Roger Fairfax Participates in Black History Celebration


February 25, 2019

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In commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the first African slaves arriving in the Virginia Colony, the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) kicked off their year-long celebration with a panel discussion held at the National Press Club. ASALH was established in 1915 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson and founded Black History Month. The 2019 Black History theme, “Black Migrations,” was chosen to emphasize the movement of people of African descent to new destinations and to new social realities.

Dean Roger A. Fairfax, Jeffrey and Martha Kohn Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Research Professor of Law, was among four scholars on the panel. He addressed the role of the criminal justice system as it relates to the arch of American history. The panel also discussed the historical significance of this year in the context of “400 Years of Perseverance” in African American history, examining the importance of slave site preservation, W.E.B. DuBois' color line theory, civil rights, and the criminal justice system. Dean Fairfax highlighted the National Museum of African American History and Culture as a monument to perseverance. “There is scarcely an exhibit in that museum that does not bring into sharp relief the intimate nexus between the criminal law and the 400 years plus struggle of African Americans in this country,” he said.

Other panelists included Brent Leggs, African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation; Spencer R. Crew, George Mason University; and Gloria J. Browne-Marshall, John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Dr. Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, President of ASALH and Chair of the History Department at Harvard University, served as moderator. The discussion was followed by a question and answer session.

Watch the Panel

Information About 400th Commemoration National Calendar