“Behold the Land”: Black Ecopoetic Traditions Keynote with Michelle Banks

“Behold the Land”: Black Ecopoetic Traditions explores Black artists and writers working at the intersection of ancestral and environmental memory. The program, which takes its title from W. E. B. Du Bois’s 1946 address “Behold the Land,” draws from images and words by Dawoud Bey, Lucille Clifton, J. Drew Lanham, Lauret Savoy, and others, whose work reflects the significance of nature to the lived experience of Black communities in the United States.

Dr. Michelle A. Banks is a cultural worker and transdisciplinary scholar whose work explores the nexus of memory, place-making, and sustainability. A curator with the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage in Washington, D.C., she co-curated the following Smithsonian Folklife Festival programs: Youth and the Future of Culture (2025) and Creative Encounters: Living Religions in the U.S. (2023).

This program is part of the Making History, Making Change Lecture Series, organized by Smithsonian Affiliations as part of the Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: 250. It is supported in part by the Dreier Family, Johanna and Ken Kim Family, Vaishali Shah Chadha and Family, and Michael Vu & Meridel Bulle-Vu.

As part of the Smithsonian’s Making History, Making Change Lecture Series, the Indiana Historical Society and Conner Prairie are collaborating to delve into the revolutionary power of language.

This free evening event takes place in the Prairie House and will include an evening stroll after the presentation. Pre-registration is requested for this event.

Reserve your free ticket