Toni Morrison Society holds Summer Symposium in Martinique


Seventy Morrison scholars as readers gathered in Fort- de- France, Martinique from June 22 to June 27 to explore the intellectual and cultural connections between noted Martiniquais political leader, poet and playwright Aimé Césaire and American Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison. The Symposium: “The African Diasporic Vision of Aime Cesaire and Toni Morrison.” Was sponsored by the Toni Morrison Society in collaboration with the Martinique Tourism Authority. The Symposium featured keynote speakers acclaimed Haitian-American novelist and short story writer Edwidge Danticat and acclaimed French novelist, poet, and essayist Daniel Maximin.

The three-day Symposium held in the historic Aimé Césaire Theater in Fort- de- France, Martinique, included sessions on the “Diasporic Vision of Morrision and Césaire,” “The Influence of Morrison on other Writers and Artists of the Diaspora,” “ Aimé Césaire and the History and Legacy of the Negritude Movement”, and “The Future of Cultural and Intellectual Connections in the African Diaspora.” The symposium concluded with a rededication of the Bench by the Road that the Society placed for Aimé Césaire on the occasion of his 100 th Birthday in 2013 and Closing Luncheon to thank sponsors and participants and to present a Founder’s Bench by the Road Award to Muriel Wiltord, Society member and Director Americas of the Martinique Tourism Authority who provided invaluable leadership and support for the Symposium.

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