While Cheikh Anta Diop’s research and scholarship worked to fill in some of the missing pages of World History that celebrated Nile Valley civilization and Nubian contributions to Africa and beyond, John Henry Clarke, Diop’s long-time colleague and friend, used his writings, as a playwright, lyricist, essayist, poet, teacher and historian, to promote Pan-Africanism and to challenge us all to do our best work for the good of our families, our people and our communities. (Clarke, 1996) To that end, this year’s conference theme— A Great and Mighty Walk: In the Age of Chaos, is an intellectual nod to, both, Cheikh Anta Diop and John Henry Clarke. This year, DISA is asking scholars, educators, artists, and activists to elevate and canonize approaches, paradigms, and processes that we must interrogate to ensure the success and well-being of African people. We encourage research on current &updated trends.

As Cheikh Anta Diop spoke about in Clarke’s film, A Great and Mighty Walk: “[H]istory gives us the serenity to appreciate the facts as they are.” (Diop, 1996) Redefining, realigning and reassigning ourselves to the task at hand, as John Henry Clarke said: “we’ve gotten enough mileage out of marching”. (Clarke: 1996) We don’t need any more ceremonies without substance and although we must ever-remain slow to criticize, as researchers/scholars/historians, we must always position ourselves ready to analyze by unpacking our enduring responsibility in answering the question, what must we do, as it is embedded in this year’s conference theme, A Great and Mighty Walk: In the Age of Chaos.

The conference will take place during business hours on October 23 & 24 2026
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Center for Anti-Racism, Temple University.