Celebrated Authors Share Insights in Boxser Diversity Initiative & Lockdown LitFest Series

The Boxser Diversity Initiative (BDI) partnered with the London-based Lockdown LitFest to present the first in an ongoing series of collaborative events, featuring distinguished authors who had previously participated in BDI programs. These events were available for viewing at their scheduled times and on-demand.

On Monday, July 13, author Ladee Hubbard was interviewed by former BBC correspondent Julia Wheeler. Hubbard, acclaimed for her award-winning novel The Talented Ribkins, which received the 2018 Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, discussed her literary journey and influences. Her work has been published in Guernica, The Times Literary Supplement, Arkansas International, Copper Nickel, and Callaloo, among others. A recipient of the 2016 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers’ Award, she has also earned fellowships from Art Omi, the Sacatar Foundation, the Sustainable Arts Foundation, Hedgebrook, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Born in Massachusetts and raised in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Florida, Hubbard currently resides in New Orleans with her husband and three children.

On Wednesday, July 15, Professor Michael Jeffries was interviewed by Paul Blezard. Jeffries, the Class of 1949 Professor in Ethics and American Studies at Wellesley College, holds a PhD from Harvard University and is the author of Behind the Laughs: Community and Inequality in Comedy (2017), Paint The White House Black (2013), and Thug Life: Race, Gender, and the Meaning of Hip-Hop (2011). His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Atlantic, and The Boston Globe, and he is a regular contributor to WGBH, Boston’s public broadcasting station.

On Thursday, July 16, Professor Timothy Patrick McCarthy was interviewed by Paul Blezard. McCarthy, an award-winning scholar, educator, public servant, and social justice activist, has taught at Harvard since 2005, holding joint appointments in History and Literature, the Graduate School of Education, and the Kennedy School of Government. As Core Faculty at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, he has been recognized with multiple teaching awards, including the 2019 Manuel C. Carballo Award for Excellence in Teaching. A recipient of the 2015 National Humanities Medal, McCarthy’s lifelong commitment to activism was shaped by the anti-apartheid and AIDS movements during his college years. Since 1990, he has served as a Big Brother to Malcolm Green, whom he met while volunteering in Cambridge public schools.

This series of thought-provoking interviews showcased a diverse range of voices and perspectives, reinforcing BDI's mission to foster tolerance and understanding across communities.