The fourth annual Mario A.J. Bennekin Black History Symposium at Georgia State University’s Perimeter College is scheduled for Feb. 19-23, 2024, with a keynote address on Monday, Feb. 19. on the college’s Dunwoody Campus auditorium at 2101 Womack Rd.

The symposium theme is The Challenges and Triumphs of the Black Working Class in America.

Dr. Daniel Black, award-winning novelist and professor of African American Studies at Clark Atlanta University, will serve as the keynote speaker on Monday, Feb. 19 at 10 a.m. on the Clarkston Campus.

The Bennekin Black History Symposium is named for Mario Bennekin, a beloved history professor at Perimeter who taught for 20 years before passing in 2019 when he chaired the History and Political Science department. Bennekin was instrumental in bringing the African-American Studies curriculum to Perimeter.

“My Mind Stayed on Freedom: The Revolutionary Voice of Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer” and "We Will Shoot Back: Armed Self Defense in the Mississippi Freedom Movement" are among the scheduled symposium sessions slated for presentation by Georgia State professors and others.

The annual Mario A.J. Bennekin Symposium is free and open to the public.