Shanté Paradigm Smalls, PhD

Poster Design: Isaiah Lopaz

Looking forward to giving one of the keynotes for this conference.

On March 20-22, 2025, the Fourteenth Biannual Conference of CAAR, the Collegium for African American Research, titled “Knowledges in Motion: Black Travels, Belonging, and Transformations,” will be hosted by the Department of English and American Studies at Humboldt University Berlin, Germany.

CONFERENCE VENUE: The conference will be held in Humboldt University's main building, Unter den Linden 6, 10117 Berlin. The conference opening and the keynotes will take place in the Senatssaal on the second floor (German count: first floor).

Happy Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere!

It's been about a year (but really, two, I think!)  since we went on permanent hiatus. In that time, we've all gone on to other projects and aspects of our lives, but also worked to close down WDG operations. Part of that closure was to make sure we gave you all (and anyone who wants it) access to all the WDG teachings we had available. Some of our earliest iterations of WDG may not be present as they were hosted on a website we no longer have access to. Thank you for your support as teacher, subscriber, fan, watcher, or supporter from 2019-2022.

In this time of great heartache, war, genocide, brutality, and inhumanity across this Earth, we offer our archive as a way to help in the fight for peace, freedom, clarity, safety, and reconciliation for all beings.

May we each experience liberation in our lifetime, from all of the members of the WDG, past and present, 

Sheena Brockington

Adriana DiFazio

Ashley Dinges

Kendra Payne

Shanté Paradigm Smalls

Alex Van Gils

Special thanks to Monika Blaszczak for their digital help and media support over the last 10 months

My short sound bite on Aug 10 ep of Good Morning, America.

Press: NYU Press

Cover art: Qrcky

The ink is digitally dry, so I can officially announce that as of July 1, 2023, I will be joining the NYU Tisch Department of Art and Public Policy as an Associate Professor! I’m going to be a Violet/Bobcat again!

Thank you to all the friends, mentors, colleagues, and family who helped me through this process. Thank you those rooting for me and thank you for those praying on my downfall.

To my friends at colleagues at St. John’s University past and present, thank you—the real ones only (you know who you are). I’m so proud of the work we did together. I’m so grateful for the incredible students I got to meet. I’m thankful for the friends I made on the way and people who revealed themselves as not-friends.