GRSJ Director Organizes Groundbreaking Anthropology Conference in Dakar, Senegal

The director of the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice, Dr. Jemima Pierre, currently serves as the President of the Association of Black Anthropologists (ABA). Over the past year, she and her colleagues organized the Association’s first ever conference on the African continent in its 50-year history.

The conference took place in Dakar, Senegal, May 15-18, 2025, at the Musée des Civilisation Noires (Museum of Black Civilization)—which also co-sponsored the conference. The conference theme was: “Anthropology and the Black Experience.”

The 3 day event saw ~300 participants from all over the world join together in collaboration, scholarship, and community. The mini documentary below captures some of those moments.

Conference attendees experienced a set of performances by the National Ballet of Senegal during the opening ceremony (made possible through sponsorship by Senegal’s Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture).

The conference opening celebration also included remarks by Mme. Khady Diène Gaye, Senegal’s Minister of Youth, Sports, and Culture and by the Honourable Dr. Claudia Mosquera Rosero-Labbé, the Ambassador from Colombia who just so happens to be of African descent – and an anthropologist.

Conference participants were also treated to a private reception jointly organized by the Ambassadors of Brazil and Columbia, both women academics.

Dr. Pierre and the conference organizers wish to thank all of the sponsors who supported this groundbreaking event, including:

Musée des Civilization Noire, Government of Senegal
Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture, Government of Senegal
Embassy of Colombia
Embassy of Brazil
University of Cheikh Anta Diop (UCAD), Dean of the Faculty of letters and social sciences
L’Unité de Recherche en Ingénierie Culturelle et en Anthropologie (URICA/UCAD)