An Indiana University scholar will explore the intersections between identity, Islam, and the African diaspora during a lecture at UT at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 24.
Edward E. Curtis IV will deliver the Siddiqi Lecture in Islamic Studies in the Cox Auditorium of the Alumni Memorial Building. The event is free and open to the public.
The Siddiqi Lecture, launched in 2014, brings top scholars in the field of Islamic studies to campus in order to foster a greater understanding of Islam in East Tennessee.
Curtis’s lecture, “Race, Islam, and the African Diaspora,” will explore how an association between black identity and healing can be a powerful antidote to racism. He also will address how the denial of the Islamic authenticity of ritual practices that draw from black and African identity may get in the way of racial healing.
“This lecture provides a timely opportunity to learn from an experienced scholar about the interconnections between Islam and race, especially in relation to black and African identities,” said Rosalind Hackett, head of the Department of Religious Studies, which is hosting the event.
Curtis is the Millennium Chair of the Liberal Arts and Professor of Religious Studies at the Indiana University School of Liberal Arts in Indianapolis. He is the author or editor of 10 books about Muslim American and African American studies, including Muslim Americans in the Military: Centuries of Service and Muslims in America: A Short History. He is the recipient of Carnegie, Fulbright, Mellon, and National Endowment for the Humanities fellowships and grants.
For more information on the Siddiqi Lecture, visit the Department of Religious Studies website.
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CONTACT:
Lola Alapo (865-974-3993, lalapo@utk.edu)