Schedule

Dr. Kevin K. Gaines is the Julian Bond Professor of Civil Rights and Social Justice at the University of Virginia. He will be presenting "In the Struggle for the Soul of a Nation, Black History Matters." Gaines’ scholarship focuses on the problems and projects of racial integration in the United States during and after the civil rights movement. A distinguished scholar in African-American history, he holds appointments in the Carter G. Woodson Institute of African-American and African Studies and the Corcoran Department of History. He is author of “Uplifting the Race: Black Leadership, Politics, and Culture During the Twentieth Century” and “American Africans in Ghana: Black Expatriates and the Civil Rights Era”. His current research focuses on the integrationist projects of African American activists, artists and intellectuals, interventions that redefined blackness and acknowledged the relationship of structural and ideological forms of racism to racial capitalism, patriarchy, and homophobia.

Race

Education

Crime/violence
Community Organizing

Housing
Victimization

Between 1937 and 1973, local authorities across Virginia used federal dollars to uproot Black neighborhoods, clearing the way for universities, convention centers, interstate highways, upscale residential developments, and segregated Black public housing. In Richmond, the construction of I-95 through the historic Jackson Ward neighborhood displaced fully 10 percent of the city’s Black population. In Norfolk, urban renewal became a tool for local officials to demolish racially integrated neighborhoods in order to maintain segregated schools. This panel brings together the authors and editors of a recent series in Encyclopedia Virginia that interrogates the history and enduring legacy of urban renewal in Virginia, revealing how urban landscapes across the Commonwealth continue to bear its scars.

Arts and Humanities
Housing
Race

Criminal Justice
Education

Race
Identity

Pick up a boxed lunch

Join E Pluribus Unum's Founder and President Mitch Landrieu, the former Mayor of New Orleans and former Senior Advisor to President Biden, for a discussion about continuing the important work of expanding fairness and opportunity in the midst of the changing priorities and attitudes at the national level. The session will focus on how to stay motivated, strengthening alliances, and key considerations as leaders and organizations navigate unprecedented challenges. E Pluribus Unum is an organization that works with leaders and communities across the American South, equipping them with tools, programs, and support to bridge divides and foster connection across differences.

Community Organizing

Crime/violence
Health

Environment
Health

Faith
Health

Arts and Humanities
Community Organizing

Race

Criminal Justice

Gender/Sexuality

Environment
Housing

Education
Environment
Housing
Race

Criminal Justice

Health

This panel discussion will explore the transformative role of art in advancing social justice and social change. Featuring prominent Hampton Roads artists Clayton Singleton and Rowena Federico Finn, alongside Heather Hakimzadeh (curator of the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art) and Michael Berlucci (CEO of Arts Alliance), the conversation will delve into how art can spark dialogue, build community, and inspire action. Together, they’ll discuss the responsibilities of artists and institutions in today’s social landscape and how creative expression continues to challenge systems of power while imagining new possibilities for a more just future.

Arts and Humanities

Alternatives World Changers Leadership Team Bending the Bars Boxing 2 LIVE INC Youth Mentoring Chesapeake Climate Action Network CHKD Safer Futures City of Newport News Juvenile Services ECHO Family Care Partners Freekind Grace Episcopal Church - Racial Justice Steering Committee Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia (HOME of VA) LifeNet Health Listen Out Loud Media MOMS DEMAND ACTION New American History, University of Richmond Newport News Green Foundation Newport News Human Rights Commission Newport News Pastoring the City Nolef Turns Inc OAR of Richmond Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion - City of Hampton Peninsula Pastoral Counseling Center Peninsula Regional Education Program , St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church SCHEV Soundscapes The Human Liberation & Balance Institute The Humanization Project THRIVE Peninsula Transitions Family Violence Services Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Peninsula United Jewish Community of the Virginia Peninsula VA BLOC VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities Virginia Coalition Against Human Trafficking Virginia Coalition for the Prevention of Elder Abuse Virginia Consensus for Higher Education in Prison Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy Virginia Interfaith Power & Light Virginia Organizing Virginia Racial Healing Institute Virginia Wesleyan University Volunteers of America Chesapeake & Carolinas YWCA South Hampton Roads

Social Services
Community Organizing