Book Talk with Author Ethelene Whitmire

On February 26, we were fortunate to host Professor Ethelene Whitmire of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who presented her book, The Remarkable Life of Reed Peggram: The Man Who Stared Down World War II in the Name of Love (Viking, 2026). The book tells the story of Mr. Peggram, a queer, Black scholar who studied in Europe on the brink of World War II, where he fell in love, was captured by the Nazis, and miraculously escaped.

Professor Whitmire’s skilful handling of archival materials was on full display in her presentation, which chronicled the extraordinary life of Mr. Peggram in vivid detail. 

Thank you to Professor Whitmire for sharing this fascinating story! 

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Phillips Presentation with Professor Patrick Otim

Patrick Otim (Associate Professor of Africana and History) earned a Phillips Fellowship and a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship for his current book project, which explores Northern Ugandan history during the long period encompassing the war between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the government of Uganda (GOU).

On Monday, March 2, he presented this fascinating research with our community in a lecture, “Caught in Between: The History of Everyday Life in Northern Uganda, 1950-2015.” His presentation gave a rich overview of his book project, which brings to light new layers of Northern Ugandan history through focusing on the underexplored perspective of everyday citizens.

We look forward to seeing how this project unfolds as it progresses toward publication!

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Guest Lecture with Professor Joseph Mbaiwa

On Wednesday, March 4, we hosted Professor Joseph Mbaiwa, a Professor of Tourism Studies at the Okavango Research Institute (ORI), University of Botswana, and a Fulbright Scholar and Visiting Professor at the University of Montana.

In his public talk, “”Contested Wildlife-based Tourism and Conservation Politics in Botswana,” Professor Mbaiwa shared his insights on the tensions between the wildlife tourism industry and local communities in Botswana. 

A sincere thank you to Professor Mbaiwa for offering his insights on such a rich and relevant topic.