A Southern Studies alumna from the class of 2011 had a grand idea to have the first Southern Studies Zoom-union. All past Southern Studies graduates with a B.A., M.A., or M.F.A. are invited along with former staff, faculty, and affiliated faculty. This virtual gathering will provide an opportunity to reconnect with classmates and professors and …
Written By Rebecca Lauck Cleary How can someone you’ve never met be an inspiration? Just ask Zaire Love, who defended her thesis April 29 for her M.F.A. in Documentary Expression degree. For her, the death of a musician in California influenced her work on a personal level in Mississippi Rapper, entrepreneur, and activist Nipsey Hussle …
Written By Rebecca Lauck Cleary After graduating with his M.A. in Southern Studies in 2019, Hooper Schultz decided to remain at the University of Mississippi for another year and earn his M.F.A. in Documentary Expression. On April 28, he defended his thesis and fulfilled that goal. Schultz is a historian whose work has focused mainly …
Thomas successfully defended his thesis on April 20 Written By Rebecca Lauck Cleary James G. Thomas Jr. began his research on the history of Lebanese communities in the Mississippi Delta in 2006, when he was working on his master’s degree in Southern Studies. That effort turned into his master’s thesis, and now he has completed …
Second M.A. student defends her thesis remotely Written By Rebecca Lauck Cleary Southern Studies master’s student Hilary Word has been considering the supernatural and futuristic worlds through the lens of literature for years. Word’s thesis “Post-Soul Speculation: An Exploration of Afro-Southern Speculative Fiction,” looks at the genre of fiction that encompasses works where the setting …
Congratulations to the first remote thesis defender Written by Rebecca Lauck Cleary Rice and beans are staple foods for many cultures around the world. The combination makes up a complete protein, and is delicious and nutritious. Olivia Terenzio became interested in the subject of rice and beans after spending a few months in Brazil in …
Written by Simone Delerme “When I want to feel better, I drive down Summer Avenue. There I can see the past, present and future diversity and humanity of Memphis.” 1 I discovered Summer Avenue—a commercial district in Memphis, Tennessee—while working on an oral history project in 2016. I was interviewing Latino restaurant owners, workers, and …
In the mountains of Veracruz from 1570 to 1609, a young African-born Gaspar Yanga led resistance against the Spanish and forced recognition of his group’s freedom, self-governance, and rights to the land. In the film “Imagine Freedom: Sounding Yanga’s Cry across Gulf Shores” Dolores Flores-Silva and Keith Cartwright address the legacy of this Maroon community …
Today, Living Blues #266 (April/May 2020) publishes their special 50th Anniversary issue, and the largest issue in nearly a decade. For this issue they revisit 21 of the past cover artists to see where life and the blues have led them. The artists featured include Bobby Rush, Irma Thomas, Jimmy Johnson, Robert Cray, Lil’ Ed …
Since we can’t gather in person to celebrate the written word this year, we’d like to post audio and video from previous Oxford Conferences for the Book. We begin the series with John T. Edge in media res, introducing Daniel Woodrell, who reads from his novel Give Us a Kiss: A Country Noir, from The …