Jessica Harris never set out to become the country’s foremost authority on African American cuisine. Her doctoral dissertation was about French Theatre in Senegal, and she went on to a 50-year career as an English professor at Queens College. But along the way, she wrote a dozen acclaimed books about the food of Africa and what happened to it when it got to this continent. She’s a beloved figure in the food world and earlier this year, Jessica Harris was honored with the James Beard Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award. She joins the CUNYcast to talk about her life, her career and why she says African American cooking is the backbone of American cuisine itself. (Note: This interview was recorded on May 21, 2020, prior to the racial justice protests following the murder of George Floyd.)

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