Taking an opportunity to inventory 25 years of this symposium, provides a moment to reflect on the last two and a half decades of this event, its themes, challenges, successes and impact, as we look at the past, present, and future.

To frame the conversation, Assistant Professor at University of California in Santa Barbara, founder and long-term member of the Schomburg Symposium organizing committee, Evelyne Laurent Perrault, Ph.D. will present “Invoking Amefrica Ladina.” Edison Viera-Calderón, Ph.D. will discuss “Breaking the Wall of Silence: Oral Narrative of Afro-Caribbean life in Santurce Puerto Rico,” and bombera researcher and activist, Melanie Maldonado, will discuss“Textiles as declarations of liberation and remembrance in Puerto Rican Bomba”.  

While bringing attention to both the symposium and awareness of the many causes and themes it has focused on, we will look to the future of what lies ahead, highlighting the scholars, writers, performers and topics that will comprise this year’s symposium. Leading up to the event, we will share images from our Eugenio María de Hostos Archives highlighting past symposium topics while weaving in current ones.