Voices

There is a tradition of conscious and committed artists which have made of their music of hope and struggle a voice of contestation and a weapon of denunciation. The legendary jazzman Archie Shepp adheres to this emancipatory tradition by stating that he wishes his music to tell the story of his people. In this interview with UNESCO, he highlights the power and class stakes at play in racism and asserts that slavery is a worldwide history that everyone should know about.

Avery Sharpe is an American jazz double-bassist, electric bassist, composer, educator, and founder of the artist-owned record label, JKNM Records. While attending UMass Amherst, he studied double bass with Reggie Workman, as well as studying with Max Roach, Archie Shepp, Horace Boyer, and Fred Tillis. In this interview, Sharpe recounts his experiences on campus and his recent musical project, "400 Years: An African American Musical Portrait."

In 1971, Seymour joined the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Department of Communication Disorders first as an assistant professor. She served as the director of the Communication Disorders Clinic at the UMass in 1974 and was appointed chair of the department and dean of the Graduate School. In 2001, Seymour assumed the position of interim provost and senior vice chancellor for Academic Affairs. In 2004, she was appointed provost. Seymour later retired from UMass to serve as provost of Simmons College in Boston in 2009.

Earl W. Stafford continues to make an impact in his business career and in his dedication to helping his fellow man. In 2002, Stafford created The Stafford Foundation, a faith-based, nonprofit organization that provides support to the underserved and the socially and economically distressed so they may become self-reliant. The ’76 graduate of the Isenberg School of Management carries on this mission today, both in the United States and abroad. In this video, Stafford talks about his current work and experiences at UMass.

Esther Terry talks about her role in planning and participating in the 1960 lunch counter sit-in protests while a student at Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina. This interview was conducted by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, and the Southern Oral History Program at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.

UMass Music & Dance presents highlights from the 2020 Bezanson Legacy Concert which honored Dr. Frederick Tillis on the occasion of his 90th birthday. The video includes a remembrance by department chair Salvatore Macchia, excerpts of performances by UMass faculty and students, photos from the event, and a full recording of Tillis' "Blow Out the Candles of Your Cake." (Video footage courtesy of Pamela Tillis.)

Jacki Wright discusses their decision to attend UMass, their experiences as a student—both academically and as a resident of the campus, how they found community within the campus, and the challenges and opportunities that come with their various identities.

Professor John H. Bracey, Jr., has taught in the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst since 1972. He is co-director of the department’s graduate certificate in African Diaspora Studies. He is a preeminent scholar of Black history and the Black arts movement and a founder of the campus’s W.E.B. Du Bois Afro-American Studies Department, as well as playing a leading role in creating the Black Presence Initiative.

Dr. Cole taught anthropology at University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1970 to 1983, and was associate provost for undergraduate education from 1981 to 1983. While at the UMass, she played a pivotal role in the development of the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies. In 1987, she became Spelman College's first Black woman to lead the College that was founded specifically for the education of women of African descent.

Kalekeni Banda was the head women's soccer coach from 1980 through 1987, when he compiled a 120-25-10 (.806) record with the program. Banda led the Minutewomen to six consecutive NCAA appearances, including five straight trips to the final four. A native of Malawi, Africa, Banda also served as women's track and field coach for eight years. Banda is also a 1975 graduate of the University of Massachusetts.

Dr. Marcellette Williams talks about her time as the first woman to serve as chancellor of UMass from 2001–2002 in this interview with Dr. Esther Terry. Williams served the campus for seven and a half years as deputy chancellor before taking on the chancellorship. During her tenure, a major technology campus initiative created network connections in all campus buildings; established new public access PC areas; purchased additional computer proje ction equipment; expanded central network servers; and is in the latter stages of implementing an integrated Student Information System.

Mtali Banda received his B.A. in Afro-American studies from UMass Amherst and is a current graduate student as of 2021. In this interview, he describes his journey in becoming a musician, merging Black music with his academic work in Afro-American studies, and how Black music has been used to share marginalized narratives and help develop needed conversations. He also shares how his travels to his father's homeland of Malawi shaped him, and where he sees his future.

Alum Shannan Akosua Magee is the Founder of the Girls Institute of Science and Technology and the Director of Admissions in Academic City university. She received an undergraduate degree from the W.E.B. DuBois Afro-American Studies Department and a Master’s in Secondary Education. In 2003, she received an Education Specialist Degree in Education Administration & Leadership and became a Fulbright Scholar.

Sidonio Ferreira is the special assistant to the vice chancellor for Student Affairs and Campus Life. He's been a member of the UMass community since he was an undergraduate student and has since served in a number of roles on campus. In this video, he describes being a student when James Baldwin was at UMass as a Distinguished Fellow, and the electrifying moments Baldwin created.

Dr. Sonia Nieto has devoted her professional life to questions of diversity, equity, and social justice in education. She and her family moved to Massachusetts in 1975, where she completed her doctoral studies at UMass Amherst, returning a year later to begin her long academic career there from 1980 to 2006. In this interview, Dr. Nieto provides an oral history of the Che Lumumba Day School in New Africa House and how the philosophy behind the school created a nurturing environment for the children of faculty and staff of color.

Sonia Sanchez emerged as a seminal figure in the 1960s Black Arts Movement, raising her voice in the name of black culture, civil rights, women's liberation, and peace as a poet, playwright, teacher, activist and early champion of the spoken word. She is among the earliest poets to have incorporated urban black English into her poetry; she was one of the first activists to secure the inclusion of African American studies in university curricula.

Stephanie Y. Evans, Ph.D., is a professor of Black women's studies and serves as director of the Institute for Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Georgia State University. Her research interest is in Black women's intellectual history, memoirs, and mental health. In May 2003, Evans received her Ph.D. from the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, with a concentration in history and politics from UMass Amherst; in May 2002, she earned a master’s degree in the same field.

In October 2018, blues musician Taj Mahal ’63 visited UMass Amherst to attend the 100th Anniversary of the Stockbridge School of Agriculture's two-year program. A proud Stockbridge graduate, Mahal is still passionately interested in all aspects of agriculture. Born Henry Fredericks Jr., he adopted the stage name Taj Mahal in college as he became an active musician and personality on campus. He went on to a very successful career as a blues musician.

Tyrone A. Parham has been the assistant vice chancellor and chief of police at University of Massachusetts Amherst since January 2016. He received his bachelor’s degree in crime, law, and justice, and his master’s in workforce education and development from Penn State. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy. In this interview, Parham talks about his journey to UMass, his role as chief of police, and his experiences at UMass as both a police officer and a person of color.

September 19, 2020 marked 40 years since the W. E. B. Du Bois Papers were officially opened to the public at UMass Amherst. To celebrate the anniversary, the UMass Amherst Libraries, the W. E. B. Du Bois Center, and Special Collections University Archives (SCUA) produced a video telling the story of how the papers came to UMass, how they have been used in programming and scholarship, and their broader significance on campus and beyond.