D Hutchinson was a doctoral candidate in History that brought joy and intellectual community to every space across the University of Michigan campus. This conference seeks to not only channel the spirit of intellectual kinship D generously shared with us but to also create space for rigorous engagement with D’s central research questions. We have curated a day of learning that invites an interdisciplinary audience of critical thinkers to key questions related to Black queer kinship, history, and possibility.

The conference will bring together D’s beloved family and friends, interdisciplinary scholars, as well as U-M faculty, graduate students, and alumni who, over the course of two days, will reflect on D’s most catalytic research interests as well as their profound scholastic engagement with Black queer kinship.

Schedule:

Thursday, October 19
6:00 pm | Welcome Dinner and Degree Conferring

Friday, October 20
10:00 am | Keynote Address

• Darius Bost (University of Illinois, Chicago)

11:00 am | Roundtable 1: Celebrating D as Student, Friend, and Relative

• Jennifer Dominique Jones (University of Michigan)
• Eshe Sherley (University of Michigan)
• M Aziz (University of Washington)
• Casidy Campbell (Northwestern University)

12:30 pm | Lunch (provided)

1:30 pm | Roundtable 2: Kinship and the Healing Work

• SaraEllen Strongman (University of Michigan)
• Sydney Tunstall (University of Michigan)
• Mix Mann (University of Michigan)
• Mara Johnson (University of Michigan)

3:15 pm | Roundtable 3: Current Topics in Theory and Histories

• Andrea Bolivar (University of Michigan)
• LaVelle Ridley (University of California, Berkeley)
• Cassius Adair (The New School)
• Gabriel Johnson (University of Michigan)

4:45 pm | Closing Remarks

As a history doctoral candidate, D Hutchinson left an indelible print on both in the History Department and in the broader community of graduate students studying and cherishing Black and queer life. D’s research interests included African American gender history, African American intellectual history, cultural history, and queer studies. D is remembered as extraordinarily kind and unconditionally loved. As a Kansas City native, D grew up in the tender care of their mother, Laura Lee Hutchinson, and father, David Sambol. After graduating from Sumner Academy of Arts and Science, D went on to attend Truman State University where D graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in history. D was always witty and enjoyed a good debate, and at Truman State, their hunger for intellectual conversations grew. D’s brilliant mind led them to U-M where their passion for teaching positioned them to shine as a graduate student instructor and active member of the History Department. We miss D, but we see every connection and learning opportunity as a place to remember and honor them.

Support from: Center for Racial Justice, Department of English Language and Literature, Department of Women’s and Gender Studies, Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, Institute for Research on Women and Gender, Rackham Dean’s Strategic Initiative (DSI) Programmatic Support Fund

Image: Collage made by Anna Almore. Find more on Instagram @aalmore.