Harrell speaking at Harvard Divinity School

Rev. Joan Harrell will speak at Harvard Divinity School on Feb. 11 as part of the Center for the Study of World Religions’ yearlong series, Theological Bioethics Within Marginalized Communities. Her lecture titled “Becoming the Beloved Community in the Midst of Domestic Terror” investigates the intersectionality of racism, in particular the racists acts condoned by religious communities and by the healthcare system. It will give special attention to the 40-year Syphilis Study in Tuskegee, Alabama, conducted by the U.S. Public Health Service. 

The Rev. Dr. Harrell is a womanist practical theologian and journalist committed to social justice. Her scholarship investigates the intersectionality of racism, sexism, xenophobia, religion, politics, media and public health inequities in marginalized communities. She is a journalism lecturer and diversity coordinator for the School of Communication and Journalism and associate pastor at the historic Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama.