September 22: Anita Plummer (Department of African Studies, Howard University) will deliver a talk titled “Kenya, China, and the Online Public Sphere,” about how virtual spaces enable non-elite Kenyans to respond to large-scale Chinese fishing operations off the Kenyan coast.

We are happy to kick off the 2021–22 African Studies Colloquium Series next Wednesday, 22 September, when we welcome guest speaker Anita Plummer, Assistant Professor of African Studies at Howard University. Dr. Plummer’s work focuses on African political economy, transnationalism, and Sino-African relations. She has conducted research in China, Kenya, South Africa, Mozambique, and Senegal. Her current book project is titled Street-Level Discourses: Change, Power and Agency in Kenya’s Engagements with China. The book focuses on grassroots perspectives and responses to China’s increased political and economic interventions in Africa. (We’re also proud to note that Dr. Plummer is a former Predoctoral Fellow at the Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies.)

Dr. Plummer’s talk is titled “Discordant Discourses: Kenya, China and the Online Public Sphere.” The talk will take place on Zoom on Wednesday, 22 September, from 3:30–5:00 PM.