Join our History & Heritage department for an engaging discussion with the renowned historian Martha S. Jones. Jones will share the unforgettable story of her family’s history and discuss her new historical memoir, “The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir.” We invite you for a conversation with the author, moderated by Dr. Jennifer L Morgan.

In every generation since Jones’ great-great-great-grandmother survived enslavement to raise a free family, color determined her ancestors’ lives. But the color line was shifting and jagged, not fixed and straight. Some backed away from it, others skipped along it, and others still were cut deep by its sharp teeth. Journeying across centuries, from rural Kentucky and small-town North Carolina to New York City and its suburbs, Jones offers a lyrical, deeply felt meditation on the most fundamental matters of identity, belonging, and family.

In telling this story, Jones confronts the limits of the historian’s craft, while finding immeasurable skill and understanding in the very thing she is searching for: Family.

Martha S. Jones is the Society of Black Alumni Presidential Professor and professor of history at Johns Hopkins University. She is a prizewinning author and editor of four books and many other publications.

This is a free event but preregistration is requested. Light refreshments will be served. Come ready to learn, ask questions, and be inspired.