Sufiya Abdur-Rahman, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction

Sufiya Abdur-Rahman, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction

College of Arts and Humanities | English Wednesday, February 23, 2022 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm Virtual

Antiracism: Communities + Collaborations presents "Sufiya Abdur-Rahman, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction" featuring Professor Sufiya Abdur-Rahman, winner of the Iowa Prize for Literary Nonfiction, Heir to the Crescent Moon (University of Iowa Press, 2021), in conversation with Dr. Sheneese Thompson (Bowie State University). Co-sponsored by CLCS and Bowie State University.

For questions contact Tita Chico (tchico@umd.edu).

A limited number of copies of Prof. Abdur-Rahman’s book are available for BSU and UMD registrants.

Speakers

Sufiya Abdur-Rahman’s writing investigates questions of family, identity, race, and religion and, often, how they intersect. Her essays, articles, and criticism have appeared in publications including Catapult, The Common Online, Gay Mag, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, and NPR. She has earned Notable distinction in Best American Essays, received fellowships from the Sustainable Arts Foundation, and is a two-time alumnus of VONA writing workshops. She is Creative Nonfiction Editor for Cherry Tree, a national literary journal, at Washington College, where she teaches nonfiction. She lives in Annapolis, Md., with her family.
Twitter: @MrsAbolitionist

Dr. Sheneese Thompson was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Through her participation in the Philadelphia Freedom Schools program, she was introduced to Africana Studies and decided to pursue the critical study of the African Diaspora’s cultural and intellectual contributions. She earned a B.A in Afro-American Studies from Howard University, her M.A. in African American Studies from Boston University, and Ph.D. in African American and African Studies from The Ohio State University. She is currently an Assistant Professor and Interim Course Coordinator for First-Year Writing in the Department of Language, Literature & Cultural Studies at Bowie State University specializing in Africana Literature and Film. Her research areas of interest include Black Popular Culture, Comparative Diaspora Studies, and Afro-Atlantic Religion, most notably Lucumí’s cultural impact in the United States.