Local History Roundtable will feature Robinson

The Kutsche Office of Local History will highlight how diverse populations have changed West Michigan during its seventh annual Local History Roundtable on March 24.

"Changing Communities" will begin at 9 a.m. at the Mary Idema Pew Library and Kirkhof Center on the Allendale Campus. Cost to attend is $25 and includes breakfast, lunch and dinner plus conference materials.

The opening keynote address will be given by Todd Robinson, author of "A City Within a City: The Black Freedom Struggle in Grand Rapids." Robinson is an associate professor of history at the University of Nevada Las Vegas and an expert in urban and African American history. He will speak at 10 a.m. and facilitate a discussion, "Race and the West Michigan City," at 11:30 a.m. 

Robinson's work was selected by Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss as the inaugural "Mayor's Book of the Year" during her February State of the City address. Published in 2012, "A City Within a City" focuses on the struggles of school integration and racial inequality in Grand Rapids after World War II and through the civil rights era.

Other noted addresses will be by Timothy Gleisner, director of Grand Rapids Public Library local history department and special collections, about changes in Grand Rapids; and Delia Fernandez, assistant professor of history at Michigan State University, about Puerto Rican and Mexican influences in the city.

Also on March 24, Robinson will sign books and lead a community conversation on "A City Within a City" from 6-8 p.m. at the LINC Gallery, 341 Hall St. SE. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact the Kutsche Office of Local History at (616) 331-8099 or [email protected].