In this lecture presented in collaboration with Cal Performances and the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society, Ahmad Sikainga will discuss the African diaspora in relation to The Routes of Slavery (1444–1888), a musical performance presented on November 3 at Zellerbach Hall that celebrates the influence of enslaved Africans on the culture of the Americas and Europe.

Sikainga is a professor in the Department of History at Ohio State University. His academic interests embrace the study of Africa, the African diaspora, and the Middle East with a focus on slavery, labor, urban history, and popular culture. The geographical focus of his research is the Sudan, the Nile Valley, North Africa, and the Persian Gulf. Sikainga’s research has been supported by fellowships and grants from such institutions as the National Endowment for the Humanities, Andrew Mellon Fellowship at Harvard University, American Council of Learned Societies, American Philosophical Society, and Social Science Research Council. Sikainga is currently working on research projects addressing slavery and wage labor in the Persian Gulf, with a focus on Qatar; and the role of slavery and ethnicity in the development of popular culture in contemporary Sudan. Prior to joining OSU, Sikainga held teaching positions at the City University of New York, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria, and Qatar University.