2025 James Baldwin Lecture: The Meaning of Honesty in Academe
Lecture by Steven Salaita
Presented with the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies
In this talk, Steven Salaita will draw on his recent memoir, An Honest Living, to explore questions of honesty and dishonesty on campus. Is it possible for a professor to pursue an honest living? What might it look like? Conversely, are there forms of dishonesty that can be considered ethical or necessary amid the predominant cultures of academe? Salaita will consider these questions through analysis of labor, inequality, alienation, and political violence on and off campus.
View full details and register on the Feinberg Series website
Steven Salaita is professor of English and comparative literature at the American University in Cairo. His most recent books are a memoir, An Honest Living, and a novel, Daughter, Son, Assassin. He writes at stevesalaita.com.
The James Baldwin Lecture
The biennial James Baldwin Lecture addresses issues connected to social, economic, and political justice and underpinnings in institutional racism. The lecture honors the late James Baldwin, who taught at UMass for several years and is co-presented by the Department of History, the W. E. B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies, and the College of Humanities and Fine Arts.
The 2024-25 Feinberg Series
What Are Universities For? Struggles for the Soul of Higher Education
This event is presented in collaboration with the 2024-25 Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series, which is exploring the historical roots of present-day political, economic, and ethical crises in higher education. The Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series is made possible thanks to the generosity of UMass Amherst history department alumnus Kenneth R. Feinberg ’67 and associates.
Departmental (co)sponsorship of various types of events does not constitute an endorsement of the views expressed by the presenters, either at the events in question or in other venues. Rather, sponsorship is an endorsement of the exploration of complex and sometimes difficult topics. The UMass History Department is committed to promoting the free and peaceful exchange of ideas, one of the most important functions of the university.