Department of African American Studies Archives

Northeastern's annual observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday will examine voting rights. A high-stakes legislative chess match is taking place on Capitol Hill over the issue. Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via AP Images

Voting rights take center stage on Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Nearly six decades after King lobbied for the rights of Black people to cast a vote, the issue of voting rights returns to command the nation’s attention. Northeastern’s MLK observance will feature a keynote address by a senior Justice Department attorney on the steps the agency is taking to protect and promote the right to vote.

by Peter Ramjug January 13, 2022

Northeastern professor Regine Jean-Charles had two goals in mind with her new book on Martin Luther King -- to encourage people to think beyond the

The links between Martin Luther King, Black Lives Matter, and #MeToo

A new book by Régine Jean-Charles, a Black feminist literary scholar and Africana studies professor at Northeastern, was born out of a desire to reimagine how people remember, memorialize, and learn from Martin Luther King’s teachings.

by Peter Ramjug October 29, 2021

Northeastern to mark the significance of the Juneteenth holiday with these events

In-person and virtual experiences June 16-18 will bring the university community together in celebration of the end of slavery in the United States.

by Peter Ramjug June 15, 2021

The Nobel laureate and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison was the keynote speaker at a 2013 event honoring the legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. that was sponsored by the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project of the Northeastern University School of Law in collaboration with the Northeastern University Humanities Center. Photo by Mary Knox Merrill/Northeastern University

Toni Morrison ‘has done for the modern novel what Shakespeare did for theater’

When world-renowned author Toni Morrison visited Northeastern University’s Boston campus in 2013, she told the audience that the quiet force of goodness—a force often overlooked—was more powerful than violence or hatred. The Nobel laureate and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist died on Monday, Aug. 5, leaving behind whole generations that were inspired by her work—a legacy of goodness.

by Molly Callahan August 6, 2019

Photo by Adam Glanzman/Northeastern University

Northeastern celebrates 50 years of the John D. O'Bryant African American Institute

A commitment to inspiring students toward excellence, success, and service. A model for inclusiveness on Northeastern’s campus. A “home away from home” for students. This was how members of the Northeastern community described the impact the institute has had on students and the broader university community over the past 50 years.

by Greg St. Martin November 10, 2018

04/06/16 - BOSTON, MA. - Scenes during the Zika virus discussion held in 909 Renaissance Park at Northeastern University on April 6, 2016. Panelists included, Brook K. Baker, JD Professor of Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, School of Law, Alessandro Vespignani, PhD Sternberg Family Distinguished University Professor, Department of Physics, College of Science, and Richard Wamai, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of African American Studies, College of Social Sciences and Humanities. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University

Northeastern researchers examine the Zika pandemic

As the Zika virus continues its inexorable spread, a panel of faculty members discussed how they—and by extension we—can be part of the global solution.

by Thea Singer April 11, 2016