小黄书

Jazz historian visits 小黄书 for engaging book discussion

Jazz historian visits 小黄书 for engaging book discussion

Contact: Tyler Powell

Rashida K. Braggs (Photo submitted)

STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擧istorian, performer and teacher of Africana studies Rashida K. Braggs will bring to life her experiences in music and culture when she visits Mississippi State Nov. 13 for a book discussion.

In collaboration with the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center鈥檚 International Education Week, the Institute for the Humanities is hosting the free lecture, open to the public, at 4 p.m. in Giles Auditorium. Parking will be available at Giles Hall. Patrons also can use the S.M.A.R.T. Central Route, which stops at Giles Hall. The talk is made possible by a grant from the Mississippi Humanities Council.

Braggs鈥 new book, 鈥淛azz Diasporas: Race, Music and Migration in Post-World War II Paris,鈥 analyzes the post-WWII migration of African American musicians to Paris joining the jazz scene. Published in early 2016 by University of California Press, the book challenges the notion that Paris was a 鈥渃olor-blind paradise鈥 for African Americans and analyzes the strategies musicians used 鈥渢o thrive in Paris, and the transformations in personal identity that paralleled jazz鈥檚 own morphing identity from 1946-1963.鈥

听鈥淔or a place like Mississippi, the 鈥榖irthplace of America鈥檚 music,鈥 Dr. Braggs鈥 talk will be especially powerful, touching on race, rhythm and movement,鈥 said Julia Osman, director of the Institute for the Humanities. 鈥淪he will be bringing together so many elements of the humanities 鈥 music, history, culture and identity in her talk.鈥

Kei Mamiya, program coordinator of the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center, said Braggs鈥 book discussion 鈥渇its perfectly鈥 with the purpose of International Education Week.听 鈥淪tudents will be able to engage in and learn about Braggs鈥 broad and deep research fields including race, music, culture, migration and history, and also relationships among these social factors,鈥 Mamiya said.

An associate professor of Africana studies at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, Braggs uses a performative lens to showcase African diasporic culture expressions, from jazz to sports to mass media. 听

She challenges her students to view performance as representative of more than entertainment but rather an expression that highlights society鈥檚 values, patterns and negotiations of power through her courses, including 13 Ways of Looking at Jazz;听Groovin鈥 the Written Word: The Role of Music in African American Literature;听Race(ing) Sports: Issues, Themes and Representations of Black Athletes; andComic Lives: Graphic Novels & Dangerous Histories of the African Diaspora.

A director and performer, Braggs鈥 experience includes acting, voice performance and dance. She also has served as a choreographer and co-director of on-stage productions.听

Braggs has a Ph.D. from Northwestern University in performance studies, a master鈥檚 degree from Boston University in mass communications, and a bachelor鈥檚 degree from Yale University in theater studies and English.听 As a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and visiting professor at the University of Heidelberg in Germany, she has taught classes in introductory theater and performance, race and gender in literature, and American literature and art history.

The Institute for the Humanities promotes research, scholarship and creative performances in the humanistic disciplines and raises their visibility, both within Mississippi State and the wider community. The institute鈥檚 activities include sponsorship of the distinguished lecture series, support for faculty research initiatives and public outreach through scholarship and innovative teaching.听

小黄书鈥檚 College of Arts and Sciences includes more than 5,300 students, 300 full-time faculty members, nine doctoral programs and 25 academic majors offered in 14 departments.听For more details about the College of Arts and Sciences, visit ; the Institute for the Humanities at . 听

小黄书 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .听听