This round‑table conversation brings together Prof Louis Herns Marcelin (University of Miami) and Dr Ola Osman (University of Cambridge) to explore how the legacies of enslavement and colonialism shape contemporary forms of violence in Liberia and Haiti.
Event details
Speakers:
Prof Louis Herns Marcelin, University of Miami
Dr Ola Osman, University of Cambridge
6 May | 5.15 pm to 6.45 pm
Room S1, Alison Richard Building, 7 West Road, Cambridge, CB3 9DP and online
Free and open to all, but booking is essential.
• Register to attend in person.
• Register to attend online.
Event description
This hybrid event brings together Prof Louis Herns Marcelin and Dr Ola Osman for an in‑depth conversation examining how the enduring legacies of enslavement and colonialism continue to influence contemporary violence in Liberia and Haiti.
Drawing on long‑term research in both regions, the speakers will explore the intersections of kinship, social organisation, political conflict, gender, and structural inequality. The discussion will consider both historical trajectories and present‑day challenges, illuminating how the afterlives of enslavement shape experiences of insecurity, marginalisation, and resilience.
Speaker biographies
Professor Louis Herns Marcelin
Professor Marcelin is Associate Dean for Program Development and Professor of Social Sciences at the University of Miami. A sociocultural anthropologist, his work focuses on kinship and family systems in the Americas, as well as health, human security, and the dynamics of power, violence, and marginalisation. His research spans Brazil, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the United States, with a particular emphasis on how historical structures continue to shape contemporary social life.
Dr Ola Osman
Dr Ola Osman is Assistant Professor of African Politics at the University of Cambridge, a Fellow of Trinity Hall, and a senior gender consultant with the United Nations World Food Programme. She serves on the Advisory Board for the Collective Healing Initiative convened by UNESCO’s Routes of Enslaved Peoples Project.
She holds a PhD in Politics and International Studies from Cambridge, supported by a Gates Cambridge Scholarship, and an MA in Women’s Studies from the University of Oxford, funded by the Clarendon Scholarship and the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud Scholarship. Her interdisciplinary research reframes so‑called “ethnic” conflicts in Africa by situating them within the longer history of Atlantic slavery. Her current work focuses on social inclusion, conflict, climate change, and food security in Ethiopia’s Afar Region.
Registration
Free and open to all, but booking is essential.
• Register to attend in person.
• Register to attend online.