Learn more about Left of Black here: https://fhi.duke.edu/programs/left-black

Left of Black embarks on its twelfth season, amid the pandemic, to bring you conversations with the foremost minds in Black Studies from across academia and beyond.

This week, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal is joined by one of the foremost public scholars of our time: Dr. Michael Eric Dyson! Prof. Dyson discusses his latest publication, "Entertaining Race: Performing Blackness in America," which looks at the daily performativity of Blackness. From our brightest Black performers & artists to the those of us occupying the everyday grind of American life, those of African descent have long contended with the demands of white society to repeatedly demonstrate and affirm their humanity.

Learn more about Dr. Dyson here: http://michaelericdysonlegacy.com/

You can find his book here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250135988

This series is unapologetic in offering a platform to scholars, artists, and curators who are interested in challenging and complicating the narratives that have tried to limit Black life and Black expression to the molds of the past. Dr. Mark Anthony Neal fosters innovative discourse around race, art, and the humanities through rich conversations with both scholar-authors who are publishing new and important work along with artists and curators who shape and influence Black visual culture to reach a broader audience.  

Join Left of Black every Thursday for a new episode each week on the John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute’s YouTube channel!