Austin Clarke, Black Studies and Black Diasporic Memory

Between 1968 and 1974, Austin Clarke was a visiting professor at a number of ​universities in the United States, including Yale, Duke and the University of Texas at ​Austin. During these years in the U.S., Clarke helped in setting up Black Studies ​programs at Yale and Harvard University. However, despite the significance of his ​presence in American academia of this time, the memory of Clarke’s work and his ​contributions in founding Black studies is largely forgotten today. This conference ​refers back to this time in order to think about the various transnational contexts of ​Austin Clarke’s work, as well as his foundational place in Black diasporic creative and ​intellectual life to ask and consider: What does it mean to remember this history and to ​engage with it at a time when we see the push towards institutionalizing Black studies in ​Canada? Join us in honouring the legacy of Austin Clarke at our 2-day conference, co-​organized by McMaster University and Toronto Metropolitan University. Keynote ​Address by Rinaldo Walcott. Closing Remarks by David Chariandy.

This event is co-organized by Dr. Darcy Ballantyne, Department of English at Toronto Metropolitan University, and Dr. Ronald Cummings, Department of English and Cultural Studies at McMaster University.