Florida A&M University (FAMU) presents the 11th Annual Spring Literary Forum. This year’s theme is “Black to the Future II: The Black Heroic Meme,” and is dedicated to the celebration and commemoration of Black heroes: past, present and future. The event will be held in FAMU’s Grand Ballroom, February 28 – March 1, 2019 and is sponsored by the Literary Guild and the Department of English and Modern Languages.
The two-day event is free, open to the public and includes presentations and interactive experiences. This year’s keynote speaker, Sebastian A. Jones, is the founder of Stranger Comics and co-author of Niobe: She Is Life (with Amandla Stenberg). He will join a panel discussion on Thursday at 1 p.m.. and will lead a workshop at 2:15 p.m. His keynote address will take place on Friday at 7 p.m.
As part of the Black to the Future II event, FAMU will host special guests from the speculative fiction community—horror, fantasy, science fiction, comic book, supernatural, utopian and dystopian, and Steamfunk—to honor the “black heroic meme” in the form of public talks, workshops, and even cosplay.
As a nod to past heroes, FAMU will pay homage to the African-American Union soldiers who fought valiantly at the Battle of Natural Bridge on March 6, 1865, by featuring historians and historical reenactors to discuss that important moment in American history.
Since 2009, the Spring Literary Forum has brought writers and other talent to FAMU’s campus to expand the worldviews of students, faculty, alumni and the Big Bend community.
For additional information and sponsorship opportunities, please contact Natalie King Pedroso, Ph.D. at (850) 599-8697 or natalie.kingpedroso@famu.edu.
PARTNERS: State Farm Insurance; Student Government Association; 220 Quarterback Club; Atty. Joe Lang Kershaw and Deana Ponso; Quality Enhancement Program; Riley Center and Museum; the College of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities; Literary Guild and the Department of English and Modern Languages.
