FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Speaker Series: Forgetting and Misremembering Black Life in Louisiana
Through Civil Rights: The McDonough Three & Ruby Bridges
WHAT: Presentation by Dr. Theodore Foster
WHEN: Saturday, September 19, 2026
TIME: 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
WHERE: 315 N. Main Street, Opelousas
CONTACT: Patrice Melnick 337-948-2589; museum@cityofopelousas.com
Join us for a presentation of the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail by Dr. Theodore Foster on Saturday,
September 19, 2026. The presentation will take place at the Opelousas Museum at 315 N. Main Street,
Opelousas, LA 70570.
Dr. Foster will discuss how the making of the Louisiana civil rights trail reproduces broader problems
with remembering the modern civil rights movement through tourism, racial icons, popular images,
individual names and events. The talk asks, what genres of black life fall in and out of the narrative of
civil rights then and now…in Louisiana and beyond?”
Dr. Theodore Foster III is an Assistant Professor of History and Black Studies at the University of
Louisiana. Currently Dr. Foster is on sabbatical as a post-doctoral Civil Rights Scholar research fellow
with the Center for Civil Rights History and Research at the University of South Carolina and will return
to UL Fall 2027. His work explores the U.S. Black Freedom Movement and Civil Rights Movement history,
political theory, and Black visual culture. Dr. Foster holds a Ph.D. in African American Studies from
Northwestern University, an M.A. in African American and African Studies from Ohio State, and a B.A. in
African American Studies from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Dr. Foster’s presentation is a part of a speaker series titled, Opelousas, Up Close and Personal. The
Speaker series is funded by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities’ 2026 Rebirth Grant and will
cover topics pertaining to topics in Opelousas’ rich history. Other presentations in the series cover topics
such as indigenous peoples of Opelousas, the Yambilee and Yamba Celebrations, the Civil War, and local
participation in the Civil Rights movement.
Funding for the 2026 Rebirth Grant has been provided by the State of Louisiana and administered by the
Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations
expressed by this organization do not necessarily represent those of either the Louisiana Endowment for
the Humanities or the State of Louisiana.
For more information, contact Patrice Melnick 337-948-2589; museum@cityofopelousas.com.
