Thelwell represents UMass at Nigerian rites for Chinua Achebe
Professor emeritus Ekwueme Michael Thelwell of Afro-American Studies represented his department and the university at funeral rites in Nigeria for writer and former visiting professor Chinua Achebe, who died March 21 in Boston.Thelwell delivered a keynote address at the internal day of tribute on May 20 at the International Conference Center in Abuja, the West African nation’s capital.
Thelwell also traveled to eastern Nigeria traditional ceremonies of celebration and burial by Achebe’s family and kinsmen.
Achebe taught in the English Department and in Afro-American Studies in the early 1970s and late 1980s.
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Wednesday, May 22, 2013
