IS THE BLACK CHURCH DEAD? A ROUNDTABLE ON THE FUTURE OF BLACK CHURCHES During the first few months of 2010 a new, yet familiar, debate broke out about the role of black churches in the United States. What began as a provocative article on the Huffington Post elicited a wide range of responses from religious leaders around the country, ignited an online dialogue among academics, and sparked a plethora of essays across the blogosphere. These exchanges inspired a series of interviews on NPR, and, ultimately, the dialogue was featured in the New York Times. Bringing together a group of distinguished voices who represent the worlds of both church and academia, this roundtable conversation will build on many of the themes that emerged in the above debate with the hopes of helping to highlight, clarify and query some of the most pressing challenges and promising developments that occupy the American religious landscape. A number of critical issues—including religious pluralism, gender exclusion, marriage equality, class divisions and the persistence of racial inequality—in contemporary society will be on the table in this discussion of the Participants to include: Prof. Anthea Butler, Associate Professor and Graduate Chair of Religion - University of Pennsylvania Eddie Glaude, Jr.; Professor of Religion African American Studies and Chair, The Center for African-American Studies - Princeton University Prof. Fredrick Harris; Professor of Political Science Director of African-American Studies, Columbia University; Prof. Obery M. Hendricks, Jr.; Visiting Scholar-Religion African American Studies, Columbia; University; Professor of Biblical Interpretation - New York Theological Seminary Rev. Dr. Eboni K. Marshall, Assistant Minister for Christian Education, Abyssinian Baptist Church-Harlem, New York Rev. Otis Moss, III, Senior Pastor, Trinity United Church of Christ-Chicago, Illinois Prof. Josef Sorett, Assistant Professor of Religion & African-American Studies - Columbia University THIS EVENT IS CO-SPONSORED BY THE INSTITUTE FOR RELIGION, CULTURE PUBLIC LIFE AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IRAAS