Symposium examines the joys and burdens of being on the move

The Higgins School of Humanities spring 2024 symposium, “Movement,” is taking on topics as varied as the reproductive justice movement, climate change activism through the arts, and immigration.

The symposium began Feb. 8 with “PLAYED: How Music Orchestrates Thick Violence Against Black Girls on the Internet,” a lecture by Dr. Kyra Gaunt from the University at Albany, SUNY. In her talk, Gaunt discussed the obscured musical contributions of Black girls who twerk while also exposing how music perpetuates patriarchal violence.

Upcoming symposium events include academic talks, dance workshops, an exhibition of short films, a jazz performance, and a documentary screening. The Higgins School also is sponsoring two digital humanities events for faculty.

“We’re excited to present our spring symposium, which will explore the varied way that movement shapes our culture, our ideas, and our human experience,” said Professor Matt Malsky, director of the Higgins School of Humanities.

All events are in the Higgins Lounge, Dana Commons, unless otherwise noted.

• February 12–15: Dance workshops in ballet, hip hop, and Flexn. Co-sponsored with the Visual and Performing Arts Department; workshops will be held in the Little Center Dance Studio, Room 202.
• February 27: Opening of “Applied Motion Studies: Artists and Scientists Consider Movement,” an exhibition featuring a diverse array of short films that blend the creative visions of artists with the analytical perspectives of
• March 20 at 1:30 p.m.: Kathryn Abrams, the Herma Hill Kay Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of California–Berkeley, will discuss the reproductive justice movement in Missouri in response to the state’s abortion
• March 26 at 4:30 p.m.: Jennifer Davis of the University of Oklahoma will present “Colonial Reckoning: The Hidden History of the Census in France.” Clark Professor Laurie Ross, Director of the Department of Sustainability and Social Justice, will provide commentary. This event, co-sponsored by the Early Modernists Unite faculty collaborative and the Department of History, is part of the “Roots of Everything” lecture series.
• April 2 at 7 p.m.: A screening of “If You Become My Friend,” a documentary featuring four stories of people who, after the Taliban took control of the country in 2021, fled Afghanistan and eventually resettled in The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director, Jennifer Potts, and some of the film’s participants.
• April 3 at 7 p.m.: A performance of “Waking Up!,” a climate action jazz suite performed by Eric Hofbauer and The Five Agents quintet, will be followed by a talk-back with performers Eric Hofbauer & Curt Newton about arts activism.
• April 8 at 4:30 p.m.: Nozomi Nakaganeku Saito, Uchinanchu scholar and postdoctoral fellow/visiting assistant professor in English at Amherst College, will present “Between Ruin and Rebellion: Everyday Sovereignties in Okinawa’s Black District,” examining how narratives of ruin and rebellion can obscure the practices of everyday sovereignty and Indigenous presence that persist under conditions of settler militarism. Co-sponsored by the Department of Language, Literature, and Culture through the LLC Speaker Series.