Manchester, NH: Two intriguing and inspiring African American women will be the focus of two events at the the 13th Annual Black New England Conference (BNEC), hosted by the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire (BHTNH) and Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) on October 25th and 26th, 2019.
This year’s BNEC, entitled BLACK INK: African American News from Slave Songs to Social Media, explores the critical role of the Black Press as purveyors of news and information and as agents of social change from its earliest traditional forms to present day online platforms.
Harriet Wilson, a Milford, NH Black woman and groundbreaking author, and April Ryan, a well known African American journalist and author, are two women who have each in their own way been trailblazers in the realm of the written word. Although they lived in different centuries, each has had an impact on the world and a critical role in using their writing to create change in society.
The conference commences with a historical guided tour in Milford, NH, entitled Trailblazer Harriet E. Wilson: From Servitude to Authorship. Wilson was born and raised in Milford, NH and is considered the first published female Black author in North American. Her book, Our Nig: Sketches in the Life of a Free Black, was published in September 1859 by the Boston firm of George C. Rand and Avery. This tour tells the story of Wilson’s journey from indentured servitude to authorship and visit the sites where her courageous story unfolds.
This event is from 9:00am to 12pm on Friday, October 25, 2019 and the guided tour bus leaves from and returns to SNHU. Tickets are available for this event on its own and are included with the conference tickets.
April Ryan is an African American journalist and author. Since 1997, she has served as a White House correspondent and is the Washington, D.C., bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks. In 2017, she joined CNN as a political analyst. In May 2017, the National Association of Black Journalists named Ryan as the “Journalist of the Year”.
As a White House Correspondent April Ryan has a unique vantage point as the only black female reporter covering urban issues from the White House. On behalf of the American Urban Radio Networks, and through her “Fabric of America” news blog, she delivers her readership and listeners (millions of African Americans and close to 300 radio affiliates) a “unique urban and minority perspective in news.”
In her keynote address, “Under Fire: Reporting from the Front Lines”, on Friday, October 25th, 2019, as part of the BHTNH Citizen of the Year Award Dinner at SNHU, Ryan will tell of her experiences as a journalist. Her position as a White House Correspondent has afforded her unusual insight into the racial sensitivities, issues, and attendant political struggles of our nation’s last presidents.
Like Harriet Wilson, April Ryan is a groundbreaking author. She wrote the award-winning book, The Presidency in Black and White, and At Mama’s Knee: Mothers and Race in Black and White (December 2016), where she looks at race relations through the lessons and wisdom that mothers have given their children. Her latest book is Under Fire: Reporting from the Front Lines of the Trump White House.
Tickets to the Awards Dinner and Keynote Address can be purchased separately online and are included in the conference ticket.
BHTNH Executive Director JerriAnne Boggis is thrilled that this year two such outstanding and influential Black women will be included in the BNEC programming.
“Each in her own way has been an influencer in her own time and place, “said Boggis. “Harriet Wilson shared the true experience of what it was like to be Black and in servitude in the 19th century and opened the eyes of her generation. Likewise, April Ryan presents a perspective on politics and important current social issues that invites introspection and dialogue. We are truly honored to share their experiences at this year’s BNEC.”
For more information or to register for the conference, keynote address or tour, please visit:
