LEWISTON – Amandla!, the African-American student organization at Bates College, will present its fifth annual Unity Conference on Saturday, March 17.

“Generation C: Generation Consciousness” will offer an exploration of politics, gender and culture. The public is invited to attend. Workshops and dinner are free.

“Generation C” is a term used by civil rights activist and historian Cleveland Sellers to appeal to young people to revive a sense of urgency about reconfiguring the ways in which issues of race are discussed and to what end.

Featuring workshops, food, a keynote speaker and a dance, the conference opens at 2 p.m. with registration in the Perry Atrium of Pettengill Hall. Three consecutive workshops begin at 2:30 p.m. in the Keck Classroom (G52), Pettengill Hall.

The Unity dinner, to be held at 6 p.m. in the Edmund S. Muskie Archives, 70 Campus Ave., will feature fare including some Somali cuisine.

The dinner’s keynote address will be given by Fergus Devin, assistant professor of history at Vanderbilt University.

The conference concludes with the Bates dance, Triad. An annual party since 1981, the dance’s 2007 theme, “Green Day,” is inspired by St. Patrick’s Day, and will be held in Chase Hall, 56 Campus Ave., from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Music ranges from dance hall to rock. DJs include Casanova in the Little Room and Bernadzo in Chase Lounge. The dance is open to the public; tickets can be purchased in advance for $3 or at the door for $5.