Look Back and Wonder: The Rise of Black Studies at UMass Amherst

It was a fabulous debut of a film on the genesis of the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies at UMass Amherst. Shown on Wednesday, April 30, at 7:30 pm, in 137 Isenberg School of Management. Catherine Portuges, UMass professor of Film Studies and Comparative Literature, gave the film a glowing introduction. The W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies co-sponsored the screening. Professor Ernest Allen, Jr., who wrote and directed the documentary film, was present for discussion.

Entertaining and insightful interviews and archival footage in the documentary bring to life the debates, achievements, and inner life of a department that has included such public intellectuals as Shirley Graham Du Bois, Chinua Achebe, and James Baldwin, and world-class musicians and cultural icons such as Archie Shepp and Max Roach.