Panelists will discuss the twenty-fifth anniversary of the LDS priesthood ban that excluded black members from full Church participation. Several of the panelists contributed a compelling chapter to the forthcoming University of Illinois book, Black and Mormon, scheduled for release in October 2004. The articles examine the mechanisms that marginalize blacks, motives behind the original ban, and the kind of changes that have, and have not, taken place within the Church since the revelation reversing the policy. This session is a “must attend” for anyone concerned with the history of the Church and its evolving relationship with its black members

Darron Smith, Alma Allred, Ken Driggs, Keith Hamilton