Foster to Present on the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail

Join the Opelousas Museum and Interpretative Center for a presentation of the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail by Dr. Theodore Foster on Saturday, September 19, 2026. The presentation will take place at the Opelousas Museum at 315 N. Main Street, Opelousas, LA 70570.

Dr. Foster will discuss how the making of the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail reproduces broader problems with remembering the modern civil rights movement through tourism, racial icons, popular images, individual names and events. The talk asks, what genres of black life fall in and out of the narrative of civil rights then and now...in Louisiana and beyond?"

Dr. Theodore Foster III is an Assistant Professor of History and Black Studies at the University of Louisiana. Currently, Dr. Foster is on sabbatical as a post-doctoral Civil Rights Scholar research fellow with the Center for Civil Rights History and Research at the University of South Carolina and will return to UL in Fall 2027. His work explores the U.S. Black Freedom Movement and Civil Rights Movement history, political theory, and Black visual culture. Dr. Foster holds a Ph.D. in African American Studies from Northwestern University, an M.A. in African American and African Studies from Ohio State, and a B.A. in African American Studies from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Dr. Foster’s presentation is a part of a speaker series titled Opelousas, Up Close and Personal. The Speaker series is funded by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities’ 2026 Rebirth Grant and will cover topics pertaining to Opelousas’ rich history. Other presentations in the series cover topics such as indigenous peoples of Opelousas, the Yambilee and Yamba Celebrations, the Civil War, and local participation in the Civil Rights movement. 

Funding for the 2026 Rebirth Grant has been provided by the State of Louisiana and administered by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. The views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed by this organization do not necessarily represent those of either the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities or the State of Louisiana.

For more information, contact Patrice Melnick 337-948-2589; museum@cityofopelousas.com.