Inheriting the Trade

“Once the truth starts coming out it will cause this kind of confusion amongst the members of the dominant society, which sets off a chain. So I think [Traces of the Trade] is a good beginning. But what now?.”

— Dr. Jessie Ruth Gaston, quoted in Inheriting the Trade

Tom DeWolf's Lecture and Appearance Schedule

To schedule Tom to speak to your group or organization please contact Lindi at lindi@inheritingthetrade.com.

“Tom visited the University of Alabama at Birmingham [March 2010] and people are still buzzing about his lecture and the emotions that it evoked. ‘Powerful,’ ‘Profound,’ and ‘awakening’ were just a few words that people who attended the program used to describe their experience. We were so very fortunate to have Mr. DeWolf on our campus.”

— Creston C. Lynch, Assistant Director of Student Involvement and Diversity, The University of Alabama at Birmingham

“Tom DeWolf’s visit to my classroom early in the semester set the tone for the weeks of fruitful discussions of race, slavery and abolition that followed. By sharing his personal story and relating that story to the past, DeWolf demonstrated for a group of mostly history beginners that the past and the present are deeply intertwined and that making the past personal, however disturbing that may be, can fuel the quest for knowledge.”

— David Gelman, Associate Professor of History, DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana

“Your ability to link the effects of slavery and its systemic effects to present day health inequities generated interest and participation from groups of people we have been trying to reach for many years. Many Board members felt this particular event was one of our most successful because the audience was able to connect with your experience and our history of slavery and tie it to the present day health status of groups of people. Thomas, working with you was easy and pleasurable. I hope our paths cross again soon.”

— Alma Burrell, Health Care Program Manager, Santa Clara County Public Health Department, San Jose, California

To see past events Tom has participated in please click here.

September 22, 1:00pm, Fall for the Book Festival, Johnson Center Cinema at George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia. Tom will facilitate discussion following the screening of Traces of the Trade; includes book signing.

September 22, 7:00pm, Fall for the Book Festival, Pohick Regional Library, 6450 Sydenstricker Road, Burke, Virginia. Author presentation, Q&A, book signing.

October 5, 7:00pm, KJM Center for the Arts, South Puget Sound Community College, Olympia, Washington. Author presentation, Q&A, book signing.

October 6, 1:00pm, Lyceum Series, Centralia College, Centralia, Washington. Author presentation, Q&A, book signing.

October 13, 7:00pm, ConverZations That Matter, “Slavery’s Legacy: What Would Healing Look Like”, a conversation with Belvie Rooks and Tom DeWolf at California Institute of Integral Studies, 1453 Mission Street, San Francisco, California. Includes book signing.

October 15, 2:45pm, Bioneers Conference, San Rafael, California. “Slavery’s Legacy: What Would Healing Look Like”, an intimate, soul-searching dialogue about race in America and its impacts on us all with Belvie Rooks, Dedan Gills (co-founders of Growing A Global Heart), and Thomas DeWolf; followed by book signing.

October 18-21, Bermuda. C.U.R.B. (Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda) is sponsoring Tom’s visit. Inheriting the Trade has been selected as the book for this summer’s Big Read in Bermuda. Traces of the Trade will be shown daily throughout October on CITV for The Big Watch. In connection with these programs, Tom will participate in four days of presentations and conversations at high schools and other venues in Bermuda. Multiple author presentations, conversations, book signings. More details to come.

October 28, 7:00pm (Eastern Time), online chat with United Methodist Women Reading Program members. Inheriting the Trade has been selected as one of the books for the UMW national reading program for 2011.

October 31 – November 2, Tom will participate in the APCA (Association for the Promotion of Campus Activities) Northeast Regional Programming Conference in Verona, New York. Workshop, Showcase, Exhibit Booth.

November 12, time(s) TBD, College of Mount St. Joseph, Office of Multicultural Affairs, Cincinnati, Ohio. Author presentations, Q&A, book signings.