Past Projects
CSSR's mission includes sponsoring or co-sponsoring events and projects that deepen our collective understanding of race in America.
Colloquium on the Structures of Race: Reading groups focused on postcolonial studies, science studies, philosophy and race. Groups included participants from Roanoke College and our surrounding community.
Racism and Social Structures: Film and lecture series focused on topics directly connected to CSSR's annual theme. Co-sponsored by the Sociology and Public Health Department.
Memorials and Monuments Research Project: Carried out research about forms of public commemoration linked to the history of slavery and its aftermaths. In addition to researching specific monuments, the study supported efforts to create new memorials related to the legacies of slavery.
Not Our Monument Project: Created a space for students, faculty and staff to react and respond to the presence of a Confederate monument that sits on our campus but is not owned by the college. Text and images from that feedback were used to create new works that contextualized the monument, including publishing a 2020-2021 compendium of reflections from our campus community.
Memorials, Monuments and Memory Lecture Series: Lecture series with national figures in the world of art and history.
On the Arts: Developed in partnership with the Olin Hall Galleries to emphasize the importance of displaying, evaluating and viewing works of art that speak to questions of race and structural racism. The first exhibit, “On Jupiter,” opened in January 2022.
Truth and Beauty: An Artist and Writers' Series: Lecture and presentation series that brought artists and writers to campus to discuss and read their work. Speakers have included Daesha Devón Harris, Jeremy Dennis, and Hanif Abdurraqib.
Virginia Conference on Race: This conference showcased the work of undergraduate and graduate students on topics of race and anti-racism activism. It strived to amplify voices in race studies as a way to engage in thoughtful, productive conversations about race.
Asian American Lecture Series: Lecture series, connected to existent courses at Roanoke College, that addressed issues related to Asian American history. The lectures included discussion of Chinese labor history, history of hate crimes against Asian Americans and a virtual tour of the Museum of Asian Americans.
Amerindian Indigeneity Working Group: Working group focused on Amerindian Indigeneity. Goals included creating new courses, sponsoring campus visits from relevant scholars and coordinating a new reading group.