The African American\/African Diaspora Studies Area Group of the English Department and the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) announce “Digital Diasporas: Digital Humanities and African American\/African Diaspora Studies”\u009d to take place at the University of Maryland, College Park on May 1-3, 2008.<\/p>\n
The program will begin on May 1st and 2nd with hands-on workshops, including one sponsored by the TEI Consortium and funded by the NEH, which will provide a practical introduction to text encoding: a second that will focus on navigating online resources in African American and African Diaspora Studies; and a third on using Second Life in teaching and research. The workshops will be followed by a panel showcasing work by scholars in the field of African American\/African Diaspora Studies that address and\/or make use of digital technologies and new media. The keynote address by Abdul Alkalimat (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) will be followed by a reception and the presentation of a multi-media art installation by the artist, Pamela Z. The last day will be taken up by panels and seminars; a digital “poster” session, where presenters will use laptops to introduce projects by students, faculty and independent scholars; a book fair; and a closing multi-media performance and book\/cd signing by DJ Spooky. Confirmed participants include Abdul Alkalimat, Bryan Carter, Merle Collins, Howard Dodson, Anna Everett, Jerome Handler, Kara Keeling, Paul D. Miller (AKA DJ Spooky), Angel David Nieves, Alexander Weheliye, and Pamela Z.<\/p>\n