2 Book Talks in Virginia

On Thursday, November 14, 2013, I gave a lecture at the University of Richmond.  The event was sponsored by the Department of Theate & Dance and took place on Cousins Stage of the Modlin Center for the Arts. Department Chair Dorothy Holland made the visit possible, and I was warmly greeted by several colleagues, including professors Patricia Herrera, Walter Schoen, madison moore, Chuck Mike, W. Reed West, Anne Norman Van Gelder, Johann Stegmeir, and Alicia Díaz. 

The majority of those in attendance were undergraduate students, one of whom asked how I cope with all the violence I study.  What an incisive and crucial question! Among other things, I shared with her that I would be running the Richmond Half Marathon that very Saturday. I told her that that fact was very much related to just how important her question was.

Professor Patricia Herrera was a wonderful host and she asked a question about recent movies about slavery that allowed me to articulate many of my concerns with how the entertainment industry treats black pain. 

Cousin Nate lives in Richmond, so he made a point of coming to talk to me afterward. So nice to have an unexpected family element to the weekend!

On Friday, November 15, 2013, I gave a book lecture in Charlottesville at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.  It was a special treat!  Nearly everyone in attendance was an established scholar, so they were extraordinarily engaged.  Author Hermine Pinson of William and Mary helped make the visit possible, and Foundation president Robert C. Vaughan, III made time to attend.  University of Virginia colleagues, such as Marlon Ross and Lisa Woolfork, attended and asked questions that will continue to inform my thinking.  It was also a treat to have rising literary scholar Laura Goldblatt there. As usual, her contribution to the discussion was challenging and invigorating. 

The next day, Saturday, November 16, 2013, I ran the Richmond Half Marathon and set a new PR! Cousin Nate even got a picture of my finish!  This was my 10th half marathon but definitely the first time that I finished with so much energy that I threw my hands up in victory!  A great way to cap off an amazing weekend!

Video Interview: Lynching & Anti-LGBT Violence

The Ohio State University English Department maintains a Tumblr blog.  This week, they are placing a spotlight on Queer Studies. The feature includes a video interview with me about the essay in which I draw parallels between lynching and anti-LGBT violence. I'm so grateful that the site's managers wanted to highlight this research and that they followed through and made it happen. They did a great job with the interview!

Please let us know what you think.

Video can be viewed from here: osuenglish.tumblr.com

Appreciated Attention for Essay on Lynching & Anti-LGBT Violence

On Friday, October 18, 2013, I was very pleasantly surprised to see my essay "Love in Action: Noting Similarities between Lynching Then and Anti-LGBT Violence Now" listed in Feministing's Daily Feminist Cheat Sheet.   

They call the essay "long, but totally worth the read."  I'll take that any day!!  

Their listing here.

(I described the essay on this blog here.)

Reviewed in the Journal of American History

 
     I am delighted to see Living with Lynching reviewed by yet another publication targeting traditional historians!  The Journal of American History (JAH) is the official publication of the Organization of American Historians (OAH).  It is recognized as "the leading scholarly publication and the journal of record in American history."
     The reviewer's conclusion:  "Mitchell’s analysis recovers a complex array of strategies that African Americans honed over decades to cope with the reality of lynching."  Also, "Mitchell’s most powerful chapters focus on lynching’s impact on family life. The figure of the mother/wife ... best instantiates the complexities of 'living with lynching.'"
     For more, please see Journal of American History 99.3 (December 2012): 958 - 59.
     For more on OAH, visit http://www.oah.org/

Now on NOOK

Living with Lynching is now available on Barnes & Noble's NOOK!  See

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/living-with-lynching-koritha-mitchell/1110980868?ean=9780252078804

Ohio University

On Thursday, October 25, 2012, I visited Ohio University's School of Interdisciplinary Arts.  Students and faculty members in Film, Art, Art History, Literature, Theatre and Playwriting, and Music attended.  It's a truly unique program.  See their website: http://www.finearts.ohio.edu/interarts/index.htm

This was my first trip to Ohio University in Athens, but I knew several scholars from their work, including Gary Holcomb, William Condee, Ayesha Hardison, and Amrit Singh, so I felt quite at home.  Still, what made this an exceptional experience was the welcome I received from film theorist Michael Gillespie, filmmaker Annie Howell, and playwright Charles Smith.  Dr. Gillespie arranged for the visit and hosted me from beginning to end.  Annie Howell gave me an enlightening crash course in the politics of independent filmmaking.  Charles Smith made time to participate in every part of my visit, which was a delight because I traveled to Indianapolis last year to see his play The Gospel According to James, which I blogged about: "Grappling with Midwestern Memories: A New Lynching Play"

In short, this visit was a remarkable treat for me.  The next day, I taught my own students, and they definitely benefited from the intellectual high that the good folks at OU inspired!

Now in Paperback!!

After 9 months of being in the world in hardcover only, my baby will be available in paperback!! Amazon pre-orders are $26 for August 1 delivery. Barnes & Noble has it for $25.60. Once again, the University of Illinois Press did a beautiful job. It's a QUALITY paperback, almost as gorgeous as the original.

Interviewed on Austin Radio Show

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I was interviewed by Hopeton Hay, producer and host of KAZI Book Review, which airs on KAZI 88.7 FM in Austin, Texas. Our lively conversation will broadcast on Monday, June 11, 2012 at approximately 7:03 AM Central time. Those outside of Austin can listen live online at kazifm.org (click the microphone on left side of page) or through the TuneIn Radio app on iPhone or Droid phones. (Remember, this would be 8:03 AM Eastern.)

For more about the show, including on-demand listening to archived interviews, visit www.kazibookreview.wordpress.com