Africana Studies: Empowering Black Voices

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Main body
Conclusion
References

Introduction

From the 19th-century movements for African-American liberation to the current Black Lives Matter, Black Americans were at the center of the struggle for political rights in the United States. They were first transported to America from Africa as slaves to work on European colonists’ farms. During the 18th and 19th centuries, slavery was abolished, but the struggle for political rights continued, as Black people’s rights were still limited. This movement greatly influenced the American democratic tradition, which is based on personal liberty and equal opportunities for all people. During the 19th and 20th centuries, they made a significant cultural impact on American culture by merging their culture with European American culture, resulting in music styles such as jazz and blues. In that way, Black/Africana studies, which explores Black people, is important for the United States to understand why it has its current political and cultural ideas. At San Francisco State University, Africana studies were established in the 1960s as a part of the movement for civil rights.

Main body

Africana studies focus on the research of the history, culture, and heritage of people with an African background. In addition, they are deeply interconnected with their cultural and political movement, providing them with knowledge. In the United States, Black people are a significant portion of the population, and thus their studying allows researchers to better understand the history of the United States, its culture, and politics. However, it is not a single reason why African studies are important: Black people and various political, social, and cultural movements associated with them have a profound impact on the U.S. (Feagin, 2016; Lebron, 2017). Black Americans were at the edge of the struggle for human rights as a group that was limited in rights and demanded equal opportunities. The U.S. culture and political ideas, in turn, had a profound impact on the world. The mass culture is mostly based on musical genres such as blues, jazz, and rock, and the idea of personal rights and democracy is now associated with the best side of civilization. Africana studies, in this way, are interconnected with all those mentioned subjects.

Historically, African Americans were in an oppressed position and had no privileges that were available to White people. In the 1700s – 1800s, first in the English colonies and then in the United States, Black people were officially enslaved (Feagin, 2016). When they obtained their freedom after the Civil War in 1865, they were still the subject of discrimination and persecution (Du Bois & Mack, 2017). In Northern states, while being free, they were limited in rights heavily. For example, in Baltimore, they were not able to attend public schools and, thus, were not able to make a good career or realize in life (Halpin, 2019). Meanwhile, it was common to consider African Americans as intellectually inferior compared to White people; in reality, they were simply limited in their right to education (Lebron, 2017). Their petitions to officials were usually rejected, and they may easily be beaten or killed without any criminal liability for malefactors.

Such a situation led to various movements for social rights, which eventually played a crucial role in U.S. democracy development. In the 19th century, they were weak and usually isolated, being in the form of aggressive protests of separate African American groups against injustice (Feagin, 2016; Halpin, 2019). In the 20th century, however, the idea of equity, regardless of race and skin color, became much stronger, and various movements started to unite (Halpin, 2019). The civil rights movement in the middle of the 20th century, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, was based on non-violent resistance and massive protests against discrimination and for people’s rights (Clayton, 2018). In the 1960s, during this movement, Africana studies departments were established in various universities, such as SFSU, where it was the initiative of the Black Students Association (T’Shaka, 2012). They demanded equal rights for white and non-white students, and Africana studies were established in 1968 to understand the culture, psychology, history, and influences of Black people.

Africana studies influenced the further movements for citizen rights in the U.S., making people more conscious. A similar Africana Studies Department was established at Cornell University, where the activity of Black students was also strong (History of Africana Studies at Cornell, 2022). Today, this department studies various disciplines to understand Black people from various perspectives and supports democracy, activism, and community engagement. Black Lives Matter, a 21st-century movement for racial equity, social justice, and against police violence, is decentralized and united via social media and the Internet (Clayton, 2018; Lebron, 2017). While being focused on racial prejudices against Black people, it aims at defending everyone who needs social protection and ensuring equal rights for all. Therefore, such core ideas of the U.S. as democracy and human rights were largely formed by African American movements.

Conclusion

Africana studies in the U.S. are dedicated to the exploration of everything mentioned above. In the SFSU, this discipline is rooted in the 1960s civil rights movement and studies the Black Americans’ history, their cultural influences, psychology, and other peculiarities. Cornell University, where a similar department was founded in 1969, is dedicated to similar themes and is open to activism. Their history is a vivid example of the fight for personal freedom and social justice, which are at the core of the United States’ democracy. Their musical influences, such as blues, jazz, and rap, became an integral part of the world culture, empowering it. Therefore, African Americans have had a profound influence on American culture and movements for civil rights and liberation. Black/African studies are interconnected with Black Americans’ cultural, social, and political movements, empowering them with knowledge and developing them.

References

Clayton, D. M. (2018). Black Lives Matter and the civil rights movement: A comparative analysis of two social movements in the United States. Journal of Black Studies, 49(5), 448–480. Web.

Du Bois, W. E. B., & Mack, H. J. (2017). Black Reconstruction in America. Routledge. Web.

Feagin, J. R. (2016). How blacks built America: Labor, culture, freedom, and democracy. Routledge.

Halpin, D. P. (2019). A Brotherhood of Liberty: Black Reconstruction and its legacies in Baltimore, 1865-1920. University of Pennsylvania Press.

History of Africana Studies at Cornell. (2022). Africana Studies and Research Center. Web.

Lebron, C. J. (2017). The making of Black Lives Matter: A brief history of an idea. Oxford University Press.

T’Shaka, O. (2012). Africana Studies Department History: San Francisco State University. The Journal of Pan African Studies, 5(7). Web.

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Africana Studies: Empowering Black Voices

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