A Changeling in their Laps: Critical Cosmopolitanism and the Intellectual work of Alain Locke

A cultural leader of the Harlem Renaissance, Alain Locke and his remarkable achievements will be highlighted in a lecture at the Gallier Historic House this evening. 

In 1907, Locke became the first African American Rhodes Scholar. He began his teaching career in 1912 as a professor of Philosophy and English at Howard University where he worked over forty years. Playing an active role in adult education, Locke became the first African American to serve as president of the American Association for Adult Education. He was a major contributor to Opportunity: Journal of Negro Life and Survey Graphic, where he served as the editor of The New Negro: An Interpretation in 1925.

Dr. Kara Tucina Olidge will discuss Alain Locke’s life and events which contributed to his intellectual perspective on cosmopolitanism as demonstrated in his philosophical and educational thought. She will present how Locke’s perspectives of cosmopolitanism, as a black queer intellectual, become misread in contemporary readings of black history. The presentation situates Locke’s criticism and use of cosmopolitanism within a group of transnational modernists whose experiences enabled them to deploy cosmopolitanism as social critical theory. 5:30 pm–7 pm. $10 in advance; $12 at the door. hgghh.org.