DePaul University will celebrate the legacy of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, an activist who dedicated her life to the civil rights of African-Americans, at an inauguration of its professorship in her name Oct. 1 and a conference on resisting racism and violence Oct. 2.

"Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells-Barnett" opens Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. with a welcoming of Michael Eric Dyson, DePaul’s first Ida B. Wells-Barnett Professor. Program highlights include remarks by Troy Duster, a noted sociologist and grandson of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, a performance by gospel great Inez Andrews and dramatic readings of Wells-Barnett’s writings. Dyson, who begins his tenure at DePaul this fall as a professor of religious studies and a senior fellow of the DePaul Humanities Center, will also give remarks.

The program will be held in Concert Hall, 800 W. Belden Ave. A reception, which includes a jazz performance by the Lynn Hilton Group, will immediately follow at 8:30 p.m. in Cortelyou Commons, 2324 N. Fremont St.

A daylong conference entitled "The Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells-Barnett: Resisting Racism and Violence," takes place Oct. 2 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. in Concert Hall, 800 W. Belden Ave. The conference will examine how Wells-Barnett’s activist legacy has shaped public understanding of the causes and repercussions of oppression and violence.

A panel discussion from 9 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. examines "The Life of Ida B. Wells-Barnett." Panelists are Darlene Clark Hine, history professor at Michigan State University and co-author of a book entitled, "A Shining Thread of Hope: The History of Black Women in America;" James Grossman, vice president for research and education at the Newberry Library and senior lecturer in history at the University of Chicago; and Barbara Ransby, assistant professor of African-American Studies and history at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The panel will be moderated by Sandra Jackson, director of the Center for Culture and History of Black Diaspora at DePaul.

Paula Giddings, research professor of women’s, African and African-American studies at Duke University, will deliver the keynote address at 10:45 a.m. She is the author of two books on the social and political history of African-American women: "When and Where I Enter: The Impact of Black Women on Race and Sex in America," and "In Search of Sisterhood: Delta Sigma Theta and the Challenge of the Black Sorority Movement." Giddings is currently at work on a biography of Ida B. Wells-Barnett.

Lunch will be served from noon until 1:15 p.m. and an optional viewing of the PBS documentary, "Ida B. Wells: A Passion for Justice," will also take place during that time.

The afternoon panel discussion addresses "The Legacy of Ida B. Wells-Barnett: Resisting Racism and Violence," from 1:15 until 3:30 p.m. Panelists are Ann Russo, assistant professor, Women’s Studies Program, DePaul; Callie Baird, chief administrator, Office of Professional Standards, Chicago Police Department; Stan Willis, civil rights attorney; Clarita Santos, Asian community liaison for State’s Attorney Richard Devine; Kenny Ruiz, executive director of the Street Intervention Program for the Metropolitan YMCA.

Dyson will provide a response and closing remarks at 3:30 p.m.

As DePaul’s first university-wide professor, Dyson brings a national reputation to the university as a public intellectual and expert on issues of race, class and gender. DePaul created the university professorship to engage the public in issues that will foster a more just and humane urban society. Wells-Barnett was selected as the professorship’s namesake to recognize the significance of her voice on behalf of African-Americans.

Wells-Barnett, educated as a teacher at Shaw University in Holly Springs, Miss. took her advocacy for social justice to Memphis, New York and Europe before finally settling in Chicago. She edited several newspapers and penned a weekly syndicated column under the pseudonym of "Iola." In 1892, Wells-Barnett began investigating lynchings after three male colleagues who were successful managers of a grocery business in Memphis were lynched. Her investigation concluded that lynching was a racist device for eliminating financially independent Black Americans. She published her findings on lynching in 1895 in "A Red Record: Tabulated Statistics and Alleged Causes of Lynching in the United States." The 100-page booklet was a seething indictment of mob violence in America that inextricably linked Wells-Barnett’s name with the topic. She married Ferdinand Barnett, a prominent Chicago attorney, that same year and the couple had four children.

Wells-Barnett’s four surviving grandchildren will attend DePaul’s weekend events and conference. Benjamin C. Duster, a practicing attorney in Chicago, received a law degree from DePaul in 1954. Donald L. Duster earned an MBA from the university in 1977. Troy Duster is a professor of sociology both at the University of California at Berkley and New York University. Alfreda Duster Farrell is a former educator who resides in Las Vegas.

All of the weekend programs and events are free and open to the public. Reservations for Saturday’s conference are required and must be made by September 27. To make reservations, or for more information, contact the DePaul Humanities Center at 773/325-4580.