Embracing Our Roots consists of monthly conversations where young arts leaders will join our elders in conversation about their histories of significant milestones in Minnesota’s literary history within their community. The series started with a collaboration between More Than a Single Story, Black Table Arts and In Black Ink to highlight conversations between Black artists across generations.
John S. Wright is the Morse-Amoco Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus of African American & African Studies and English at the University of Minnesota. In 1973, he built a program in Afro-American & African Studies at Carleton College, and he participated in the student movement that helped found both the University’s Department of African American & African Studies and its Martin Luther King Program, which he subsequently administered for three years.
Davu Underwood Seru is the Curator of the Givens Collection of African American Literature and Life and co-author of the book Sights, Sounds, Soul: The Twin Cities Through The Lens of Charles Chamblis, which was a finalist for the 2017 MN Book Award.