A leading expert on early African American and Southern literature is the visiting guest speaker at the Weldon In Action monthly meeting on Thursday, May 16.
The 5:30 to 7 p.m. free public event will take place at Halifax Community College, Room 108 in Building 100, the campus's main building also known as the Dr. Phillip W. Taylor Complex.
It is the fourth event in the Weldon Heritage Speaker Series that the non-profit Weldon In Action began in October 2022.
How Fugitive Slaves and Their Stories Helped Win the War Against Slavery is the title of William L. Andrews’ talk and PowerPoint presentation.
Andrews is the professor emeritus of English and Comparative Literature at the College of Arts and Sciences, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
A faculty member at UNC-Chapel Hill from 1997 to 2019, Andrews has authored, edited or co-edited over 45 books.
Among his works are North Carolina Slave Narratives, Sisters of the Spirit: Three Black Women's Autobiographies of the Nineteenth Century, To Tell a Free Story: The First Century of Afro-American Autobiography, 1760-1865 and, most recently in 2019 with Oxford University Press, the 408-page Slavery and Class in the American South: A Generation of Slave Narrative Testimony, 1840-1865.
"What a rare opportunity to hear in-person from the preeminent scholar of early African American literature and slave autobiographies and biographies," said Francis Kyle, Weldon Heritage Speaker Series co-founder and lead coordinator. "Weldon In Action, and we hope the community at-large, is grateful and excited that the retired but still active Dr. Andrews is willing to come and speak in our small town."
An audience question-and-answer time will follow the presentation.
Prior to Andrews' talk, Sandra W. Bryant of the county-wide Halifax Underground Railroad steering committee will briefly share about the non-profit organization whose mission is to "preserve stories of enslaved African American freedom seekers and promote this history through storytelling, historical markers, tourism programs, educational events and community engagement."
The May 16 event is Weldon In Action's first of two free public events highlighting Weldon's and the surrounding area's Underground Railroad heritage.
The second is on Saturday, June 8, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., during the newly formed Second Saturday in the Park that the non-profit is helping to sponsor.
Meeting at downtown Weldon's Central Park, 208 Washington Avenue, interpreters and a display will focus on the Underground Railroad.
Formed in 2021, Weldon In Action is a coalition of current and former residents desiring to assist in the effort to revitalize the historic town.
For more information on Weldon In Action, or questions about their upcoming May 16 and June 8 events highlighting the Underground Railroad, see their website — weldoninaction.com — social media channels, or email
