Valerie Smith, the Woodrow Wilson Professor of Literature and African American Studies at Princeton University, presented a lecture entitled ìCivil Rights Cold Cases” Wednesday, Feb. 10.
Before she relocated,†† Smith taught at UCLA from 1994 until 2001, when she took up her present position at Princeton University in New Jersey.† She has been the fortunate recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship in 2005-2006 and the Alphonse G. Fletcher, Sr. Fellowship in 2006-2007.
Smith, who lectured to a full house in Severance 009, discussed popular media’s re-interpretations of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s.† Using the television show ìCold Caseíí as well as the 2004 documentary ìHome of the Brave,íí Smith explored a dichotomy existing in popular perceptions of the Civil Rights Movement.† Smith argued, through her presentation of a recently authored paper, that American contemporary society has ìa preoccupation with the movement,” stating there exists a ìwidespread assertion that we are in a post-racial era.”† However, according to Smith, ìour national consciousness is still bound in that moment.”† Smith cites several works produced during the 1980s and 1990s, as well as more contemporary works, to provide evidence for her assertions.
By examining several ìcold cases” of Civil Rights-era violence, Smith explained that American society, while asserting its post-racial present, uses re-interpretations of the era to bring about justice in a modern sense.† Smith states, ìCivil Rights Era cold cases [serve] as practice of remembering and memorializing.” In essence, new media re-examines the movement in the context of contemporary Americaís challenges with race.† According to Smith, these new works ìexpose the limitations of previous narratives of the Civil Rights Movement.”
To illustrate these points, Smith drew on a variety of popular media references, including the Spike Lee documentary ëí4 Little Girlsíí (1997).† Smith specifically focused on the 2005 ëíCold Caseíí episode ìStrange Fruit.”† Smith argued that the television showís flashback and character development model allowed her to explore the episodeís treatment of a fictional 1963 lynching in Philadelphia as a way to reassert justice in the contemporary sense.† Smith also showed a clip of the documentary ìHome of the Brave,íí emphasizing that events from the past cannot be isolated to the past, but continue to influence the reality of the present.† Says Smith, these media re-interpretations from the 1980s to the present ìrequire us to remember and confront episodes from our history” society would rather forget.
Smith also co-presented a question-and-answer panel with Assistant Professors of English Leslie Wingard, Travis Foster and Mazen Naous on Tuesday, Feb. 9 from 4-5 p.m. In Kauke 237.† The panel discussed the application and preparation process required for graduate studies, specifically focusing on programs in English, Africana, American, Ethnic and Womenís Studies.
Smithís visit was sponsored by the Departments of English, History, and Africana Studies, the Donaldson Fund and the Center for Diversity and Global Engagement.