​Long Island in the Black Atlantic World

Saturday, August 15, 2020
Via Zoom, 10 am to 12:30 pm

Preservation Long Island is one our key partners in our ongoing People of Color Burying Ground project.

Why did Long Island have one of the largest enslaved populations in the North during the 17th and 18th centuries? This virtual round-table event will address Jupiter Hammon’s Long Island as a hub of the Atlantic slave trade and a key player in a global economy dependent upon Black enslavement. Scholars will explore identity, agency, and connection among the region’s free and enslaved communities; and how we collectively remember and engage this difficult past.

A moderated panel featuring Dr. Craig Wilder (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Dr. Jennifer L. Anderson (SUNY Stony Brook), and Dr. Nicole Maskiell (University of South Carolina) will be followed by a virtual break-out session for project stakeholders to reflect and respond to the conversation.

The 90-minute panel discussion is FREE and open to the public but registration is needed: register HERE.

In the weeks following the round-table event, all panel and break-out participants will have the opportunity to join Dr. Craig Wilder, Dr. Jennifer Anderson, and Dr. Nicole Maskiell for additional Q&A sessions to dive deeper into topics and discussions explored during the formal roundtable.

‘The Jupiter Hammon Project is a major initiative and multi-year effort of Preservation Long Island. The goal of the project is to develop a new and equitable interpretation for Joseph Lloyd Manor, an 18th-century historic house museum and a site of Black enslavement on Long Island. This new interpretation will include telling the story of Jupiter Hammon (1711– ca.1806), one of the earliest published African American writers, who composed his most well-known works while enslaved at the house. For more information: https://preservationlongisland.org/jupiter-hammon-project-roundtable-1/