At a moment of transnational racial reckoning, this listening session explores black frequency as a site of possibility. It engages black frequency in multiple forms: as a sonic space that ranges from silence to deafening, dissonant noise; as a register of ecstatic rapture and spirituality; as a temporal feedback loop of memory, repetition, and renewal; as a dynamic relation of call and response, or chorus and verse; as a haptic and kinetic space of contact and connection across the African continent and its various diasporas.

As museums reimagine how anthropology interprets Africa and “Blackness,” they are wrestling with both the residues of historical race science and the realities of anti-Black racism in America today. For anthropologists working in museums this “decolonizing the museum” approach means balancing anthropology as a science against pseudoscientific notions of Africa and “Blackness” that museums and anthropology helped to visually codify in the popular imagination.

This event is presented in partnership with the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations to provide a more nuanced understanding of the implications of China’s rise for U.S.-China relations and for their own communities.

Join us on Veterans Day for a special livestream discussion with the journalists and filmmakers associated with Father Soldier Son, a Netflix documentary that follows the life of Master Sergeant Brian Eisch (U.S. Army) and his family over a 10-year period during his time in uniform, his deployment to Afghanistan, his combat-related injury and recovery, and his transition from the military to civilian life—documenting the challenges and struggles they faced along the way. This dialogue, building on the film, will explore the meaning of duty, honor, and sacrifice.

Curated in partnership with Colectivo Bámbula, Peabody Museum of Natural History, Junta for Progressive Action, Yale Latino Networking Group, and the Yale African American Affinity Group, this panel will bring together Latinx professionals across the diaspora working to challenge anti-Blackness in Latinx culture, highlighting the dynamic work of organizers, educators, artists, and freedom fighters.

Panelists will include: