Caryl Phillips on cities and the experience of newcomers

The Peter Wall Institute was delighted to host Professor Caryl Phillips for his lecture entitled Cities by the Water: Postcolonial History and Participation of Newcomers on May 9, 2013 at the Supreme Court Building in Downtown Vancouver.

Professor Phillips is an award-winning and internationally acclaimed British author and playwright. This special event discussed themes from his many plays and books, including how the experience of newcomers is often shaped by the personalities of cities in which they choose to settle. Illustrated by passages from his writing, Professor Phillips explored the cultural legacies of colonialism, with a particular focus on the historical and cultural connections between Europe, Africa and the Americas. He examined the immigrant experience of identity, place and belonging, interweaving threads from many of his novels that hinge on cultural and social dislocation associated with the migratory experience, slavery, racism, and stereotyping.