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Florida State University’s Department of History will host an international conference Feb. 19-21 exploring the roles and legacies of Africa and the African diaspora during the world wars. (College of Arts & Sciences)\t\t<\/p>\n\t\tFlorida State University’s Department of History will host an international conference Feb. 19-21 exploring the roles and legacies of Africa and the African diaspora during the world wars. (College of Arts & Sciences)\t\t<\/p>\n
Florida State University<\/a> will host\u00a0scholars\u00a0from\u00a0around\u00a0the world\u00a0Thursday, Feb. 19 through Saturday, Feb. 21\u00a0for a conference\u00a0discussing\u00a0the roles that\u00a0Africa and\u00a0African\u00a0descendants\u00a0played\u00a0in\u00a0how\u00a0World War\u00a0I and World War II\u00a0were fought and\u00a0how they are\u00a0remembered.<\/p>\n \u201cAfrica and the African Diaspora and the World Wars\u201d\u00a0is\u00a0sponsored by\u00a0the\u00a0Department of History<\/a>\u2019s\u00a0Institute on World War II and the Human Experience<\/a>, the Society for Black Military Studies, and Auburn University\u2019s Department of History. The event, which features more than 15 international speakers, is free and open to the public, but registration is required.<\/p>\n \u201cThe conference will feature\u00a0presentations\u00a0by\u00a0young scholars from Africa and\u00a0speakers\u00a0who recently immigrated to America,\u00a0considering\u00a0battles\u00a0and other\u00a0Military engagements\u00a0during the World Wars that took\u00a0place in\u00a0Africa,\u00a0and the military history of African American participation in World War II,\u201d said\u00a0Kurt Piehler<\/a>, director of the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience and associate professor of history.<\/p>\n The event kicks off\u00a0at\u00a05\u00a0p.m.\u00a0Thursday, Feb.\u00a019,\u00a0at the\u00a0FSU\u00a0Alumni\u00a0Association\u00a0Center<\/a>\u00a0with a public\u00a0keynote\u00a0address by Chad Williams,\u00a0the Tomorrow Foundation Chair of American Intellectual History\u00a0at\u00a0Boston University\u00a0and\u00a0the\u00a0author of\u00a0four books on\u00a0African\u00a0American\u00a0history.\u00a0His\u00a0address will\u00a0focus\u00a0on\u00a0World War I, Black military history\u00a0and\u00a0William Edward Burghardt\u00a0Du Bois\u00a0\u2013\u2013 an American sociologist, writer\u00a0and Pan-African civil rights activist\u00a0who lived from 1868\u00a0to 1963\u00a0and initially\u00a0encouraged\u00a0African Americans to\u00a0support\u00a0World War\u00a0I\u00a0efforts, believing it would\u00a0help\u00a0earn rights for Black citizens.<\/p>\n \u201cChad Williams\u00a0is a remarkable scholar;\u00a0he is\u00a0one of the leading historians of military history in the 20th century, particularly for\u00a0African American\u00a0soldiers\u2019 experiences\u00a0of World War I,\u201d\u00a0Piehler said. \u201cWe were\u00a0inspired to invite him\u00a0to speak at the conference\u00a0after\u00a0an insightful conversation with my students\u00a0regarding\u00a0his\u00a0book,\u00a0\u2018Torchbearers of Democracy: African American\u00a0Soldiers\u00a0in the World War I Era.\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Following the keynote address,\u00a0five\u00a0sessions\u00a0will be held\u00a0\u2013\u2013\u202fthree on Friday, Feb.\u00a020, and two on Saturday, Feb.\u00a021\u00a0\u2013\u2013\u00a0all at the\u00a0FSU\u00a0Alumni\u00a0Association\u00a0Center.\u00a0Sessions\u00a0will\u00a0showcase\u00a0various presentations\u00a0covering\u00a0themes including\u00a0Black\u00a0military\u00a0service,\u00a0military operations in Africa,\u00a0social transformation under colonial rule,\u00a0political\u00a0communication\u00a0and\u00a0others.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAfrica and the African diaspora,\u00a0the voluntary and involuntary movement of\u00a0African\u00a0descendants\u00a0across the globe,\u00a0are\u00a0often overlooked in\u00a0military history,\u201d Piehler said. \u201cWe\u00a0hope the conference will promote scholarship in this\u00a0field and\u00a0encourage scholars to submit papers to\u00a0the Journal of Black Military Studies,\u00a0a\u00a0new journal\u00a0established\u00a0in 2024\u00a0by\u00a0one\u00a0of\u00a0the conference\u2019s\u00a0sponsors, the\u00a0Society for Black Military Studies.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The Society for Black Military Studies, founded in 2022,\u00a0aims to preserve and share\u00a0Black soldiers\u2019 contributions throughout history and raise\u00a0awareness of the Black military experience in all its complexity.<\/p>\n \u201cWorld War I and World War II cannot be understood without Africa and the African\u00a0diaspora,\u201d said\u00a0Le\u2019Trice\u00a0Donaldson, founder and president of the Society for Black Military Studies\u00a0and\u00a0an\u00a0assistant professor of history at Auburn University.\u00a0\u201cThe\u00a0World Wars\u00a0were turning points in the making of modern Black politics and identities,\u00a0shaping\u00a0struggles\u00a0such as\u00a0citizenship,\u00a0labor\u00a0and freedom. This conference emphasizes\u00a0that the World Wars were global Black history, not just European history.\u201d<\/p>\n This event is\u00a0funded by the George and Martin Langford Endowment and the Pearl Tyner Endowment.\u00a0<\/p>\n To register for the conference,\u00a0contact Piehler at\u00a0kpiehler@fsu.edu<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0To learn more about\u00a0FSU\u2019s\u00a0Department of History, visit\u00a0history.fsu.edu<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Piehler-402x512.jpg\")
Kurt Piehler is an associate professor of history and director of the Institute on World War II and the Human Experience. (College of Arts & Sciences)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/letrice_donaldson_1.2-381x512.jpg\")
Le\u2019Trice Donaldson is an assistant professor of history at Auburn University and the founder and president of the Society for Black Military Studies.<\/p>\n