What if the American West wasn’t just a frontier of cowboy myths and Manifest Destiny—but also a battleground for Black freedom, ambition, and erasure?

In this talk, Caleb Gayle, author of Black Moses, uncovers the hidden histories of Black pioneers who dared to dream of self-governance and belonging on the open plains. From post-Reconstruction migration to present-day struggles for representation, Gayle reimagines the West not as a place of rugged individualism, but as a site of collective Black aspiration and resistance.

The first 100 attendees will receive a free copy of his book, Black Moses.

Caleb Gayle is an award-winning journalist, author and contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. His work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Guardian, The New York Times and more, and has been recognized by the Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award, the PEN America Writing for Justice Fellowship, the Center for Fiction Emerging Writers Fellowship, the New America Fellowship, and a fellowship at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. In addition to writing, Gayle serves as an Associate Professor at Northeastern University, and his work has been recognized in the 2019 Best American Essays as a Notable Essay.