Bernard Powers is the founding director of the College of Charleston’s Center for the Study of Slavery and a professor emeritus of history at the university. He’s an expert on African American history and culture and the role of slavery in American history.

Bakari Kitwana is a cultural critic, journalist and activist specializing in hip-hop, youth culture and Black political engagement.

Tiya Miles is a professor of history at Harvard University. Her new book, “All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley’s Sack, a Black Family Keepsake,” traces a gift from an enslaved mother to her daughter as it passed through the generations.

Jason King is chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and an associate professor.

Karsonya (Kaye) Wise Whitehead is an associate professor of communication and African and African American studies at Loyola University Maryland.