On Sunday Feb. 1, Dr. Umar Johnson, the self-described Prince of Pan-Africanism, will make his first visit to Indianapolis in over three years. “I decided to come to Indianapolis on my own, most of my events are by request,” said Johnson. “This is the first event I’ve ever put on myself.”
Johnson, who is a doctor of clinical psychology and certified school psychologist as well as an author and lecturer, has been a regular on the lecture circuit but gained popularity in recent years from his appearance in the highly acclaimed Hidden Colors documentary film series produced by Tariq Nasheed. His book, Psycho-Academic Holocaust: The Special Education & ADHD Wars Against Black Boys was released in 2013.
He considers his upcoming visit to Indianapolis an obligation to an overlooked community. “I always get requested to come to New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and South Florida. I’m in those places all the time,” said Johnson. Indianapolis is the first place he’s hosting a lecture on his own but he plans to do more in other areas that he says have been underserved by African-centered scholarship.
“I felt I had an obligation as a school psychologist and someone who cares about our children to go ahead and put myself through the process of putting on an event myself to make sure that parents have the information so that they’re in a better position to advocate for their children – especially Black boys with all that they’re suffering from.”
A report done by the Schott Foundation for Public Education titled The Urgency of Now, showed that Indiana was ranked among the lowest states in the nation for graduation rates of Black males with less than 50 percent.
A Kaiser Permanente study released in 2013 revealed that from 2001 to 2010, there was a 70 percent increase in ADHD diagnoses among Black children ages 5 to 11.
Johnson’s double power lecture will cover a variety of topics and include a discussion of his book Psycho-Academic Holocaust. For more information on tickets visit PrinceofPanAfrikanism.EventBrite.com.
When: Sunday Feb. 1 from 2-6 p.m.
Where: Jewel Event Center, Door #C, 3333 N. Illinois St., 46208
