From There: The Somali Refugee Experience

April 14, 2009
Time: 5:00 pm - 9:00 pm.
Location: Room 25 Mondale Hall (Law School)
Cost: Free and open to the public.

From the refugee camps of Dadaab, Kenya to Libya, Malta, and the European mainland, Somali refugees have faced and continue to face harrowing journeys as they search for a better life, journeys that include detention, discrimination, and even torture. The Somali Documentary Project is recording the stories of the Somali Diaspora as they happen, not only for historical record, but also to encourage action on important human rights issues raised by this wave of migration. Join the University of Minnesota's Human Rights Center for an evening of advocacy, discussion, and stories. Dinner will be served.

March 2009 issue of "The Village"

The latest issue of The Village is now available. The Village is a newsletter for friends and alumni of the Department of African American & African Studies.

Inside the March 2009 issue:

• welcome from the community outreach coordinator
  
• John Hope Franklin
  
• alumna Rebecca Fly
  
• teaming up to create change
  
• course spotlight
  
• faculty spotlight
  
• upcoming events
  
• quote of the month

National Public Health Week Film Festival

The National Public Health Week Film Festival will be held April 6-11, 2009. Events of Saturday, April 11, will include Public Service Announcements (PSAs) created by high school students from communities of color. The goals of these PSAs were to: (1) engage high school students from communities of color in the creation and production of video messages about a public health topic that affects their community, (2) provide student mentors from the University in the development of public messages, and (3) make available a forum at the University where participants can express their ideas about health disparities to diverse audiences.

John Hope Franklin

Historian John Hope Franklin passed away at age 94 on March 25, 2009. Professor Franklin was a pioneer in African American Studies. Duke University has set up a web site in his memory.

Muslims in Minnesota radio series

KFAI radio launched a month-long series on March 10, 2009 that explores what it means to be Muslim in Minnesota. This series compiles stories ranging from controversial to inspiring. Listeners will hear how a Muslim immigrant struggles with questions of identity, law, and faith after getting arrested for a crime and facing possible deportation. One story shows how some women are creating their own definition of feminism. Still another story asks what drives Minnesota Hip Hop artists who intertwine their faith with the pounding beats and steady rhythms of their art form. Some of the stories are produced by Muslim reporters who bring their own perspectives and insights to their work.

Muslims in Minnesota runs every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 6pm during the KFAI Evening News: 90.3FM, Minneapolis, and 106.7FM, St. Paul.

Broadcast Schedule:
March 10 - Faith in Hip Hop
March 11 – One Strike and You're Out - Facing the Criminal Justice System
March 12 – Wearing Faith on their Sleeves: Muslim Tees
March 17 - Empowered Muslim Women
March 18 - In Search of the Minnesotan Muslim
March 19 - Muslim Immigrants Learn English
March 24 - Music and Sufi Islam in the Twin Cities
March 25 - Muslim Burial Traditions
March 26 - The Line Between Mosque and State

The Muslims in Minnesota series is produced in cooperation with the University of Minnesota's Meeting Minnesota's Muslims initiative.

auction of first African American comic book

The first comic book by and for African Americans is up for auction. 1947's All-Negro Comics No. 1 is for sale by comics entrepreneur Stephen Fishler. The comic book &mdash featuring characters such as detective Ace Harlem and Hep Chicks on Parade &mdash is for sale online at the ComicConnect Event Auction.