Schedule of Events

Presenter: Venessa Plumly 
Type: Teach-in
Time: 1:30 p.m.
Location: Burton Morgan 218

May Ayim and the Black German Movement will provide an opportunity for the Denison community to engage in learning about Black German Activism and the Black German Movement of the 1980s and 1990s. The first part of the workshop will serve as an introduction to the history of the movement and the role of Black German women, in particular, in it. We will then dedicate part of the time to a collective reading and discussion of a poem written by Black German intellectual and poet May Ayim in remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr. Ayim was one of the prominent figures of the Black German Movement, and her poem serves as a testament to the reach of King’s work and advocacy across both time and space. Despite her own significant role in shifting German discourses on race, racism, and German colonialism, as well as her impact made through activism, she remains a much lesser known figure than King and other Black diasporic figures from the United States. Notably, King visited both sides of the Berlin Wall in 1964, and he championed a freedom that transcended constructed borders. Ayim, too, traversed countless borders and envisioned a freedom akin to, and perhaps more expansive, than King’s.

Presenter: Sam Friedmann
Type: Hands-on workshop
Time: 2:35 p.m., 3:40 p.m.
Location: Burton Morgan 220

Do your campus organization’s cultural film screenings, letter writing campaigns, or awareness-raising trivia nights get low attendance despite their importance? Or maybe your organization’s roundtable discussions, fundraising campaigns, or off-campus service events are a total hit but the planning process is stressful and unorganized? Join our hands-on workshop to learn project management skills that will help you to plan and lead effective advocacy and community organizing events/initiatives. 

Presenter: Femdot: a Nigerian-American rapper, writer, and educator  
Type: Artistic/Creative
Time: 1:30 p.m., 2:35 p.m., 3:40 p.m. 
Location: Burton Morgan 115

In this 45-minute session, Chicago rapper and educator Femi “Femdot” Adigun offers a glimpse into his course “Chicago Culture Through Hip Hop”, where students explore the city’s history and neighborhoods through the stories embedded in its music. This interactive workshop will blend brief lecture, guided listening, and group discussion, highlighting how hip hop artists across Chicago have documented their lived realities — crafting a layered portrait of the city through lyrics, rhythm, and storytelling.

Participants will sample the kind of work Adigun does with his students: listening to a selected track, reflecting on the artist and their environment, and unpacking the context in which the music was made. Together, the group will consider what the music reveals — not only about Chicago, but about whose voices we remember, elevate, or overlook.

By engaging with hip hop as both language and legacy, this session honors artists as chroniclers of their time — figures who, like many of history’s movement-builders, used their medium to map truth, survival, and vision. 

Presenter: Max Grogan
Type: Dialogue
Time: 1:30 p.m. 
Location: Shepardson College Room

“Everyday Hope, Everyday Heroes: A Dialogue” invites participants into a reflective, community-centered conversation inspired by the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Together, we will explore how hope is sustained not only through historic moments and well-known leaders, but through the quiet, persistent efforts of everyday people whose contributions often go unseen. Through guided and participatory dialogue, we’ll examine the role of service, courage, and collective action in shaping a more just world and consider how each of us can act as a source of hope in our own communities. This session emphasizes storytelling, shared reflection, and the recognition of the “everyday heroes” who help keep King’s vision alive. 

Presenter: Sam Cowling
Type: Presentation
Time: 1:30 p.m., 2:35 p.m.
Location: Burton Morgan 219

Starting with the influential 1957 Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story comic and its legacy for Black comics artists and writers, this presentation explores some of the hidden figures that have shaped both comics and the history of race within comics. From an infamously censored sci-fi story to a towering figure of nineties superhero stories, we’ll talk through some of the remarkable contributions of Black comics creators that all too often go unremembered.

Presenter: Jessica Kirsner
Type: Presentation and dialogue
Time: 3:40 p.m.
Location: Burton Morgan 218

In this workshop, we will explore what fair pay in women’s basketball looks like and highlight some of the hidden figures and unseen work that goes into labor negotiations in professional sports. We will discuss the impact a strong union and collective bargaining agreement can have not only on the pay and benefits to players, but on the cultural identity of the leagues themselves. Participants will discuss what a fair contract should look like, how it differs from an equal contract to their NBA counterparts, and why the WNBPA is putting such an emphasis on gaining equity for players in the league itself through revenue sharing.