Vandy Social Justice Scholar Daniel Sharfstein to Deliver 2019 Prichard Lecture

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 12, 2019) — Mark your calendars now for the 2019 Edward F. Prichard Lecture Sept. 19. Social justice advocate, author and Vanderbilt Law Professor Daniel Sharfstein will be the featured speaker at this year’s Edward F. Prichard Lecture, sponsored by the University of Kentucky Libraries Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Research Center.

Sharfstein will discuss his book, "The Invisible Line: A Secret History of Race in America," which details the multigenerational secrets of three families in the Southeastern United States, whose struggles reveal a greater truth about the complications of race in America.

This lecture is the keynote event presented in conjunction with the collection opening of the Duncan-Gibson-Foster family papers, donated by the Pettit family. The families were influential in the cotton, sugar, hemp and timber industries in Kentucky, Louisiana and Minnesota. The collection is a rich resource for the study of race, agriculture, the horse industry and antebellum architecture. The Pettit family collection was among the many sources consulted for "The Invisible Line." In further celebration, an exhibit of collection materials from the Duncan, Foster, and Gibson families will be on display.

The Prichard Lecture, which is free and open to the public, will begin 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 19, in the Margaret I. King Library Building's Great Hall. Reception to follow in the King Library Lobby.

RSVPs are appreciated but not required.

The  Special Collections Research Center at UK Libraries sustains the Commonwealth's memory and serves as the essential bridge between past, present and future. By preserving materials documenting the social, cultural, economic and political history of Kentucky, the center provides rich opportunities for students to expand their worldview and enhance their critical thinking skills. Special Collections Research Center materials are used by scholars worldwide to advance original research and pioneer creative approaches to scholarship. UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is the Archives, the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, the King Library Press, the Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Research Center, the Bert T. Combs Appalachian Collection, the John G. Heyburn Initiative and ExploreUK.