CINCINNATI, OH – The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center will host award-winning author and Yale University alumni Jeff Hobbs October 15 at 6 p.m. in the Grand Hall, where he will discuss his latest work, The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League. Hobbs’ lecture is the first lecture in the John and Francie Pepper Freedom Lecture Series—a new series connecting the public with award-winning authors, historians and thought-leaders, discussing themes on history, race, culture and modern abolition. Tickets are $5.00 and available for purchase online at freedomcenter.org or $15.00 for the entire lecture series. There will be a welcome reception from 6 – 7 p.m. Hobbs’ lecture will begin at 7 p.m.
The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League revels the story of Hobbs’ college roommate for four years, Robert Peace. Robert’s life was rough from the beginning in the crime-ridden streets of Newark in the 1980s, with his father in jail and his mother earning less than $15,000 a year. But Robert was a brilliant student, and it was supposed to get easier when he was accepted to Yale, where he studied molecular biochemistry and biophysics. But it didn’t get easier. Through an honest rendering of Robert’s relationships—with his struggling mother, with his incarcerated father, with his teachers and friends and fellow drug dealers—The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace encompasses the most enduring conflicts in America: race, class, drugs, community, imprisonment, education, family, friendship and love.
The lecture series in presented in part by the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and sponsored by John and Francie Pepper. “This series brings together nationally recognized authors and historians to explore and discuss current issues regarding race, historical slavery and modern abolition,” says Michael Battle, executive vice president and provost. “Through the lens of their own work, they reinforce key lessons promoted in the mission of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.”
In addition to Jeff Hobbs’ lecture on October 15, the public will have the opportunity to hear from three notable authors including; historian Eric Foner on December 2, 2015, Associate Professor of English and American Studies at Trinity College, Christopher Hagar January 13, 2016 and novelist and essayist, Marilynne Robinson on March 16, 2016.
The John and Francie Pepper Freedom Lecture Series at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center begins October 15 at 6 p.m. in the Grand Hall. The lecture is open to the public. Single tickets $5.00 and are available for purchase online at freedomcenter.org or $15.00 for the entire series. For more information on the Jeff Hobbs lecture and the full series, visit freedomcenter.org