On Thursday, March 24, the History Department will host a visit by Dr. Gregory O’Malley, Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Santa Cruz and author of the much lauded Final Passages: The Intercolonial Slave Trade of British America, 1619-1807 (University of North Carolina Press, 2014).
In Final Passages, O’Malley explores the origins, evolution, and decline of the trade in enslaved Africans within and among American colonies between 1619 and 1807. Most Americans are now familiar with the Middle Passage, the transatlantic crossing that brought enslaved people to the Western Hemisphere, but as O’Malley demonstrates, that was far from the end of the journey for many of them. O’Malley’s visit will provide an opportunity for us to explore the ways in which people of African descent have worked to forge communities in the Americas despite the enduring legacies of slavery and racial discrimination.
Professor O’Malley will join us for two events:
Roundtable, 2:30pm
Center for Inclusive Excellence, Whittemore Library
During the roundtable, Dr. O'Malley will lead a discussion on balancing empirical quantitative research with a humane approach to writing about human subjects, particularly those who were oppressed or marginalized. The debate over how to manage these issues is central to writing about the history of enslavement and many other issues where evidence is available largely in only quantitative form. Light refreshments will be served. O'Malley has written a brief introduction to his approach on this issue for Uncommon Sense, the blog of the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture.
Beyond the Middle Passage: Slave Trading from the Caribbean to North America, 1619-1807
Public Lecture, 4:30pm
Heineman Ecumenical Center
Few Americans are aware that hundreds of thousands of enslaved survivors of the Middle Passage were forced to endure additional journeys after crossing the Atlantic. These forced intra-American migrations of several hundred thousand enslaved people have profound implications for understanding commerce, the British Empire, and the development of American slavery and American society. O’Malley will discuss, among other topics, colonial New Englanders’ roles as both traders and purchasers of slaves. Students are highly encouraged to attend! A reception open to all attendees will follow the talk in the Ecumenical Center.
About Dr. O'Malley
Final Passages, published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture in collaboration with the University of North Carolina Press, has been awarded the Elsa Goveia Book Prize by the Association of Caribbean Historians, the Frank L. and Harriet C. Owsley Award by the Southern Historical Association, and the James A. Rawley Prize in Atlantic History and the Morris D. Forkosch Prize by the American Historical Association.