The Historical Development And Future Trajectory Of African American Studies By Martha Biondi

As many African-American students are making their college decisions, they are torn between the mixes. The two routes they have, are the many predominantly white institutions that the vast majority deem as the most elite institutions in America and the few historically black institutions that many and even African American students look down upon. In this instance, this was the same experience our reporter, Marcus Lee encountered. Instead of attending Emory University, his dream school, because of financial issues he later “settled” for his backup school, Morehouse College, a well-known HBCU. Before entering Morehouse, Marcus had many insecurities about Morehouse. On his first day of freshman orientation, he quickly figured out that his decision

Slavery began in the late 16th century to early 18th century. Africans were brought to American colonies by white masters to come and work on their plantations in the South. They were treated harshly with no payments for all their hard work. In addition, they lived under harsh living conditions, and this led to their resistance against these harsh conditions. The racism towards the African Americans who were slaves was at its extreme as they did not have any rights; no civil nor political rights.

In conclusion, Martha Biondi‘s research was skillfully written that included interviews from participants that told their stories about struggles and social movement. The interviews made a significant connection between the need for African American studies, teaching, and African American academic research. The interviewees affected Bondi’s research contribution, and showed that there is diaspora in African American culture as well as historical racism in predominantly white institutions. African Americans need to be able to engage and advance the knowledge of diversity through lived experiences, practices and culture. However, there is still much research needed to bring together African Americans to produce unity, positive change, and

Black history has been deleted from American history- discreetly but surely (Pattern #6). Those with the power and ability to include black history into the bigger scheme of reality are too disgusted or too prideful to do so, because the world doesn’t know past Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, or cotton fields. True Black history has been excluded and left unbothered. The intellect W. E. B. Du Bois once said, “that the past is present; that without what was, nothing is” In other words, without knowing where one came from, one can never know where they are going. Solving racial issues has been attempted, without understanding the core issue underlying racism-- this is a major epidemic for America.UNCLEAR As a whole, blacks and their struggles are put on hold and Benjamin Quarels decides to speak on this harsh reality, in his text “Black History’s Diversified Clientele.” In his text, Quarels makes sure to educate his audience on those he feels should absorb and be affected by black history. These groups were black academia, white academia, black rank and file, White rank and file, and Black Revolutionary Nationalists. These groups relate two texts:CHOICE OF WORDS IS AWKWARD They came before Columbus: The African Presence in Ancient America and The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro. Both texts can appeal to groups mentioned by Quarels. Black history is vital for people of color trying to find their true identity.

In conclusion to Nick Aaron Ford article “The Black College as Focus for Black Studies”, I believe that black colleges shouldn’t be the main focus for black studies. Black studies should expand to and educate every culture. This generation today is setting the model for interdisciplinary approaches in the humanities in general and black studies continue to force traditional disciplines to address

African-American studies has been set in place to broaden an individual 's knowledge based on the history, literature, politics, and the lifestyle of Black Americans. Course 271 has helped me realize what African-American Studies is as an interdisciplinary field. It is not just a discipline, it is so much more. African-American studies is a way to learn about individuals outside Black History Month. African-American studies provides a way to deepen an individual’s understanding from the diaspora. It also teaches the history of my people in a way that I never learned in secondary school. It reinforces the importance to immerse myself into my history and culture. In my opinion, African-American Studies leads to mental liberation and a

It is interesting to note that in Critical Theory Today by Lois Tyson, it says “The virtual exclusion of African American history and culture from American education, which began

Black Studies should promote the worldview and culture of the African people and their descendants, attributing to students’ comprehension of the subject matter and how the field relentlessly develops over time but maintains its prestige. Students throughout history have expressed the necessity of Black Studies being an outlet for “the political need for turf and place, the psychological need for identity, and the academic need for recognition” (Huggins, 1985, p. 327). In order to stress the importance, Black Studies in modern higher education should not be taught using conventional methods but instead through an African-Centered Worldview. Furthermore, Black Studies should reflect the Kemetic culture, as well as its philosophy as it relates

Jerry Gershenhorn discusses the various problems and tribulations the African American scholars faced when developing the various programs for Black Studies. The articles examines the progression and creation of African studies starting from before World War II to the 1960s. Gershenhorn suggests that before the Montreal dispute of 1969, it was mainly white scholars who studied the field of African Studies. For him, this created a conflict of interest because White Scholars could not fully understand and comprehend the challenges faced by the African society. He writes about how the African Heritage Studies Association urged that African and African American scholars should be give the same access and power as the White scholars. They wanted

The event that occurred on Wednesday May 25, 2016 in the Luckman Fine Arts Complex entitled Abolition, Resistance and the Black Radical Tradition by Angela Davis can be summarized with a single word, powerful. This event was made possible by the Pan African Studies department developed in 1969. I was truly amazed to learn that despite the fact that the department has always been under attack, nearly 100% of students in the graduate program are successful in their studies and culminate; however, sadly at Cal State La less than 20% of black students graduate.

I was pretty skeptical about taking African American Studies at the University of Alabama, even though I am very passionate about standing up for my misjudged race. Being that I am from Tuscaloosa, I am well aware of the mistreatment that blacks have experienced on this campus. Never in a million years did I think I would be attending the university that George Wallace gave his famous anti- black speech expressing how segregation would live now, tomorrow, and forever. I really felt like there was nothing a professor at UA could teach me about African American people. After reading about how affective this course is I decided to give it a try anyway. So far, this class is my favorite and I wish I could occupy a desk in it every day! I have already learned a plethora of information. I can tell you about over looked innovative black inventors, the view points of Fredrick Douglas and W.E.B Dubois towards education, and about how our education system in the United States of America “arrest” our learning through its prison like teaching tactics.

Is this week’s readings we discuss black public intellectuals. This is examined in different was. Nada Elia’s Cornel West’s Representations of the Intellectual: But Some of Us Are Brave? discusses black intellectuals place within society. She begins by stating that she will be disproving the perception of Cornel West. West believes that “there are (only) two organic intellectual traditions in African-American life: the Black Christian tradition of teaching and the Black musical tradition of performance” (Elia, 336). This, in West’s opinion, leaves the black intellectuals left out of the black community, even though many of them aspire to use their education to alleviate problems within the black community. Elia’s mentions her understanding of the black “community” in which she believes this community doesn’t exist. This “unity” is overly imagined. While the black community has come together to achieve goals, it is usually during time of crisis. Black people have come together for the greater good and have merely put their differences a side during these times. Elia goes on to give examples of this such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King (Elia, 337). West point of view is described as apocalyptic. He truly believes that there were more black intellectuals back then and that it was better for them back then. Elia disagrees with this and utilizes the opinions of other scholars, such as bell hooks, to do so. One of the main points the author brings up is how West feels isolated

The 1920’s were a time of change for African Americans. They were beginning to retain a sense of pride in their background and culture, were becoming more independent socially and economically, and were becoming more militant. Part of this was because of the Great Migration, in which a proliferation of African Americans moved from the Southern states to the Northern states, and the excessive levels of racism and prejudice they faced during the process. African Americans were really starting to make their voices and identities prevalent, especially through movements like the Harlem Renaissance and Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). This mentality of independence and militance that African Americans adopted which is represented through the actions of Ossian Sweet is what makes up the 1920s cultural construct of the “New Negro” which allowed me to understand the realness and effectiveness of cultural constructs.

The aspect of African-American Studies is key to the lives of African-Americans and those involved with the welfare of the race. African-American Studies is the systematic and critical study of the multidimensional aspects of Black thought and practice in their current and historical unfolding (Karenga, 21). African-American Studies exposes students to the experiences of African-American people and others of African descent. It allows the promotion and sharing of the African-American culture. However, the concept of African-American Studies, like many other studies that focus on a specific group, gender, and/or creed, poses problems. Therefore, African-American Studies must overcome the obstacles in order to

Robert L. Allen is adjunct professor of African American Studies at University of California Berkeley and received a