Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Center Whitney Battle-Baptiste, discussed  W.E.B, Du Bois’s connection to Hartford, CT  February 18, 2016.

William Edward Burghardt “W. E. B.” Du Bois was a leading African-American sociologist, writer, and activist. He was also a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and editor of its magazine. Du Bois rose to national prominence as the leader of the Niagara Movement, a group of African-American activists who wanted equal rights for blacks. Whitney Battle-Baptistel ead a discussion on W.E.B. Du Bois’s connection to Hartford Connecticut. Baptiste serves as an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and is the Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Center at UMass Amherst Libraries. She is an historical archaeologist who focuses on the intersection of race, class, and gender in the shaping of cultural landscapes across the African diaspora. Her theoretical interests include black feminist theory, African-American material, and expressive culture and critical heritage studies. Her work includes historic sites as varied as the home of Andrew Jackson in Nashville, Tenn., Rich Neck Plantation in Williamsburg, Va., the Abiel Smith School in Boston, the W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite in Great Barrington, Mass. and the Millars Plantation on the Bahamian Island of Eleuthera. The W.E.B. Du Bois Center at the UMass Amherst Libraries was established in 2009 to engage the nation and the world in discussion and scholarship about the global issues involving race, labor, and social justice.

The Legacy & Lessons of W. E. B. Du Bois and his connection to Hartford. Presentation given on February 18th, 2016 by Whitney Battle-Baptiste Ph. D.