Slavery North invites you to the fifth our series of eight Fellow Talks in Spring 2026. UMass Amherst PhD student in English, Abi Mbaye, shares research project creating an accessible timeline of slavery in New York.
This hybrid talk is open to students, faculty, staff, and members of the public.
Date/Time: Thursday, April 9, 2026, 2:30-3:30 PM (EDT)
Location: Room 601, Herter Hall, 161 Presidents Drive, UMass Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003
Online via Zoom:
https://umass-amherst.zoom.us/j/94720824692
Meeting ID: 947 2082 4692
Speaker: Abi Mbaye, Graduate Student Fellow, 2025-26
Moderator: Dr. Martha McNamara, Associate Professor of Public History & Associate Director Slavery North
Lecture: Slavery and the Making of New York: A Historical Timeline
Lecture abstract: This project creates an accessible timeline of slavery in New York, showing how deeply the institution shaped the city’s development. Through key events, laws, and stories of everyday life, the timeline illustrates how enslaved Africans built roads, farms, docks, and neighborhoods that helped transform New York into a major economic center.
Bio: Abi Mbaye is a PhD student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a Black feminist scholar specializing in English with a focus on American Studies. She completed her undergraduate studies at Tulane University where she earned her bachelors in English, Public Health and Africana Studies. She then pursued and attained her M.A. in English from Tulane University and a second M.A. in African Studies from UCLA. Abi’s research is centered around critical issues faced by Black women, including health disparities, migration impacts, historical trauma, Black feminist thought, and revolutionary politics. Abi is also an activist and seasoned social justice trainer with decade long experience in challenging oppressive systems through impactful trainings focused on anti-oppression, power dynamics, and identity exploration. During her free time, Abi dedicates herself to fostering transformative education through the creation of curricula influenced by renowned literary works; these curricula explore intricate subjects like race, class, gender, and various manifestations of oppression.
