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Many people are searching for hope amid the Black Lives Matter struggle and the COVID-19 pandemic. Hope is the ability to lean into an unknown future with courage and creativity despite opposition and oppression. In these difficult days, where do we find hope to counteract despair and rebuild broken communities?

Black religious and ethical traditions—ranging from African American Christianity to African American Humanism—have been instruments for reconstructing hope. Are they trustworthy tools now? In this public conversation, which is a preview of the 2022 Folklife Festival program Creative Encounters: Living Religions in America, two respected scholars of religion—Anthony Pinn and Brad Braxton—candidly examine the role of religious traditions in both frustrating and facilitating hope.

Sponsor

This event is made possible with support from Lilly Endowment.