Humanities Now

Humanities Now, a new lecture series at the Whitney Humanities Center, is designed to spark deep thinking, inclusive deliberation, and smart action on current intellectual and social concerns. 

Founded in 2023 by WHC director Cajetan Iheka, Humanities Now convenes a thoughtful community to explore important topics in the humanities today. This exploration takes place through conversations with leading scholars, writers, artists, and thinkers who are shaping humanistic discourse, praxis, and activism with their cutting-edge work. Humanities Now derives impetus from a global vision of the humanities: one that embraces interdisciplinarity, reflects a range of disciplinary constellations, and accentuates the heterogenous humanistic traditions within the United States and across the world. It prioritizes innovative approaches to the humanities, especially those that break intellectual boundaries and dismantle walls between the university and broader communities.

We welcome suggestions for speakers/artists who bring fresh perspectives to enduring and new questions in the humanities.

2024–2025 Lectures

Chika Okeke-Agulu
Princeton University
Thursday, January 30, 2025 | 4:30 pm
Humanities Quadrangle (HQ)
Alice Cinema (L01)
Sumana Roy
Writer and Poet
Thursday, September 12, 2024 | 4:30 pm
Humanities Quadrangle (HQ)
320 York St. Alice Cinema (L01)
Denise Ferreira da Silva
New York University
Thursday, October 10, 2024 | 4:30 pm
Humanities Quadrangle (HQ)
Alice Cinema (L01)
Adam Shatz
editor and author
Tuesday, November 12, 2024 | 4:30 pm
Humanities Quadrangle (HQ)
L01