The Eighth National Conference of the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO was held in Boston, October 22-26, 1961 , in cooperation with Boston University. The theme of the conference was “Africa and the United States: Images and Realities.” The conference was attended by over two thousand persons. More than sixty Africans took part, many of whom are prominent in political, educational, or cultural affairs in their home countries. This was probably the largest conference on Africa ever held in the United States, and its participants represented an unusually broad range of interests. Included were educators, journalists, social scientists, technical experts, industrialists, foundation representatives, librarians, artists, writers, government officials, and well-informed layment. The range and scholarliness of the papers presented indicated that there is a growing body of persons in the United States who have had personal contact with African affairs, and also that the United States is beginning to come of age in its understanding of the African continent, not only in the social sciences but in the arts, in the communications field, and in science and technology as well as in other areas.