Center for Experimental Ethnography at UPENN

Events this Week May 11: Imagining Publics Screening, Curating Engagement Conversation - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-events-17571699

CEE #71 - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/71

Spring is here! We have many wonderful events this month including two course exhibits. Read our latest newsletter for reflections from our Director, Deb Thomas, and the community organization We.REIGN, an organizing group made of civically active Black youth and women.

We also commend CEE scholar Kinjal Dave for publishing: “Constructing and Performing Domesticity Materiality of Gujarati Women’s Technical Labor in the United States Post-1965” in the journal Catalyst!

This Thursday (4/23): Join us at Public Trust for “What Does it Mean to Live Exorbitantly?,” a public conversation from 5-6:30pm featuring scholars Deborah A. Thomas and Jasmine E. Johnson.

Centering on Thomas’s new book, Exorbitance: A Speculative Ethnography of Inheritance, the discussion will explore the relationships between embodiment and sovereignty and raise questions about modes of world-building that are exorbitant to classic political frames. Presented in partnership with the Center for Experimental Ethnography and the Black Performance Institute at the University of Pennsylvania.

Image Credit: Leniqueca A. Welcome, "Unbounded," Cover Collage for Exorbitance, 2025

CEE #70: The Empty Grave Review, Third Thursday with SSMF Director Azsaneé, Wiki-A-Thon & Q***r Class/Room - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-61-third-thursday-camra-ssmf-and-more-17570880

Events this Week and April Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon! - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-events-17570688

📸This Tuesday, March 31st at 5 PM, bring your treasured photographs and documents to open hours for digital-scanning services at the J.E. Coleman Library (68 W Chelten Ave).

💻On April 29th, 5:30 PM, join us for a crash course in creating new entries and updating existing articles on Wikipedia! Utilizing the research resources of the Parkway Central Library.

The Empty Grave Screening Happening In 15 Minutes! - http://eepurl.com/jCyhWg

🎬TOMORROW, MARCH 25 | 4PM | RAINEY AUDITORIUM AT THE PENN MUSEUM

Join us for a screening of the documentary film The Empty Grave, followed by comments and conversation by Erinest Kaaya, Felix Kaaya, and Ndelekwa Kaaya (whose ancestor's remains are held at the American Museum of Natural History) and German artist and activist Konradin Kunze.

Songea, Tanzania. The young lawyer John Mbano in on a mission. His great-grandfather Songea Mbano, a leader of the Ngoni people, was executed by the German colonial army. His head was taken to Germany for racist research. The family is haunted by this pain to this day.

John and his wife Cesilia embark on a life-changing journey. Their research and resilience culminate in a courageous decision—to travel to Berlin in search of their ancestor's remains. There, they join forces with activists challenging Germany's culture of denial. What follows is a rollercoaster of triumphs and setbacks. Not even the historic visit of Germany's Federal President to John's hometown heralds the return of their beloved ancestor. Yet, the Mbano family refuses to relent.

In Northern Tanzania, the Kaaya family is hopeful: Their ancestor’s remains have been found in a museum in New York. However, the struggle for return is unending as they find themselves battling institutional bureaucracy.

The Empty Grave offers a personal angle amidst the global discourse on repatriation. Beyond the debates lies the poignant tale of violated lives and the struggle for a future disentangled from a painful past.

Events This Week: March 23 2026 - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-events-17570614

TOMORROW | Third Thursday, Ricardo Bracho, and in case of fire, speak! - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-events-17570601

Events This Week: Third Thursday, Film Screenings, Book Releases, and an Exhibit Opening! - https://mailchi.mp/upenn/cee-events