In this Baldwin Circles special event, Eddie Glaude Jr. (African American Studies) will discuss his 2020 New York Times bestselling book, “Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own” in conversation with Brian Eugenio Herrera (Lewis Center for the Arts). Heralded as “a groundbreaking and informative guide to Baldwin and his era” by The Washington Post, “Begin Again” examines James Baldwin’s life and work, and offers insights into the current moment. This event is open to the public.

Revisit a Q&A with Eddie Glaude Jr. about “Begin Again” on the Humanities Council’s Faculty Bookshelf.

Eddie Glaude Jr. is a scholar, educator, author, political commentator, and public intellectual who examines the complex dynamics of the American experience. He is the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of African American Studies. He served as the inaugural chair of the department for more than 14 years. He is the author of several books, including “Democracy in Black,” “Begin Again,” winner of the Harriet Beecher Stowe Book Prize, and most recently, “We Are the Leaders We Have Been Looking For,” published in 2024.

Brian Eugenio Herrera, associate professor of theater in the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton, is a writer, teacher, and scholar whose academic and artistic work examines the history of gender, sexuality and race within the United States and through popular performance. Herrera is currently convening a Baldwin Circle through the Humanities Council, focused on Baldwin’s 1968 novel, “Tell Me How Long the Train’s Been Gone.”