Black Lives in the Diaspora: Past / Present / Future

Frank Guridy, History, African American and African Diaspora Studies 

Frank Guridy, History, African American and African Diaspora Studies

Black Lives in the Diaspora: Past / Present / Future is an ongoing scholarly book series in the field of Black studies published by Columbia University Press in partnership with Howard University’s College of Arts and Sciences and Columbia University’s African American and African Diaspora Studies Department. This collaboration between a historically Black university and an Ivy League university’s press and faculty is the first of its kind in academic publishing, and it represents the first step in a larger partnership between the two universities to publish more robustly in Black studies and to recruit and support a cohort of editorial fellows to provide an entryway for recent HBCU graduates into the publishing industry.

An editorial board of eight faculty—four each from Howard University and Columbia University—oversees the series. The series publishes in the humanities and social sciences at the junior, midcareer, and senior levels. Funding is currently being sought to expand the program to publish up to 20 titles per year and augment the staff of Columbia University Press with a new full-time Black studies editor and graduate student fellows. The fellows received specialized training in the editorial department and were supported to gain experience across the other standard departments in publishing, according to their own interests. Over time, this cohort of fellows, mentored by the new editor and others at Howard University and Columbia University, will be prepared for careers in the publishing industry.

Building on Columbia University Press’s history of publications in Black studies and history, sociology, religion, philosophy, and literature, the series furthers scholarship in African American and African Diaspora studies by focusing on Black lives in a global diasporic context. The series showcases scholarship and writing that enriches our understanding of Black experiences in the past, present, and future. It is a goal of the series that the books will reach beyond the academy and become part of urgent national and international conversations about the experiences of people of African descent. By design, the series anchors an exchange across two global educational institutions, both residing in historical capitals of Black life and culture.

Howard University had a press that was discontinued a decade ago, representing the loss of an important voice in African American studies and scholarly publishing. This new collaboration will enable Howard once again to participate in the curatorial process of scholarly publishing, and result in a series dedicated to African American and African Diaspora studies that is more inclusive and of a higher caliber than Columbia University and Columbia University Press could achieve alone.

Editorial board members are:

Howard University
Clarence Lusane, Professor of Political Science, and former Chair, Department of Political Science
Rubin Patterson, Dean, College of Arts and Sciences, and Professor of Sociology
Nikki Taylor, Chair, Department of History, and Professor of History
Amy Yeboah, Associate Professor of Afro-American Studies

Columbia University
Kevin Fellezs, Associate Professor of Music and African American and African Diaspora Studies
Farah Jasmine Griffin, Chair, African American and African Diaspora Studies Department, and William B. Ransford Professor of English and Comparative Literature and African American Studies
Frank Guridy, Associate Professor of History and African American Studies
Josef Sorett, Chair, Department of Religion, and Professor of Religion and African American and African Diaspora Studies

Additional information is available here

This project was funded through the Addressing Racism: A Call to Action for Higher Education initiative of the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement.