Programs

Fighting Old Nep: The Food Culture of Enslaved Afro-Marylanders

Beginning with Mathias de Sousa, the first African to arrive in Maryland in the 1600s, this presentation traces three centuries of African American culinary history from specific West and Central African civilizations to colonial Maryland. Incorporating music, historical narratives, and authentic foods, Twitty illustrates the vast influence of both enslaved and free black people on the cuisine and culture of the New World. The presentation also explores the influences Native Americans and Europeans had on Maryland foodways that were later adapted by other parts of the country. Adult and high school audiences.

Michael Twitty is Director of Interpretation for the Menare Foundation and a Hebrew School instructor for four congregations in Montgomery County. He has given presentations on African American and Jewish food traditions at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, the Library of Congress, American University, and at museums and historic sites in the Washington, DC area. Michael also published a blog, Afroculinaria, which explores cultural traditions of Africa, African Americans, and the African Diaspora.

He is completing his B.A. in African American Studies and Anthropology at Howard University. He is the author of Fighting Old Nep: The Foodways of Enslaved Afro-Marylanders 1634-1864.