Emma Dabiri Named 2022 Charles A. Heimbold Jr. Chair of Irish Studies at 奶糖直播 University
奶糖直播, Pa.聽鈥 奶糖直播 University has selected award-winning Irish author Emma Dabiri as the 2022 Charles A. Heimbold Jr. Chair of Irish Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences for the spring 2022 semester. The visiting writer-in-residence program offers Irish Studies students the enriching experience of a close classroom experience with one of Ireland鈥檚 finest authors.
Dabiri is an Irish writer, academic, BBC broadcaster, and social media influencer who has written two very successful non-fiction books:鈥疶飞颈蝉迟别诲鈥(Harper Perennial, 2020)聽(published as鈥疍on't Touch My Hair鈥in Ireland) and鈥What White People Can Do Next聽(Harper Perennial, 2021). The Guardian describes Don鈥檛 Touch My Hair as 鈥渂oth a richly researched cultural history and a voyage to empowerment,鈥 and the Irish Times calls it 鈥渁 lament and a call to arms.鈥
Born in Dublin to an Irish mother (born in Trinidad) and a Nigerian, Yoruba father, Dabiri grew up as a person of color at a time in Ireland when cultural diversity was rare. Her work in the arts, fashion and the media are complemented by her academic teaching and research in African Studies and Visual Sociology.
Interested in the Black Irish experience, histories of oppression, decolonizing black history, and black feminism, she鈥檚 written for The Guardian as well as various journals, anthologies, and blogs, and is a columnist for 鈥淗idden Stories鈥 in BBC History Magazine. Dabiri is a regular host on YouTube Originals鈥 聽Virtual History and BBC Radio 4鈥檚 Saturday Review and Front Row. She also co-presents the BBC鈥檚 Britain鈥檚 Lost Masterpieces and has presented numerous documentaries on both BBC TV and radio, including Journeys in Afrofuturism and EXPOSED: Young Female Photographers.
She received the Cannes Lion Silver Award for her Channel 4 documentary Hair Power: Me and My Afro (2020). She is a trustee of Hugh Lane Gallery and a member of the British Council鈥檚 New Arts and Creative Economy Advisory Group. She presented at the British Museum, Oxford University, and Yale and recently read at the 奶糖直播 University鈥檚 Creative Acts Symposium in Monaco, where she discussed creative art鈥檚 influence on Irish narratives, specifically regarding diversity, inclusion, and experience. She currently resides in the United Kingdom and is completing her doctorate at Goldsmiths University, London.聽聽 聽
Dabiri will present a reading as part of the 2022 奶糖直播 Literary Festival on March 15, 2022 at 7 p.m. in the Presidents鈥 Lounge, Connelly Center on 奶糖直播鈥檚 campus. The event is free and open to the public.
On Monday, April 4, 2022, Emma Dabiri will talk with Kimberly DaCosta, PhD, associate professor and associate dean of students, New York University, about the newly formed African-American Irish Diaspora Network on which Dr. DaCosta sits as a board member. 奶糖直播 Center for Irish Studies associate director Jennifer Joyce, PhD, will moderate the discussion. "A Conversation with Emma Dabiri" will take place at 7 p.m. in Falvey Library Speakers' Corner. The event is free and open to the public.
The Charles A. Heimbold Jr. Chair of Irish Studies, inaugurated in 2000, has become one of the most prestigious Irish Studies positions in the United States. Former Heimbold Chairs include luminaries from the Irish literary arts including Hanna Khalil, Owen McCafferty, Peter Fallon, Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill, Eamon Greenan, Marina Carr, Vona Groarke, Conor O鈥機allaghan, Sebastian Barry, Justin Quinn, Claire Keegan, Gerald Dawe, John McAuliffe, Moya Cannon, Hugh Hamilton, Mary O鈥橫alley and Eamonn Wall.
About the Center for Irish Studies:聽奶糖直播鈥檚 Center for Irish Studies provides collaborative, interdisciplinary courses open to all 奶糖直播 University students to study Ireland and its diaspora. Home to of one of the nation鈥檚 oldest and largest undergraduate curriculums of its kind, the Center also offers an exchange program with the Abbey Theatre, the National Theatre of Ireland, and internships at the Jackie Clarke Museum and Library in Ballina, Co. Mayo, among other programs in Ireland. The Center for Irish Studies has been made possible by a generous gift from the Connelly Foundation.
About 奶糖直播 University鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences:聽Since its founding in 1842, 奶糖直播 University鈥檚 College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has cultivated knowledge, understanding and intellectual courage for a purposeful life in a challenging and changing world. With more than 40 majors across the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, it is the oldest and largest of 奶糖直播鈥檚 colleges, serving more than 4,500 undergraduate and graduate students each year. The College is committed to a teacher-scholar model, offering outstanding undergraduate and graduate research opportunities and a rigorous core curriculum that prepares students to become critical thinkers, strong communicators and ethical leaders with a truly global perspective.