On behalf of the Urban Institute and the Sheffield Institute for International Development-Cities, I was invited to participate in a consultative forum on Black Urbanism to be held on March 24th 2021 at 16:00 GMT. the Sheffield research centers that are initiating this--Urban Institute, and the Sheffield Institute for International Development. But the aim is for Victoria to convene, Dr. Patricia Noxolo, Dr. Jovan Scott Lewis, and Dr. Paul Goodwin to steer the discussion. The initiative seeks to further the discussion for urban studies in general, and to continue to work against the lack of inclusion at the UK's top urban research institutions.
The purpose of this forum was threefold:
To elicit the ideas and experiences of a younger generation of Black scholars concerning what they consider to be the critical theoretical and empirical issues related to substantiating a field of “Black urbanism”— as a critical dimension of urban studies and experiences in general.
To elicit ideas about what might constitute the most salient and inventive research and pedagogical practices able to fully engage and honor the pluriversal dimensions of Black urban life across its multiple geographical and temporal manifestations.
To elicit ideas about how to build capacity amongst the research community in urban studies and related disciplines in general to better engage these various facets of Black urbanism, including discussions about relevant political struggles within the academy and other research institutions, and strategies aimed at maximizing Black participation in all dimensions.
The forum will assemble around 30 scholars, with a discussion facilitated by several reference persons whose work exemplifies a long-term engagement with these issues. Primarily, we want to hear from you, withrecommendations for future theoretical and engaged work for advancing Black urbanism as an integral part of urban research endeavors that should be undertaken by the urban studies community, how this community should be changed in order to facilitate more salient engagements with Black urbanism, and what alternative institutional initiatives might be undertaken in face of constraining racial atmospheres that persist within the academy.