Blue Devil of the Week: Exploring What it Means to be Black

“At the center, we embrace the notion of ‘Teranga,’ which we understand to mean radical hospitality. We want folks to feel truly welcomed and believe that if we can make the center warm enough and inviting enough, then you will know that you are safe enough to share your self and your ideas about who you are, who black people are, what Duke has been and what Duke could be.

I have the opportunity to curate a black cultural and historic experience in real time by bringing together scholarly thinkers or other culture producers, keepsakes, historic pieces, and visual and performing art. I am a steward for a physical facility that bears the name of an extraordinary woman, Mary Lou Williams, in a building that was designed by an extraordinary man, Julian Francis Abele, on a campus that has for many, many years been cared for by a lot of nameless black people who have provided extraordinary service. I am also an educator and an activist, which probably is most expressed at Duke through my advocacy for my students and the causes that they care about.”

Chandra Guinn
Director, Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture
11 years at Duke

Nominate a colleague to be the next Blue Devil of the Week.