A Conference in Honor of Ira Berlin (1941-2017)

Lonnie G. Bunch III Delivers Keynote

The Department of History and the Center for Global Migration Studies (with African American and Africana Studies; American Studies; Asian Studies; College of Arts and Humanities; College of Behavioral & Social Sciences; UMD Libraries; and Sociology) co-sponsored a conference in honor of Ira Berlin (1941-2017). Organized by Julie Greene and Madeline Hsu, it was hosted by Hsu at UMD on April 30-May 1, 2025. The theme of the conference was Free and Unfree: Racialized Migrations and Inequalities. It honored Berlin's illustrious career as a pioneering scholar of the history of slavery in the US. His impact went far beyond his scholarship, extending to leadership, vision, ethical convictions, and social justice advocacy.

A highlight of the conference was the opening keynote given by Lonnie G. Bunch III, the 14th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. He was the founding director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. His keynote was a conversation about "Arts and Humanities in the Making of America," facilitated by Julie Greene. The program featured scholars from the US and Canada, carrying on the monumental work that Ira Berlin began.