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Author, activist Cornel West will speak at Wake Forest University

Cornel West delivering an address at Harvard University in October 2019. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Renowned author, philosopher, and social activist Cornel West will make several appearances this week at Wake Forest University. 

West will first deliver a lecture Thursday afternoon at Wait Chapel. On Friday morning, the provocative scholar will take part in a symposium commemorating the 40th anniversary of his book Prophesy Deliverance!.

In the book, West suggests that Marxist ideology should be incorporated into African American theological perspectives, arguing that class is a stronger influence than race in America.

Following the lecture on Thursday, a question-and-answer period will be co-moderated by Corey D.B. Walker, a Wake Forest humanities professor and director of the school's African American Studies program.

Walker says in a news release that the book Prophesy Deliverance! “remains a critical touchstone for students and scholars who seek intellectual resources for democratic renewal and a more humane world.”

Both events at Wake Forest are free and open to the public, but registration is required. 

West is the author of 20 books. He made headlines this summer when he resigned from Harvard University, accusing the school of “intellectual and spiritual bankruptcy.”

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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