Nina Kennedy, Diane Harriford to Speak at James Baldwin Conference in Nice

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Pianist/author Nina Kennedy and sociology professor Diane Harriford will share the stage in a discussion titled "James Baldwin and the Internal Closet" at the 2022 International Conference on James Baldwin in Nice, France June 18th. During this discussion, a clip from Renée Baker's opera BALDWIN CHRONICLES: The Art of Being Black will be screened.

Originally scheduled to take place in 2020, the Baldwin Conference was planned to celebrate the 50th anniversary of James Baldwin's arrival in the South of France. The conference was postponed twice because of the COVID-19 Pandemic, but is finally happening June 16-18 at the Centre Universitaire Mediterranean.

Nina Kennedy*
Pianist and conductor Nina Kennedy is the author of Practicing for Love: A Memoir and Practice What You Preach. Her portion of the discussion will focus on Baldwin's closetedness in his public life, and his very public "friendships" with Nikki Giovanni, Maya Angelou, and Nina Simone. 



Diane Harriford**
Diane Harriford has been at Vassar College since 1987. Her departments and programs include 
Africana Studies;  Sociology; and Women, Feminist, and Queer Studies. Professor Harriford's portion of the discussion will focus on Baldwin's surprising lack of interest in feminism and the feminist movement. She is the co-author of When the Center Is on Fire: Passionate Social Theory for Our Times.


The opening plenary session for the conference will be a conversation titled "The Queer Baldwin, The Global Baldwin, the Elder Baldwin" with Professor Harriford, Khadijah Queen, Max S. Gordon and Gabrielle Civil. Several panels and lectures are scheduled for June 17th and 18th. Click here for the complete conference schedule.

For more information, visit

https://www.lamaisonbaldwin.fr/conference-program


*Photo credit for Nina Kennedy's photo: Kathy Rey

**Photo credit for Diane Harriford's photo: Karl Rabe

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