Undoubtedly the aim of his oppressors has been to convince him that his history is unimportant so as to deprive him of the sense of pride that is so necessary to feel wholly human. By espousing that “he has no worthwile past, that his race has done nothing significant since the beginning of time, and that there is no evidence that he will ever achieve anything great” (Woodson 6), his oppressors can be sure that the African American will continue down the path of mis-education that so allows for his subservience to a system that cares nothing for him. However, “if you teach the Negro that he has accomplished as much good as any other race he will aspire to equality and justice without regard to race.” (Woodson 6) The core purpose of African American studies is to take back from obscurity that piece of the historical puzzle without which the African American would be amidst an endless identity…
African Americans as a whole have been thought of as a secular group, having lost any sembalance of the continent from which they came(__________). However, people of the Trans-Atlantic African Diaspora have had quite a unique experience in the United States. The diverse sub cultures within the larger African American population are indicative of this unique experience. Yet in spite of African American’s unique qualities scholars and critics abound have asserted that African American heritage was obliterated by the chattel slavery system. Although slavery greatly restricted the ability of Africans in America to freely express their cultural traditions, many practices, values and beliefs survived. This fact is extremely apparent when Gullah…
The renowned Martin Luther King Jr know for being a social activist on the matter of equality of all races and ethnicities exclaims that, “The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people”. Through Martin Luther King Jr, one can presume that notion of oppression causes a society without tolerance and ethical diversity. Power is a quality desired by every human being, some people crave the notion of complete and utter dominance over any human being it is a sense of control that gives them a certainty of confront that no other desire can live up to it, the desire of power goes as far as committing atrocities such as murder, genocides and wars to gain absolute control over one…
During the years 1861 and 1870, both, the Civil War and the Reconstruction, took place. However, during this time period, many problems occurred: for example, slaves were being debated about between the North and South, and many freed Africans were not accepted as citizens. But, although African Americans went through a lot of issues and obstacles regarding their race and freedom, they managed to shape the course and consequences of the civil war through social, ideological, and political events. Socially, African Americans, searched for education opportunities, became soldiers, and fought for equal rights; Ideologically, their existence, freedom rights, and purpose were constantly questioned by the south and the north; Politically, northerners wanted slavery to be abolished, southerners had to ratify the amendments and demanded the right to vote, and Africans, constantly, asked for support in fighting for their freedom.…
In my opinion, African Diaspora has multiple definitions but all of them sum up into one only. All in the end, African Diaspora is expected in different ways that in one point started everything else. The Diaspora took place when the Africans were relocated in the regions of the Americas, causing them to bring their culture, society, traditions with them. With these elements and time going by, have created new ones. Not only have they created these new elements but also, it has led to creating new various of people of African descent. How I see the African Diaspora is, the African ancestry has been spread almost all over the world. The fact it has, makes the African ancestry to grow even bigger and some do not realize it. That little bit of African ancestry, plays a role in our lives. It affects the way we talk to one another and on our beliefs. We are who are from…
The once called Great Plains is now defined as The Homestead. In the early 1800s, the population was minimal, yet after the Civil War, it became home to many settlers. After the Civil War, more people began settling in the midwest. Many people moved to the Great Plains from the east to look for more money since farming was a lot cheaper. Also, since many African Americans were poor, they too wanted to start their farms for a better future. Since crops could not always grow, people began hunting. They mostly hunted buffalo, in which had to be taken very seriously. They began using rifles to kill the buffalo which they would also use for their hides. Although settling in the Great…
The sense of exploration and adventure is in the air. It is September 11th, 1525 and I have been sailing for weeks from Libson and will arrive in the town of Malindi on the East coast of Africa. I always wondered about the African cultures and life styles. Well we are to arrive at the city tomorrow and I will have a busy day on my hands.…
D’Angelo, Raymond and Herbert Douglas, eds. Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Race and Ethnicity, 7th edition (Dubuque, IA: McGraw-Hill, 2009)…
Immigration was the starting foundation to the United States. Every unique aspect that comes from the different ethnic diversities of the world become one in North America. For African Americans, life in the United States was very difficult. From being forced to become slaves to having to live under the Jim Crow Laws. These laws brought major segregation to the African Americans because they were prohibited from socializing and shopping in the same places as whites. In the South, they were forced to live in poor conditions and since the laws were in action, finding a job was more difficult. This caused the population rate of African Americans in the North to rise heavily as they were trying to seek equal opportunities. As like the African Americans,…
Ever since the Europeans forcefully brought Africans west, black people have struggled with a loss of their true culture and identity. The vulnerability of a displaced and victimized race subjected them to view conformity and assimilation as a panacea for racism, discrimination, and oppression. It wasn't until the 1960s that students began to realize and protest the traditional methods of higher learning where the curriculum was taught through the White perspective without the acknowledgment of contributions black people have made to society. Through rallies and organizations, it was made clear that something had to be done about the stolen ideologies of African Americans being replaced with an outlook from the European perspective. African American Studies is a change agent for the ideology of Black Americans. Black studies as an academic discipline serves to reorient the perspective of African Americans in an effort to regain a sense of pride and cultural identity stolen by white society.…
Teachers today have the challenging yet rewarding task of educating a classroom filled with diverse learners who represent a variety of backgrounds and cultures. Within these students lies a multitude of opinions and viewpoints about controversial topics that are imbedded in some of the content that is taught. Two of these content areas are history and social science. While avoiding controversy may be limited, what is not is the ability to teach controversial issues in the classroom. “Addressing Current Controversial Issues through the Social Studies Curriculum: Making Social Studies Come Alive” by Obed Dube (2009) explores the various ways that teachers can address controversial issues. Although this article is written with the focus of teachers in Botswana, the author provides a variety of ways that can be useful for all teachers around the world.…
These walls have heard my cries more than anyone else will and well these mirrors have seen me judge every feature of myself more than anyone else. Always told myself around age 15 that I was stuck in a 25 year old's body and in some ways I was. From the depression to the anxiety, I made it all on my own. Being the child of an African immigrant is not exactly the easiest life to live, but we all go through adversities and like the saying goes it doesn’t matter how you start but how you finish. I finished as a whole new person, a person most will never know. Hearing the car parking the footsteps getting louder and being too scared to face it so I ran to my room. From the arguing to the screams the good to the bad, it made me who I am today.…
Racism. Africa. Exploitation. Colonialism. Roots. The master/servant relationship. Prejudice. How race/environment/prejudice can influence a person when growing up.…
It was a hot August day as sweat beat down on Thomas Jefferson Brown. He had been working in the field 2 hours before the hot sun had made its presence known. He looked back over the drying field, hoping that this crop would provide for his family better than last years crop had. Thomas watched his oldest son, Nathan, who worked down one row of the field while staring intently at the cotton plants as he picked the cotton. Nathan was a very inquisitive young man who had just yesterday asked his father what it was like being a slave for Mr. Walter Johnson. When his father had told him that in a lot of ways life was so much easier than now, Nathan had given him a look that allowed Thomas to know that his son could not understand. How could he understand? Nathan had not grown up a slave and seen that while it was extremely difficult, there was a feeling of stability to life then. Yes, Thomas Jefferson Brown had endured the beatings and yes he had watched as his Mother and eventually his sisters had been sexually assaulted, but how do you tell a young man such as Nathan that such was the way of life; it was to be expected, along with the comfort of knowing where your next meal was going to come from. Since Tomas had been freed after the great war, He s and his family had endured much more than that; having watched the lynching of two of his brothers and numerous friends. They were the lucky ones though, Thomas thought, while looking up at the fiery ball of heat known as the sun. They did not have to endure other hardships; their suffering was over. Yes it was hard for Nathan to know that life was indeed easier as a slave than a freed man, and maybe, just maybe, things would change during Nathan's lifetime. Thomas Jefferson Brown wiped his brow once more and continued on picking the cotton Even though the civil war ended in 1865, African Americans still faced an uphill battle to obtain rights that were afforded other Americans. This was in…
Freire, P.(1999), Pedagogy of the Oppressed, In: Pollard, A. (Ed.) Readings for Reflective Teaching, Challenging the ‘Banking’ Concept of Education, 2002, p.365. London: Continuum International Publishing…