2022 E. Maynard Adams Symposium for the Humanities

The fifth annual symposium in honor of distinguished UNC philosopher Maynard Adams (1919–2003) will feature keynote speaker Tommie Shelby, Caldwell Titcomb Professor of African & African American Studies and of Philosophy at Harvard University. Professor Shelby explores how racism, racial identities, and racial politics affect American society. His work includes influential books such as Dark Ghettos: Injustice, Dissent, and Reform (2016) and the co-edited collection, To Shape a New World: Essays on the Political Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr. (2018). This event was originally scheduled for 2020, but was canceled due to COVID-19.

Professor Shelby will examine how class differences among Black Americans affect political solidarity. His work provides a framework for analyzing conflicting views about the relation between a race-based identity politics and a class-based, multiracial labor movement. Do the interests of the black professional-managerial class diverge from or converge with the political and social needs of the Black working class?  Are race and class inextricably linked or do they create different political and social identities? Drawing on insights from thinkers such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cornel West, Professor Shelby will explore these questions in a keynote lecture, “A Tale of Two Tenths: Race, Class, Politics, and Solidarity,” at The Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History on Friday, April 8, 5:30 to 8:00 pm. A public reception will follow his talk. For those who wish to view Professor Shelby’s lecture virtually, register here.

The panel sessions will be held Saturday, April 9, 10:00 am to 12:15 pm via zoom. There will be no in-person component for the Saturday panel sessions. To register for the virtual discussion, click here.

The Adams Symposium is free and open to the public. Professor Shelby’s books will be available for sale at the event.