Farah Jasmine Griffin to speak at Regis University

Farah Jasmine Griffin, author and professor at Columbia University, will be speaking at Regis University on Thursday, Sept. 8 at the St. John Francis Regis Chapel at 7 p.m. The following day, on Friday, Sept. 9 at 9:30 a.m., she will lead a discussion with students.

Griffin authored the book Read Until You Understand: The Profound Wisdom of Black Life and Literature. She was deeply troubled by the political turmoil happening across the United States during the 2016 presidential campaign and began writing the literary memoir, which explores what democracy means for the lives and work of Black authors and activists, and herself. As part of Regis University’s first year experience, Read Until You Understand is required reading for first-year-students.

“We are thrilled that Professor Griffin could come to Regis and speak with students, faculty and staff. She brings to our students an important and valuable message about the world we are living in right now,” said Jason Taylor, Ph.D., professor, and Director of the First Year Experience at Regis University. “We know that many in our community have experienced so much as it relates to social justice, and all of us  have much learn from Professor Griffin’s celebration of black life and literature about democracy and the human condition.

Griffin is a professor of English and Comparative Literature and African American Studies at Columbia University, where she also served as the inaugural Chair of the African American and African Diaspora Studies department. Griffin received her B.A. in history and literature from Harvard University and her Ph.D. in American Studies from Yale University. She is the author or editor of eight books including: Who Set You Flowin?; The African American Migration Narrative; If You Can’t Be Free, Be a Mystery: In Search of Billie Holiday; and Harlem Nocturne: Women Artists and Progressive Politics During World War II.

The Office of the First Year Experience’s mission is to create an academic culture of radical hospitality, a culture which welcomes newcomers to Regis University and helps them make their collegiate experience feel like home. Every course in the Regis Core program is designed to help students understand, explore and live the question, "How ought we to live?" Regis University recognizes that in today’s diverse and complex world, education cannot be limited to one field of study.