About The Toni Morrison Collective

The Toni Morrison Collective is a small group of Cornell faculty and librarians, under the umbrella of Cornell University Library, whose mission is to preserve the legacy of this Nobel laureate alumna at Cornell. Beginning in October 2020, with a (covid-induced) live-streamed star-studded marathon reading of The Bluest Eye to mark the 50th anniversary of its publication, the academic and cultural events organized by the Collective have drawn enthusiastic audiences from within and beyond the Cornell community. Other past activities of the Toni Morrison Collective include a 90th-birthday virtual colloquium (2021) featuring scholars who knew and collaborated with Morrison. The Collective’s biggest program to date was a multifaceted celebration of the 30th anniversary of her Nobel Prize, consisting of a production of Morrison’s play Desdemona by the Department of Performing and Media Arts, and a book give-away and discussion series “Ithaca Reads Toni Morrison, in collaboration with Calvary Baptist Church and other community institutions.

Browse the Archived Events

Members

Kofi AcreeAfricana Librarian
Anne AdamsAfricana Studies (emeritus)
Carole Boyce DaviesAfricana Studies and Literatures in English
NoViolet BulawayoLiteratures in English
Roger GilbertLiteratures in English
Ishion HutchinsonLiteratures in English
Misha Innis-ThompsonPsychology
Mendi ObadikePerforming and Media Arts
Riché RichardsonAfricana Studies
Shirley SamuelsLiteratures in English
Marie-Claire ValloisRomance Studies
Margaret WashingtonHistory (emeritus)

Cornell University Sponsor: Elaine Westbrooks, University Librarian