Memorialization Gathering 2026 — Lafayette Community Remembrance Project

2026 Memorialization Gathering

September 25-27, 2026
Holly Springs, Mississippi

The Memorialization Gathering is an annual convening that brings together people and organizations who are engaged in community-driven memorialization efforts. Now in its third year, the gathering creates space for practitioners to learn from one another, build relationships, and share practical approaches to honoring histories of racial violence, enslavement, displacement, resistance, and community memory.

Hosted by the Lafayette Community Remembrance Project, the gathering is designed for individuals and organizations who are actively involved in memorialization work or are exploring how to begin. Through workshops, site visits, conversations, and cultural experiences, participants will engage with real-world examples of how communities are uncovering histories, building relationships with descendants, and creating meaningful opportunities for remembrance, healing, and education. The 2026 and 2027 gatherings are supported by the Borealis Philanthropy Racial Equity to Accelerate Change Fund.

This year's theme, "Descendants: What We Inherit," explores the many ways people and communities carry history forward. The theme invites participants to consider inheritance in its broadest sense. It includes direct descendants of victims of racial violence, communities shaped by these histories, descendants of enslavers, and all those who live with the ongoing impacts of the past. Together, participants will explore how memory, place, family stories, and community experiences influence the ways we understand and engage history that still impact our lives today. At its heart, the theme asks a simple but powerful question: What do we inherit, and what responsibility do we have to those who come after us?

Evening programs throughout the weekend, including film screenings, music, art exhibits, and select public conversations, are free and open to the public. We encourage community members, students, educators, and anyone interested in memorialization and local history to attend these events.

Participation in the Saturday workshops and learning labs is limited and requires an application. These sessions are designed for individuals and organizations that are actively engaged in community-driven memorialization work or are preparing to launch memorialization efforts in their communities. To support the development of a Community-Led Memorialization Toolkit, participation will be limited to create an intimate learning environment where practitioners can build relationships, share experiences, provide feedback, and contribute lessons and best practices that can help guide memorialization efforts in communities across the country.

Join Us

This year's gathering will take place in Holly Springs, Mississippi, a community with a rich history and a growing network of memorialization, preservation, and storytelling efforts. Participants will have opportunities to learn from local projects and visit sites that demonstrate how communities are preserving history and connecting the past to the present. The gathering will be hosted at Rust College, one of the nation's oldest Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Rust College's long history of education, leadership, and community engagement makes it a meaningful home for conversations about memory, justice, and legacy.

Whether you are documenting local history, honoring victims of racial violence, preserving historic sites, working with descendants, or exploring how your community can begin this work, the Memorialization Gathering offers an opportunity to learn, connect, and build alongside others committed to remembrance and justice.

Schedule Overview

Friday, September 25, 2026

6pm-7:30pm Opening Plenary & Dinner

7:30pm-9pm Film Screening & Discussion

Saturday, September 26, 2026

8:30am-9:30am Morning Plenary

9:30am-10am Travel Time

10am-11:30am Site Visits and Learning Labs

11:30am-12pm Travel Time

12pm-1:30pm Lunch Plenary

1:45pm-5pm Workshops and Roundtables

Sunday, September 27, 2026

10:00am-11:30am Closing Plenary Brunch

COST: Registration and attendance for convening plenaries, sessions, and the reception are free of charge. Attendees will be responsible for their own travel and lodging.