KU to host symposium on race and sports

Kansas University will present a community symposium, “Race and Sports in American Culture”, on Thursday at Maceli’s, 1031 New Hampshire St.

If you go

What: Race and Sports in American Culture: A KU Symposium

Keynote address: William Rhoden of the New York Times

Panel members: Darrell Stuckey, Rhavean King, Tommie Smith, Eric Patterson, Willie Amison, Reggie Mitchell and Tamra Gibson

When: 6 p.m. Thursday

Where: Maceli’s, 1031 New Hampshire St.

Cost per person: Free and open to the public (with printed ticket from Eventbrite)

New York Times sports columnist and bestselling author William Rhoden will give the keynote address. The KU School of Business, Langston Hughes Center and Kansas Athletics are sponsoring the event.

Talking about race in the context of sports can serve as an inroad to a broader conversation, said Shawn Alexander, director of the LHC and KU associate professor of African and African-American Studies.

“We can use the topic of sports as a way to get into those discussions about race and society,” he said.

The event will also include a panel discussion, moderated by Alexander, with current and former KU student-athletes and coaches.

The symposium is deliberately being held off campus in order to encourage members of the community to come, Alexander said.

“Rather than just a group of academics and students, we would like it to be a community-wide discussion,” he said.

The event will have seating for more than 300 people and is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Registration can be completed online through the LHC website, langstonhughes.ku.edu, or at eventbrite.com.