UWF to host acclaimed hip-hop culture critic and host at Diversity Week Dinner
The University of West Florida Office of Equity and Diversity will host Jay Smooth as a special guest speaker during UWF’s Diversity Week. Smooth’s lecture will be held at the Diversity Week Dinner on Monday, April 2 at 6 p.m. in the University Commons Auditorium. Smooth will share poignant and entertaining observations about music, race, politics and other important cultural and social issues, while also discussing the importance of mutual respect.
As host of “The Underground Railroad,” New York City’s longest-running hip-hop radio program, and the popular video blog, “The Ill Doctrine,” Smooth has established himself as a unique and leading critic of society and culture issues.
Smooth enables sensitive topics, like race, to be accessible through actively engaging in direct conversation about
complex subjects. He credits his mixed-race heritage for his viewpoint that allows him to facilitate healthy discussions about race and racism.
“Since I had a black dad and a white mom, visually I’m sort of racially indistinct,” Smooth said. “It put me in a unique position to travel between different worlds and see each community with its guard down.”
The Diversity Week Dinner kicks off Diversity Week at UWF, a week dedicated to celebrating the diversity of UWF students, faculty, staff and community members. The dinner is free and open to the public. Attendees must RSVP online or by contacting the Office of Equity and Diversity at 850.474.2059.
For more information about the Office of Equity and Diversity, visit uwf.edu/respect.
