Lost Voices of the
Afro-Celts

Michael Newton, PhD, Celtic Studies, University of Edinburgh
"Lost Voices of the Afro-Celts"
Thurs., Nov. 17, 2005
3:30 pm
Toy Lounge, Dey Hall
Co-sponsored by the Department of History

Michael Newton has a PhD in Celtic studies from the University of Edinburgh. He has written several books and numerous articles on Highland history and tradition, and has become the leading scholar on the culture and history of immigrant Highland communities in the United States. He is a fluent Gaelic speaker, a proponent of Highland song and dance, and a published creative writer in the Gaelic language.

Description of Talk
Modern American consciousness is highly racialized: we are told implicitly and explicitly that our skin color determines our race, our identity, to whom we belong, and what belongs to us. The reality of American history, even in the South, is not so easily segregated, however. There have been many fascinating exchanges and interactions between people of African ancestry and people of Scottish Highland ancestry, in terms of racial categorization, language use, music and dance traditions, and a rhetoric decrying oppression. This lecture will explore some of the forgotten connections between African Americans and Scottish Highlanders and remind us of the rich cultural interactions between people of all ethnic origins in our complex nation.