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ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL MISSIONS AND THE SEVEN PRINCIPLES OH
AN AFRICAN-CENTERED EDUCATION IN MICHIGAN’S POSTSECONDARY
AFRICAN-AM ERICAN HISTORY CLASSES
By
W hitney

L. W oods

A DISSERTATION

in

S u b m itte d to
M ichigan State U niversity
partial fulfillm ent of the requirem ents
for the degree o f
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

D e p a rtm e n t

of

E du catio nal
1996

A d m in istratio n

UMI Number:

9631362

Copyright 1996 by
Woods, Whitney Laurence
All rights reserved.

UMI M icroform 9631362
Copyright 1996, by UMI Company. All rights reserved.
This microform edition is protected against unauthorized
copying under Title 17, United States Code.

UMI

300 North Zeeb Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48103

A BSTR AC T

ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL MISSIONS AND THE SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF
AN AFRICAN-CENTERED EDUCATION IN MICHIGAN'S POSTSECONDARY
AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY CLASSES
By
W h itn ey

L au ren ce

W oods

The purpose o f this study was to determine the academic and
social

co n cern s

professors

in

betw een

four

M ichigan

their

practices,

of

stated

and

the

A frican -cen tered
universities

co n cern s,

Seven

it

ad dressed

com m unity.

Students

the
in

their

p erceptions o f the

The

instructo rs'

support
study

for

principles,

the

explained

professors'

curriculum

u n d e r s ta n d i n g .

that

congruence

scholarly

and

A frican-centered

of

the

courses

academ ic
were

teaching.
social

the

History

teaching

Education

1994). Principle seven was a focus

con texts

and

the

o f an

instructors'

educatio nal

map

instructors'

p rofessors'

that academ ic

m ulticultural
hum an

1993,

to

reco n stru ctio n

A frican-cen tered

was

the

P rinciples

(The Detroit Public Schools,
because

and

A frican -A m erican

A

were

and

surveyed

social

ex am in ed

further

purposes,

and

to

to

with
a

for

missions.
determ in e

dim ension

along

contribution

"branches out

A frican-A m erican

of

the

the
seven

"model"

touches"

all

forms

of

There were no inconsistencies observed between the instructors'
teaching

and

scholarly

A frican -centered

practices and

E ducation.

Four

the

distin ct

centered

in stru ctio n

em erg ed

academic

and

m issions and the

A m erican

social

c o m m u n ity .

and the law;

academic

and

presence

of

the

most

Students

no ted
by

that

experiences o f First
research

should

p ostsecon dary

the

for

instructors

the

teachers

on

the

providing

with

ap proaches

from

e x tra c u rric u la r

coursew ork

does

not

en gage

and

of

and

for

ex p erien ces
this know ledge.

co n ten t

"model"

other

m ulticultural
to

groups.

K-12

b u ild in g
if

were

instructio n.

experience

prospective

The

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

A frican -cen tered
a

the

the

A fro cen tric

prom oted

of

Students'

to these themes.

of

African-

interpretation

universities

su ggestions

ad dressed

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s

four thrusts.

Asians,

African-

o f the

c u ltu re ;

A frican-A m erican

A m ericans,

focus

the

know ledge

co n tex ts

linking

reconstruction

were linked
in

of

way p ro fesso rs

in s titu tio n a liz a tio n

a d m in istrato rs'

su p p o rtiv e

curriculum

were

m issions

c o m m u n itie s ,

and

the

and, the accurate

ex p erien ce,

social

Principles o f an

p arad ig m s

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

A frican-A m ericans

su rro u n d in g
History,

from

social activism ;

A frican -A m erican

Seven

their

the
Future

and
A fro cen tric
formal

C o p y rig h t
W hitney
1996

by
L.

W oods

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my gratitude to a num ber o f people
without whom
would

be

this project

im possible

to

would

nam e

have

never com e

everyone

who

has

into fruition.

shaped

my

It

thinking

as I have gone through this process. But I will name as many as
space will

allow.

First,

the professors that participated

should be com mended.
intrusion

on

their

com e

about.

The

their

teaching,

If

tim e

they

and

they

too are

my

this

insights

them

their scholarly works, will

not allowed

space,

invaluable

w atching

had

dissertation

that

interact

my

I gained

with

in this study

scholarly
would
from

colleagues,

have

never

observing
and

reading

last a lifetime. I am grateful to them since

teachers.

Special thanks are extended to my com m ittee whose faith and
guidance helped to make this research a reality. T h e chair, Dr. Lee
June, was a source o f strength throughout. Drs. G loria Smith,
Thom as,
helping

David

Plank,

me safely

and

guide

Aaron

this

Pallas were also

project

Richard

instrum ental

in

into harbor.

I would also like to acknowledge the following scholars whose
com m ents

and

conceptualization
Molefi

Asante,

feedback
and

had

a dram atic

execution

Harold Cruse,

of

this

Haki

im pact
project:

M adhubuti,

on

the

M aulana

K arenga,

T heophile Obenga,

and

Asa Hilliard. I would be remiss if I did not thank Niara Sudarkasa.

v

It

was

Sudarkasa

U niversity,

James

M ichigan State in

along

with

Q uina and

my form er professors
Loretta Jones,

at Wayne

State

who recom m ended me

to

the first place.

Finally, my family deserves praise for their encouragem ent and
support.

My parents,

my bearings.
assisting

My

Esmo and

wife

me in seeing

Krystal

Sandra Woods,
shouldered the

my way through.

helped

me to

special burden

maintain
of

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter
I.

INTRODUCTION..................................................................................

1

Statement o f the Problem...................................................
1
Research Questions..................................................................
2
Background.................................................................................
2
6
Educational Context...................................................
Academic and Social M issions..........................
8
The Seven Principles o f an
A frican-centered E du catio n
14
The "Model" M ulticultural
Curriculum
18
II.

III.

METHODOLOGY
Sampling Procedures
Data Collection
The Seven Principles o f an
A frican-centered E ducation
Academic and Social M issions
Educational Context
T he "M odel" M ulticultural
Curriculum
ANALYSIS OF DATA
Summary o f Analysis P rocedures
Case One
Educational Context
Academic Unit
In te rv iew with the
Department Chair
Instructor's Background
Classroom O bservations
Assessment
The Seven Principles o f an
A frican-centered E d ucation
vn

2 1
2 1
2 2
2 3
2 8
3 1
33
3
3
3
3
4

6
6
7
7
1

4
4
4
5

2
4
8
0

50

Scholarly Research......................................
Student Surveys..........................................................
Case Two....................................................................................
Educational Context...................................................
Academic Unit...............................................
In terv iew
with the
Department Chair.........................................
Instructor's Background.........................................
Classroom O bservations..........................
Assessment.......................................................
T he Seven Principles o f an
A frican-centered Education ................................
Scholarly Research......................................
Student Surveys..........................................................
Case Three..................................................................................
Educational Context...................................................
Academic Unit...............................................
Interv iew
with the
Department Chair.........................................
Instructor's Background.........................................
Classroom O bservations..........................
Assessment
T h e Seven Principles o f an
A frican-centered Education
Scholarly Research
Student Surveys
Case Four
Educational Context
Academic Unit
Interv iew
with the
Department Chair
Instructor's Background
Classroom O bservations..........................
Assessment
The Seven Principles o f an
African-centered Education
Scholarly Research
Student Surveys

viii

55
61
68
68
72
72
76
81
82
83
86
92
97
97
98
99
102
107
10 9
1 10
1 14
12 1
12 5
12 5
12 9
13 0
13 3
13 8
14 1
14 2
14 6
15 4

IV.

SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, AND IMPLICATIONS
FOR FUTURE RESEARCH.................................................................
Sum m ary and Discussion o f the Four Cases
Educational Context...................................................
T he Seven Principles o f an
African-centered E d ucation................................
Academic and Social M issions..........................
T he "Model" M ulticultural
Curriculum....................................................................
Im p licatio n s for F uture Research
on African-centered Instruction....................................

15 8
159
159
166
17 2
18 0
185

APPENDICES......................................................................................... 1 9 3

ix

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
S tatem ent

of

the

Problem

This study is concerned with describing and explaining the
co ng ruence
and

the

betw een

the

teaching and

American

seven

professors.

their

educatio n al

o f their contribution
dim ensions

of

this

of

an

A frocentric

scholarly practices o f four M ichigan

History

in structors,

principles

to a

The academ ic
contexts,

"model"

and

and

social

the

African-

m issions o f the

teach ers'

m ulticultural

education

p ercep tio ns

curriculum ,

are

also

project.

The seven principles o f an Afrocentric education were devised by
the Detroit Board o f Education
in

developing

curricula

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s,

that

w ith o u t

in

w ould

("The

P rinciples

for

A frican -centered

S c h o o ls .

1994).

how

instructors'

through
they

are

the

stated

principles,

m atched

of

Salon

with

R eference

G uide

education,"

social

and

the

principles

milieu,

A frican-cen tered

practices.

factors related
teachers,

1

are

The

on

Detroit

of

G uiding
Public

has yet to focus on

and

teaching

experience

and

academ ic
how

the

d isto rtio n s

However, educational research

in a culture-specific
con texts

Indaba

1994 to assist educators

incorporate

in vo king

m isrep resentation s
an

1993 and

m issions can
are

Because
to
also

be

translated
instruction

the educational
discussed.

reflected
once
occurs

R esearch

Q u e stio n s

The dearth of research on Afrocentric teaching suggests a need
for an

exploratory

1) What are

the

the

to answer

self-reported

A f ric a n - c e n te r e d
2)

study

the

follow ing

academic

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

and

questions:

social

H is to ry

missions of

p ro fe s s o rs ?

How can these m issions be discussed by invoking the standard o f
seven

principles

o f an

3)

How

are

4)

W hat

is the impact o f

te a c h in g

A frocentric

the m issions reflected

in

education?
the teachers' practices?

institutional variables on the Afrocentric

m ilieu?

This study places a special emphasis on reconstruction, since it
add resses

strategies

to

m ove

the

A frican -A m erican

com m unity

to

sel f - d e t e r mi n a t i o n .
B ack gro und
Although the pillars o f the Afrocentric movement, AfricanA m erican

h isto rian s

K arenga

(U n iv ersity

educators

with

g ro u n d b reak in g
its

a

In

fact,

of

new

paradigm ,

p ractice

A sante

Asante

(T em ple

U niversity)

C alifo rn ia-R iv ersid e ),

sc h o la rsh ip

im plications on

1993).

M olefi

both

adm it

requires

new

(Asante,

1991,

reiterated

M aulana

have provided
that

research
1992;

this point

and

their
that

will

Karenga,

inform

1986,

during a conversation

that

I had with him after a presentation that he gave at the University o f
M ichigan in
the

1994. He said that although a study had been done on

po stseco n d ary

p ro gram s,
variables

as

A frican-A m erican

m easured

(Conyers,

by

H istory

departm ental

units

stru ctu re

with

the

strongest

and

o th er

related

1995), he was not aw are o f any research

which

3

in v estig ated

the

A sante asserted
g en eratin g

A fro cen tric
that this

th eo ries

on

kind

in struction al

m ilieu.

o f research

A frican -cen tered

F u rth erm o re,

w ould

be essential

teachin g

practices.

to

James Banks (1970) has stated that A frican-Am erican history
provides

an

investigate

ap p ro p riate
how

p o in t

various

of

d eparture

ap pro aches

can

be

for

studies

applied

to

that
classroom

teach in g .
...Since history, in principle, is concerned with the totality o f
man's past, it is potentially the most interdisciplinary o f all o f
the social disciplines, and for that reason can serve as an
excellent fram ew ork for incorporating the Black experience
into the curriculum from an interdisciplinary perspective, (p.
96)
Professors o f African-Am erican history are an essential subject o f
in quiries

regarding

teachers,

but

history.
every

are

A fro cen tric
also

w riters

teaching
and

because

researchers

they
of

H istory

unit,

research

professo rs

m ust

1993).

K arenga

(K arenga,

begin

and

study

with

(1993)

their

on

not ju st

A frican -A m erican

K arenga says that since core courses are the
academ ic

are

foundation o f

A frican-A m erican

Introd uctory

classes

states:

Finally, it is im portant in the standardization process to start
with the establishm ent o f core courses rather than possible
variations w ithin th em ...T his is cu rricu lar base-b uilding as
opposed to academ ic hang gliding, i.e., catching w hatever wind
faculty m em bers can ride. (p. 499)
The guiding principles o f an African-centered education are the
fram ew ork for this study.
C leansing ,

M aafa,

The tenets are: Tim e and Place, Diaspora,

C o m m issio n /O m issio n ,

R e c o n s tr u c tio n /S e lf -D e te rm in a tio n .

T h e se

D eco n stru ctio n ,
p re c e p ts

w ere

and
c o n c e iv e d

4

by

edu cato rs

facilitated
Jeffries,
on

by

Public

com m unity

Afrocentric

and

G uiding

Anthony

Schools.

scholars

for an

1994).

based

m em bers

Browder

Principles

"researched
g roup

and

discussions

as

M olefi Asante,

Leonard

Indaba

A frican-centered

These

T hey

D etroit during

such

("The

Salon

Reference

the

major

G uide

education," T h e

scholars' responsibility

inform ation on

discussions."

in

was

issues and

to

to

D etroit

provide

guide

small

stated:

A p pro xim ately 153 p artic ip a n ts rep resentin g all factions o f the
d istrict and com m unity convened
during the months o f
February through July o f 1993 and 1994 to discuss major
issues addressing an accurate account o f history and a
cleansing o f unacceptable concepts in the curriculum and
purchased textbooks o f Detroit Public Schools. The participants
w ere charged with creating a com m on know ledge base as they
d eveloped guiding p rincip les that co n cen trated on 'view ing,
review in g, and cleansing ' w ritten inform ation used in textbooks
and curriculum guides. (The D etroit Public Schools. 1993, p. 1)
M aulana Karenga and Afrocentric educator Asa Hilliard (Georgia
State

U niversity)

com m itted

have

them selves

received
to

using

copies o f the

principles and

them

teaching

in

their

and

have
scholarly

research, according to Dahia Shabaka, the Director of the Office o f
Social

Studies and A frican Centered

Schools.

Education

for the Detroit Public

Because o f the recency o f this docum ent, however,

has had the opportunity

to report on the viability o f the tenets once

they are applied

to teaching

o ccasion

present

for

the

neither

practices. Thus,

this provides the

study.

The principles are relevant to the current project because they
are a means to evaluate the stated academic and social missions o f
A frocentric
principles

H istory professors,
are

reflected

in

the

in addition
teachers'

to gauging
scholarly

and

how the
teaching

5

p ractices.
extent

O bservations

of

classroom

to which the principles

In te rv iew s

with

detail

conceptual

the

p ro fesso rs

en terp rise

instruction.

A pplying

the professors
tenets

and

b rin g
the

d ep artm en t
that

to

the

an

p rogram

players

to the

provides

in light o f the subjects'

key

evidence

of

the

into teaching practices.

and

co ntex t

principles

in the study

prov id e

find their way

fram ew o rk

educatio nal

episodes

of

in

ch airs

the

A frocentric

A frican-centered

w ritings

and

opportunity

researches

to discuss

of

the

scholarship.

A secondary purpose o f this research is to investigate the beliefs
and teaching
assess

their

im plications

m ulticultural
o f human
th eir

practices o f the faculty m em bers in this study, and to

curriculum

of a

A frican -A m erican
g roups.

ev id en ce on
instru cto r's
its

prom ise

w ere

which

understanding

version

c u ltu ra l

for the

asked

(Du

"branches

Bois,

"model"

H istory's

connection

research

to connect

to

of a

"model"

and

touches"

Faculty

were asked

curriculum
that

classroom

all

which

o f o th er

ep iso d es

forms
to state

identifies

ethnic

provide

and
fu rth er

or absence o f such a perspective. The

(archival

for creating

of

out

1969).

m ulticultural

O b serv atio ns

the presence

developm ent

the
th e

data)

was

"model"
courses'

also

evaluated

curriculum .
content on

in

Finally,

term s

of

students

A frican-A m ericans

to

that o f other racial and ethnic groups.
M ulticulturalists present the "model" m ulticultural program as an
ideal

for

secondary

and

po stsecondary

cu rricu lu m

planners

(H arding,

1991; Du Bois, 1969). Peggy M cIntosh (1990) says that the U.S. is
probably
ethnic

100 years away

and cultural

voices

from

curricula

that value

in the classroom.

a variety

of

6

E d u c atio n a l

C o n tex t

Karenga (1993) and Asante (1992) are among a host of Africancentered

scholars

who posit that the

context o f

can

be enabling or disabling to this type of

the

Black com m unity in San Francisco helped

A frocentric

instruction.

teaching

For instance,

force the issue o f a

Black Studies unit at San Francisco State, by jo inin g students and
academ ics

in cam pus protests

(Hare,

Am erican

students on

also

program s.

In addition,

A m erican

H istory

v iab ility,

in

part,

cam pus
the

and

In The Contexts o f Teaching
R e a litie s

(1990)* M cLaughlin,

contexts as being stratified
the

Subject

for

interaction

co ntent

area.

T he

p ercep tio n s

advocacy o f their program s
S tructure

and

T albert

teachers

C ulture,

clim ate are the foci.

d e te rm in e

and

first

Africantheir
p rofesso rs

1995).

Schools: T eachers’

Bascia
The

level

describe

p ro fesso rs

educational

most im m ediate is

provides

and ad m in istrato rs

of

guide

1994; E m e r g e .

in Secondary

This

to

African-

o f such

A frican -cen tered

into five layers.

A rea/D epartm ent.
betw een

chosen

w heth er

(Traub,

presence o f

the existence

d ep artm en ts

co n tro llin g

are selected to teach in them

T he

validates

adm inistrators

p ro g ra m s
by

1972).

the

in

occasion

the same

reg ard in g

a d m in istrato rs'

is an exam ple. The second, School

is

w here

A school's

institutional
mission

norm s

and

cam pus

and student dem ographics are

keys.
At the School Sector/Policy System level, institution-type
(private, public, affiliation, etc.)
political
greater
College,

econom y.
freedom

to

An

independent

serve

for exam ple,

is linked to a school's market and

a

costs

select

school,

for

student

population.

significantly

instance,

m ore than

may have
K alam azoo

the average public

7

in-state

institution,

achievem ent
M ichigan

student

State

population

and

caters

pool.

H ow ever,

U niversity,

from

in-state,

access and equality

to a decidedly

which

are

G enerally,

such

institutions

p ro m o tin g

m u lticu ltu ral

land-grant

draw

publicly

o f opportunity
are

high-incom e

the

institution s

m ajority

com m itted

to

for a diverse

regarded

ap p ro a c h e s

as

to

and

such

o f their
the

highas

student

ideals

of

group o f students.

having

a greater

stake

in

ed ucatio n.

Community Culture maps the geographical and social context in
which

a school

d em ographics

is em bedded.

of

the

Features

su rrounding

such as urbanization, and the

area

are

im portant definers.

For

exam ple, Wayne State University is located in Detroit, a city with a
70
that

percent
the

A frican-A m erican

population.

university

co nferred

(522)

any

A m ericans

than

United States in

m ore

non

1991 (Black

Perhaps

bachelor's

it

degrees

A frican-A m erican

Issues in

is

no
to

coincidence
African-

institution

in

the

H igher Education. May, 19,

1994, p. 54).
Educational Values System:
fifth
the

layer.

Here,

universities'

dim ensions
learning.

the

are

also

o p erativ e

Thus,

they

are

the

A fro cen tric
student
and

System ,

teaching.

(School

data

in

professors

a key.

U niv ersity
w ere

to

the

and

of

m ission

and Culture,
C ulture

from

O bviously,

current

the

the

peers and

these

institutions

five
of

higher

study.

departm ent

sources o f

C om m unity

receive

postsecondary

percep tion s

Structure

respectively).

are

relevant

participants'

population

Three

with

Professional Community is

that teachers

adm inistrators,

Interviews
assessed

support

Societal

adm inistrators

support provided

to

statem en ts, broch ures, and
inform ation
and
was

School

for levels Tw o
Sector/Policy

assessed

by

review ing

8

data on
the

the ethnic and cultural

university

interv iew s
for

is

located.

with

level

the

five:

C om m unity.
Academ ic

m ake-up o f the com m unity

Local

and

school

p ro fesso rs

and

dep artm en t

Educational

Values

System:

in which

new spaper articles
chairs,

Societal

and

p ro v id e d

data

Professional

O bservations o f all o f the above w ere also made.

and

Social

M issions

From the inception o f Black Studies, scholars em phasized the need
for the discipline to focus on academ ic excellence and social
respo nsib ility .
solves

Hare

called

fo r

an

A frican -A m erican

"the problem s o f the race" by producing

solving

problems o f a co ntagious

American

education

that

"persons capable of

society"

(Hare,

1969, p.

42). James Banks (1974) agreed. He said that the purpose o f Black
Studies is to help
problem s

through

F u rth erm o re,
skills

that

racism ,

social

he

help

make decisions that resolve personal

action,

added

will

and

Blacks

that

them

political

public

policy, and

teachers
address

should

politics.

equ ip

colo nialism ,

students

with

in stitutionalized

po w erlessn ess.

Banks and others saw a need for this type o f education because it
was

not

present

in course offerings

institutionalization
perspective,
incom plete
the

K arenga
and

fathers and

Blacks"
W hite

of

(1993,

B lack
says

exclusive
m others
p.

11).

to

Karenga.

that,
of

"W hite

the

preceded

(1974).

F urtherm ore,

From

studies

m ajority

o f hum ankind

Studies as resistant

according

Studies

that

and

Black

to social change

was

the
an

academ ic

seen as

o f hum ankind,
hum an
Studies

incorrect,

especially

civ ilization,
supporters

i.e.
saw

inquiries or models,

9

Therefore, it takes more than painting a course offering Black to
make it represent the history
Cruse

(1967),

and

E.

and

F ranklin

heritage o f Black people.

F razier (1962)

Blacks against the dangers o f aping
g ro up

and

the

id en tify in g

them selves

as

capitalists.

F or these

Black

"trium phant"
transcend en ce

or

trium ph

w ould

warned

"successful"

standards o f the dom inant

"transcendent"
scholars,

m ake

Harold

one

in div idu als

or

no quantity o f

European.

Cruse and Frazier saw that even when middle-class, Blacks were
still victim s o f social, political, econom ic, and cultural oppression.
Black Panthers would say,
American

ideal o f success,

the condition
unaffected
were

o f the

p lu c k

the

could not afford to buy into

upward m obility

m ajority

(C arm ichael,

wary o f the

Blacks

1967).

them

the

via exiting one's group,

Thus,

Black

m ovem ent because

stro n g est A frican -A m erican s

who need

the
if

o f Blacks would rem ain relatively

H am ilton,

integration

The

from

Studies

scholars

o f its tendency

the

m asses--the

to

people

m ost (Hare, 1973).

Furthermore, John O gbu’s thesis (1978) that the United States is a
caste society

stratified by color,

points out other difficulties for

Blacks who attem pt to "fit in" (p.
p erm eated
or

by

O gbu

by

Blacks

adhering
notes.

w earers

to

These

from

seeing

102). Caste boundaries cannot be

"assim ilation"

the

W estern

myths
the

into

the

principles

dom inant

of

"rugged

merely

"form a screen

system

that

underlies

conform ing to superior and inferior roles"

group,

individualism ,"

that prevents

their

(Ogbu,

W hite

own

1978, p.

its

behavior
102).

For the reasons just described, leaders o f the Black Cultural
Revolution

expected

professors o f Black Studies to do more than just

"present the facts" to their students (Cruse,

1967). T o be a Black

in

academ ician
service

was considered

to the

educational

a p riv ilege

Black com m unity

(H are,

outreach program s for

(Hare,

1973).

T h e price:

1972).

H are created

the Black com m unity

in the

Area. Frazier, following in the tradition o f W.E.B. Du Bois,

Bay

did studies

on the Black family, the

Black church, and the Black middle-class.

Cruse

Black

(1967)

adm onished

leaders

Black people on econom ic,

political,

sim ultaneously.

w riters

For

Black

creation and control

to advance

the

and cultural

fronts,

and intellectuals

this

o f w orks that

interests

means

of

the

are in the interests and im ages

of

Black people. Thus, if one is a Black playwright in New York City, for
instance, the above social critics say the charge is to com pose works
that

reflect

m instrel

the cultural

shows,

e s ta b lis h m e n t

or
in

realities

trying

of

to ap p ease

Harlem,
the

rather than

producing

o v errep resen ted

p ow er

M an h atta n .

Other African-Am erican scholars see Cruse's critique of AfricanA m erican

intellectuals as

claim

the mission o f scholars o f African-Am erican

that

having

much

broader

im plications.

people is

place the study o f African-A m ericans on a footing that is equal
that o f other people and

They
to
to

cultures.

The African Am erican scholar H arold Cruse first posed this
possibility o f m ulticulturalism in America in his Crisis o f the
N e g ro In te lle c tu a l in 1967 and finally fleshed out his ideas
more clearly in Plural but Equal in 1987. Cruse, I should point
out, does not directly adv ocate an African cen tered p ersp ective.
Yet,
in so many words, the logic o f his argum ents points to the
necessity o f an Am erica that is a social habitat for a culturally
plural but equal peoples. (Keto, 1994, pp. 60-61)

1 1

A fro c e n tric itv
Because the seven principles frame this study, it is necessary to
discuss

A frocen tricity,

b efore describing

how

academ ic and social
to

teaching

the

tradition

that

n u rtu red

the prin cip les,

the tenets can be used to reflect professors'

missions,

and how the principles can

be related

practices.

Although the centric concept appeared to be a logical extension o f
Cruse and others call for a
necessary for them
B lack

to envision

Studies advocates.

institutions such

describe

feature o f how

the

1993).

this

attitu d e

as

C ivilization's

ch aracter o f people

other

exam ple,

the

that

than

it was

lay ahead

for

standard bearers in

and do not value Black or

S cholars o f A frica and

people o f African

For

terrain

F o r the m ost part,

Scholars o f Western

phenom enon.

tough

as universities did not

A fricanness (K arenga,
A m ericans

society that was "plural but equal,"

a

p ersiste n t

and

Africanpervasive

descent are perceived
failure

Europeans

Cruse (1967)

to grasp

the

contributes

(Ani,

1994).

unique cultural
to

this

stated:

The im pact o f the N egro presence on American artform s has
been trem endous, and also historically conditioned; but this
fact the American psyche is loath to admit in its established
critical schools o f thought. As Americans, white people in
America are also W esterners, and A m erican white values are
shaped by W estern cultural values. A m ericans possess no
critical standards for the cultural arts that have not been
derived from the European experience. On the other hand, the
basic in g re d ie n ts for native (n o n -E u ro p ean ) A m erican
originality
in artfo rm s derive from A m erican N egroes who
cam e to A m erica from a non-W estern background. We need
only point
to A m erican music to prove the point. Thus in
American
art a peculiar kind o f cultural duality exists, which is
an ideological reflection o f the basic attitudes o f blacks and
whites toward each other. One can begin to understand how

12
this aesthetic acculturatio n functions in the American ideology,
by studying the ideas o f a W estern philosopher-aesthetician
like the
late Bernard Berenson: 'But even the arts o f China and
o f India, rem arkable and deeply human as they are and with
histories o f their own worthy o f every attention, are not
history for us Europeans. Only to the extent that we influenced
them, and they affected our arts, should they find a place in
our history.' W hat Berenson said elsew here about A f r i c a n art
was even less appreciative; for in a mind such as his, what is
seen as
exotic can never share the same pedestal with what is
classic. W hat critical status, then, can Am ericans allow AfroAm erican artform s, if Am erican culture is m erely an extension
o f the W estern cultural tradition? (p. 222)
A frocentricitv:
response
view ed

to
as

Although

C ru se ’s concern
more

than

an

not form alized

centeredness

was

David W alker
N orth

The Theory

first

(1829)

A m erican

o f Social Change
that

A frican -A m erican s

extension

o f the

in theory,

posed
and

in

In

19th

century

Delany
the

(1852),

20th

was

should

"Western

the possibility

the

M artin

enslav em en t.

(1980)

Asante's
be

cultural

tradition."

o f Africanby

liberationists

during the period

centu ry,

of

A frican -A m erican

scholars such as Carter G. Woodson and W.E.B. Du Bois carried this
thesis

into

the

realm

that a "classical"

o f education.

education

Africans thus "employed."
the academ y,
cen tury

starting

(W arren,

1988).

would create an
Du

with

W oodson's concern
inferiority

(1990)
com plex

Bois introduced courses on

A tlanta

A sante's

U niversity
thesis

was

at the

in

Blacks to

turn o f the

sem inal,

because it focused on presenting people o f African

was

how ever,

descent as actors

in history, and not just the acted upon.
If a Eurocentric perspective was not far-ranging and broad
enough in scope to give balanced accounts of, for instance, ancient
Nubian

civilizations,

the

M aafa o f A frican

enslavem ent, and the

struggle

for Civil

Rights,

then

Afrocentric lens was justified.
regions o f the

world

that

have evolved

based

q u a litativ ely

sig n ifican t

hum an

(Keto,

p.

Eurocentric, and
describes

(1989,

15).

argued

that

an

Or, as Tsehloane Keto puts it,

to develop paradigm s

1989,

m ulticulturalists

distinct

on perspectives
cultures,

A m ericacentric

of

cultures

and

A m ericans),

A frocentric are parts o f the

are entitled

the regions'

h isto rie s

(First

"different

ex p erien ces"
Asiacentric,

"pluriverse"

that

Keto

1994).

Afrocentricity does not seek to deny or denigrate a Europeancen tered
provide

perspective.

the Eurocentric

humility,"

according

the centrality
Europe,
others

H o w ever,

to

critique

with

"a much

K arenga (1993).

o f the European

in those

m u lticu ltu ralism

m atters

view

w here

we must always challenge

in

is

needed

to

needed sense

of

"W hile we cannot question
m atters

European

pertaining

cu ltu re

the im position

strictly

is involved

o f Europe on

to

with
others.

Historians, as they have com e to be defined in the West, are
profoundly

Eurocentric

in

co n sisten tly

tran scen d

th e ir

African

realities"

(Asante,

their enterprise

and

p rov incialism

even

1992, p.

have been
w hile

unable

to

ex am in in g

189).

Furthermore, Asante (1992) adds that,
One cannot study Africans in the United States or Brazil or
Jamaica w ithout som e appreciation for the historical and
cultural significance o f Africa as source and origin. A
reactionary posture which claim s A fricalogy as 'A frican Slave
Studies' is rejected outright because it disconnects the African
in Am erica from thousands o f years o f history and tradition.
Thus, if one concentrates on studying A fricans in inner cities of
the Northeast United States, which is reasonable, it must be
done with the idea in the back o f the mind that one is studying

14

African people, not 'm ade in
historical depth, (p. 15)

America N egroes’ without

The literary works o f several African-Americans, which can be
considered

in w hole or part

Afrocentric,

o f conceiving the Diasporan
invisibility as a poignant
means in
Award.

The
The

African as agent.

d islo catio n ,

to

the

tradition

Ralph Ellison poses

symbol o f what being

Invisible Man (1952), a

pov erty ,

are essential

Black in America

winner o f the American Book

d isillu sio n m e n t

and

d isen c h an tm e n t

o f growing up Black and poor in the South during the Depression, is
the

focus o f Richard

Through

the

W right’s autobiography,

use o f their jou rn als

and

lets the slaves do the talking in T he

Black Boy

narratives,

Slave

John

(1966).
Blassingam e

C om m unity

(1972).

Moreover, multicultural scholars view the African context as an
essential

standard

experience.
African

T herefore,

experience

"A frican

A m erican

educated

in

(H arding,

for

ways

1991, p.

in

the

discussion

cultural
A m erica

had

the

connections
is

com m un ities
that

of

to be

have

direct

A frican-A m erican

must

be

pro perly

insisted

benefits

to

made

if the

represented.

that

th eir

African

ch ild ren

be

A m ericans"

198).

The Indaba (Zulu for intense discussion and debate) Salon (T h e
Detroit

Public

A m erican

Schools.

students

1994)

with the

was created
kind

o f "direct

to provide
benefits"

Africanthat

H arding

d iscu sses.
The

Seven

Principles o f an

Afrocentric

Education

T his study asks how Afrocentric teaching can be described using
the

seven

question,

principles o f an A frocentric
it is first necessary

education.

To answ er this

to discuss the principles,

which

were

15
developed

during

com m unity
on

series

m embers

G uiding

Public

a

in

P rinciple

S chools.

of

discussions

Detroit

for

an

("The

betw een

Indaba

African-centered

Salon

Reference

education," T he

and

G uide
D etroit

P la c e

Humanity develops within the context o f time

h um ankind

and

1993):

Principal One: T im e

understanding

ed ucators

will

that

provide

reflects

a

the

fram ework
universal

for an

and place. This
accurate

develo pm ent

of

study

of

civilization s

past and present in time and place o f origin. The consideration o f
context

makes

it clear that Europe's domination o f the world, since

1400 A.C.E., has taken place within a brief period o f time when
com pared to the origin o f Nubian civilization, circa 4000 B.C.E.
Principle Two: D i a s p o r a
The D i a s p o r a is the scattering o f people o f indigenous African
origin

to continents

curious

m ovem ent

affirm ed

that

the

around

from

world

the continent.

dispersion

the peoples o f the world
Public

the

through

planned,

"Current

o f hum ankind

scientific

began

in

are descendants o f Africans"

system atic,
data

has

A frica and
(T he

or

that

Detroit

Schools. 1994, p. 7). Afrocentrists insist on the recognition and

inclusion o f the impact this dispersion o f original Africans has had on
the

sciences,

agriculture,
tex tb o o k s

arts,

music,

governm ent,
and

history,

etc.

cu rricu lu m

religions,

laws,

architecture,

o f past and present civilizations
reso urce

m aterials.

in

16
Principle Three: C l e a n s i n g
Items, argum ents,
that
to

su gg est
hum an

culture

E u ro centric
have

that

m ore

A fric a n s /A fric a n -A m e ric a n s
than

cu rricu la

existed

as

these

ignore

people

rather than

no n-E u rop ean s,

of

need

have

c o n trib u te d

less

to be elim inated.

the p ossibility

that

objects.

ex po sed

other

Hence,

to

such

ethnic

groups

Europeans,
an

and

offering

C l e a n s i n g is necessary to purge the

m isp erceptio ns.

d e h u m a n iz a tio n
c u ltu ra l

other

subjects

im p ortan tly,

b eliev e

images, pejoratives, and negative expressions

A fric a n s /A fric a n -A m e ric a n s

as

well

as

the devastation

and

o th er

g ro up s.

Principle Four: M a a f a
M aafa

is a Kiswahili

d estru ctio n
cap tiv ity

of

and

indig eno us
enslavem ent.

term

meaning

A frican
It

p eo p le

through

is essential

to

acknow ledge

A fricans did not en ter o th er continents as slaves,
beautiful

people

with

languages,

Only

after

brutal

kidnappings

w ere

these

Africans e n s l a v e d

cultures

and

and

isolation

by ex trem e

from

African

people,

not the beginning,

and

and

o f their own.

fam ily

mental

M aafa should be viewed as the disjuncture

that

but as proud

countries

torture.

and

w o rld w id e

and

country

physical

in the history o f

as indicated

in

most textbooks.

Principle Five: C o m m i s s i o n / O m i s s i o n
C om m ission/O m ission
d eletio n s

designed

inform ation
as

if the

to

refers

to

the

m isrep resent

about people

or

o f African

A frican/A frican-A m erican

deliberate
m anipulate

descent.

has

distortio ns
ideas

Those

no historical

and

and

who w ould
legacy

or

teach
who

17
force

the

discussion

inaccurately.
Blacks
is

are

of

N otions

their

o f w hite

thus reinforced.

im po rtant

to a

history

to enslavem ent,

superiority

and

T he

infusion

and

intellectually

balanced

the

o f new

teach

inferiority
prim ary

sound

of

inform ation

curriculum .

Principle Six: D e c o n s t r u c t i o n
The elevation of European culture and history to the detriment o f
African as well as other groups is referred to as Deconstruction.
idea o f European
continue
ed ucatio n

hegem ony

to be prom oted
and

teacher

in education

is incorrect and

as the correct view.

tra in in g

p ro gram s

Changes

are

needed

The

cannot

in graduate
if

university

and K-12 educators are to teach in a m anner that is respectful to
th e ir

d iv e rse

c o n stitu e n c y .

Principle Seven: R e c o n s t r u c t i o n / S e l f - D e t e r m i n a t i o n
R e c o n s t r u c t i o n / S e l f - D e t e r m i n a t i o n is the process o f building the
mind, body, and soul based on the acquisition o f knowledge.
ability
self,

to define,
com m unity

attrib u tes are

develop, defend,
and

the

nation

is

by-p ro du cts

create, and control

fundam ental
of a

to this

heightened

The

the destiny o f

concept.

sense o f

These

African

identity.
Although there are seven principles o f an A frican-centered
education,
social

for the purposes o f this

m issions,

p rin ciple

seven

is

R e c o n s tr u c tio n /S e lf - D e te r m in a tio n
A fric a n -c e n te re d
m issions.

W hat

teaching
do

these

and

study

o f in structo rs’ academ ic

p articu larly
p ro v id e s

ed u cato rs'

instructors

significant.

th e

n ex u s

academ ic

propose

and

that

and

b etw een
social

students

should

do

18

to

respond

to

the

needs

of

the

A frican-A m erican

com m unity?

Beyond that, it can be asked, what are the professors doing
them selves

to

d e v e lo p m e n t
o utreach
T he

be

socially

p ro g ram s

and

a rc

econ om ic

"M odel"

resp on sib le?

A n ti-p o v e rty

exam p les.

C h u rc h -b a se d

em p o w erm en t

M u lticu ltu ral

and

pro jects are

com m unity

e d u catio n al

others.

C urriculum

Because a truly multicultural education is capable o f envisioning
how

disparate

hum ankind
1991,

cultural

(Keto,

1992),

1994;

This dim ension

others.

For exam ple,

A m ericans.

This

is treated,

how

co n trib u tes

to

induction

some
by

study
students

the

must

be

professors

links

descriptions

(Du

Bois,

ex p erien ce

analogies

to the

experience

to it, and
History.

relevant

By

how

1969).

that the

the

detailing

1980,

"branching

define

in

is

Asante,

of

understanding

that

may

interested

respond

1990;

capable

A frican -A m erican

A frican-A m erican

contains

the "pluriverse"

discusses the

draw ing
is

to

M cIntosh,

forms o f human

betw een

experience

1988;

education

o f the research

m ake

A m erican

contribute

M yers,

A frocentric

out and touching" all

in stru c to rs

parts

and

African-

how

o f First

interculturalism

this inform ation

extension,

to the study

such

o f any group of

p e o p le .
The boundaries that exist between the study o f various ethnicities
and cu ltures
"W estern

are

cultu re

false
has

anyw ay,
had

to

order to create the im pression
North
Asante

Atlantic
(T h e

according

develop

Sandra Harding

distorted

conceptual

(1991).

schem es

in

that the histories o f Africa and the

can be kept separate"
A m erican

to

Scholar. Spring

(1991,

p. 234).

M oreover,

1991) says that it is a mistake

19
to claim
Am erican
1991).

that

A frocentricity

students'

Asante

exists

self-esteem ,

(1991)

states

as

the

m erely
some

to enhance
critics

African-

suggest

(Ravitch,

following:

The argum ent is a false lead to nowhere because the
curriculum planners I am fam iliar with insist that the
fundam ental objective is to provide a c c u r a t e information. A
secondary effect o f accuracy and truth might be
the adjustm ent
o f attitudes by both black and white students. In several
surveys o f co lleg e students, research dem o nstrated that new
inform ation changes attitudes in both African American and
white students, (p. 270)
Furtherm ore, it is wrong to assum e that greater multiculturalism
is the

proverbial

curricula,

straw

according

C ollege (1990).

to

that will

break

W om en's

the back o f

scholar Peggy

postsecondary

M cIntosh

o f W ellesley

She states:

My generalizations may bring objections from some who say
that the introductory level college curriculum is now
ov erstretch ed through inclusion o f new m aterials on 'race and
class.' This is an illusion (emphasis mine). The fact is that no
works by people o f color are seen as c e n t r a l to understanding
any o f the traditional liberal arts disciplines, and people o f
colo r are presented chiefly as disadvantaged, or as prim itive
forbears o f real civilization, o r as recent im m igrants with
cultural traditions that create problem s for 'A m erica.'
M oreover, there is very little material o f any kind by and
about non-W estern m ajorities in most college and school
students' courses, (p. 8)
This inquiry into Introductory A frican-A m erican History courses
taught

by

follow ing:

A frocentric
1)

Secondary

adm inistrato rs

w ho

m issions o f an
know

how

are

professors
and

p ostsecon dary

concerned

A frican-centered

A frican -centered

has the potential

with

the

orientation;

teaching can be

to

teachers
academ ic
2)

inform
and
and

Scholars

described

the

social

who

using

want
the

to

2 0

seven
in

principles

of

A fro cen tricity 's

an

A frocentric

co n trib utio n

to

education;
a

"model"

3)

Educators

m ulticultural

interested
curriculum

and, 4) Those who seek explanations o f the contexts that shape all of
the

above.

CHAPTER II

METHODOLOGY

This study o f four Michigan
H istory
of

an

instructors,

addressed

A frican-centered

m issions,

educational

the

application

Education,
contexts,

A frican-centered

the

and

of

the

professors'

the

African-American
Seven

academ ic

p rofessors'

the "Model"

M ulticultural C urriculum . C hapter

discusses

the m ethods

em ployed
S a m p lin g

and

potential

in form ing

to accom plish

Principles

these

social

for

Tw o

aims.

P ro c e d u re s

The professors in this study were selected based on self-reported
know ledge

o f A frocentric

content.

Studies data, and calls to the
id en tified
Next,
H istory

the p rosp ectiv e

I contacted
or

A fter

National

these educators after being

the

H istory

selections,

declined

Center

for

units

d espite

confidentiality,

some

be done with

the results o f the research.

to participate

with

referred

of

their

four agreed to participate

instructors.

to them

w here

the

four

professors

2 1

in

When a professor

this

the

would
declined,

I spent a

maximum o f 8 weeks and a minimum o f 6 weeks at the three
universities

by

of

fear o f what

in the study.

I

respective

assurances
for

such

I went to the next instructor on the list. Out o f a pool o f seven
candidates,

Black

10 largest universities in M ichigan,

M ichigan in stitu tio n s

A frican-A m erican

universities.

Through

study

taught.

22

D ata Collection
The instructors presented
A fric a n -c e n te re d

ed u catio n

addition,

their stated

d uring

intentions regarding an

in terv iew s

practices.

I assessed their teaching in light o f what appeared to

p rin c ip le

seven

w as

the two.

provided

seven

In

between

episodes

the

principles.

the congruence

classroom

on

I honed

in on

data

on

their
be

sessions where

ad d ressed.

The professors also stated their academic and social missions
during

interview s,

practices.

In

academ ic

and

in structors'
evaluated

and

these

addition,
social

research
on

its

were

students

missions.
w ere

analyzed

respect

w ere asked to describe
The

exam in ed

as

well.

for

to

the

missions em bodied

reco m m en d atio n s

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

with

in

teaching

courses'

the

S ch olarship

was

the self-d eterm in atio n

of

the

co m m u n ity .

Additional evidence o f social missions was docum ented by asking
the

instructors

po tential

to

P articip atio n

w hat activities

address
in

the

they

needs

p ro fessio nal

of

were
the

involved

with

that

A frican -A m erican

o rg an izatio ns

was

also

had

the

com m unity.

exam ined.

A variety o f data were obtained to describe the educational
context o f

A frican-centered

A r e a /D e p a r tm e n t,
d ep artm en tal

a d m in is tr a to r s

guides

w ere

articles and data from
o f Equity
Level Two:

At

w ere

review ed.

the M ichigan

were com bined
School

instruction.

Level

One:

in te rv ie w e d ,

Local

and

Subject
and

school

n ew sp ap er

D epartm ent o f Education's

with observations

Structure and Culture.

o f the school

milieu

Office
at

Admissiofis representatives
School

S ector/Policy

M etro p o litan
defined

D etroit

United

d em o g rap h ic

C om m unity

ch arts

and

Values

p rofesso rs'
faculty

System :

com m ents,

n e w s le tte rs

Seven

Societal

student
w ere

P rinciples

and

Services

At Level

Professional
local

for Level

data

Five:

Values,

n ew spaper

Three:

of

o bserv atio n al

the C om m unity Culture (Level Four).

E ducational

The

System.

supplied inform ation

the

articles,

and

review ed.

of

an

A frican -cen tered

education

Observations o f teaching episodes and archival data provided the
best

ev id en ce

work

was

of

w h e th e r

A frocentric,

o f the professors
pedagogy

and

the

A frican -A m erican

according

to the

w ere exam ined

assessm ent.

My

and

seven

principles.

a link

analysis

H istory

was

instructo rs'
The

syllabi

made between

o f assessm ent

was

less

direct

than the student surveys, but this did not make it any less valid. The
In tro d u cto ry
of

co urses

content,

Although
student
was

w hich

c o m m itted

placed

the

dem ands

the foci o f this study
learning,

what

students

p ro fesso rs
on

to

instruction

a
and

m assive

am ount

assignm ents.

were teacher practices and not
did

was

not

independent

of

what

taught.
The teachers were given a copy o f the seven principles and asked

to com m ent on

how

well

exam ples o f questions
session

or

review ed

started

to

m ake

o th er

research ers

their instruction

that

w ere asked

a professor's

interpretations,
m ight

have

followed them.

while

publications.

which

raises

ex plain ed

the

I observed
Here,

a

were

teaching

I have

the question
data

Below

of

d ifferently.

already
how

2 4

Principal One: Time and Place
1.

Does

the

professor reference

the

o r does he/she treat Africans' contact
b eg in nin g

for

anteriority
with

of

African

experience,

Am erica as if it was the

them ?

2. What means are used to convey the point that classical

Africa,

particularly

B.C.E.)

ancient Nubian cultures (circa 4000

a civilization as high as any, but
at

some

point

(K arenga,

B.C.E.-332

had

that all civilizations fall into decline

1993)?

Scholars o f Western Civilization cite the Roman Empire (27 B.C.E.395 A.C.E.) as an exam ple o f how no group dom inates forever. The
question

is,

does

the

in stru cto r

about high civilizations in

provide

Africa such as

A frican cultures such as the Mali
c e n tu rie s

(A san te,

students

with

Pharaonic

inform ation

Egypt or W estern

Empire during the

12th and

13th

1994)?

Principle Two: Diaspora
1.

How are the accom plishm ents o f Africans in the arts,

m usic,

and

history

sciences,

recognized?

2. Describe the books, articles, etc.

used to discuss this phenomenon.

Diaspora insists that "any discussion o f the diaspora must begin
w ith

the

follow ing

a n t h r o p o lo g ic a l
1.

understanding

of

archeological

and

r e s e a rc h :

The oldest fossil

rem ains o f hum ankind

Tanzania on the east coast o f Africa.

were

discovered

in

25
2. Scientific studies validate the African
birthplace

o f hum ankind

im m ig ra tio n s ”

and

continent to be the

the origin

o f all

human

m igrations

and

(The D etroit Public Schools. 1994, p. 7)

Principle Three: Cleansing
1. W hat
he/she

steps

does

perceives

the

as

A frican -A m erican

in structor take

being

to address

incom plete,

inaccurate,

term inology
or

that

disrespectful

to

p e o p le ?

Principle Three seeks the elim ination o f stereotypes, pejorative
ex p ressio n s
have

etc.

contributed

that

im ply

less

statem ents

that

need

civilization

to Africa,

that

A fricans

to hum an civilization
to

be

"cleansed"

A frican-A m erican s

than

include:

Blackness

in

others. Exam ples
M issionaries

Africans lack the Puritan

lazy), and negative references such as
which encode

and

work ethic

Black Monday,

a denigrating

of

brought
(they are

Blacklist, etc.,

m anner (T he

Detroit

Public

S c h o o ls . 1994, p. 8).
Principle Four: Maafa
1. Is

the physical and mental

torture

that resulted

from

the M iddle

Passage represented

in the course, or are A fricans treated as if they

were

o bedien t

com pliant

and

becom e

slav e s?

2. As

in Principle One,

as the beginning

as

they

entered

the

Americas

to

is enslavem ent treated as the disjuncture, or

o f civilization for African

people?

Historians such as A rthur Schlesinger suggest that when ethnic
groups
threaten

see

them selves

national

"American

past"

as

cohesion,

anything

o th er

while denying

(S chlesinger,

1991).

than
the

"A m ericans,"

greatness

O f course,

of

they
the

this com m ent

26
counters

Asante's assertion

N egroes’ (1992).

Others

A m ericans

been

legacies:
slavery

have
"The

that

such as Niara
m olded

extended

descendants

institutional

heritage

w hich

A fricans

'm ade

en slavem ent

their

and

p.

both

netw orks

Africans

(1981,

by

not

in

Sudarkasa claim

fam ily

by

continent"

Blacks are

had

that

America

that

and

were

African-

African

form ed

were

based

brought

with

on

during
the

them

to

this

45).

If instruction is to be in a manner consistent with Principle Four,
A frican -A m erican
that

classical

H istory

African

teachers

civ ilizatio n s

For instance, in T he

Slave

African

cou rtsh ip

survivals

folktales,

in

language,

w ould
have

had

C om m unity

music,

to

on

(1972),

practices,

names,

have

the

im pact

A frican-A m ericans.
B lassingam e

dance,

proverbs,

assess

familial

and

presents

roles,

religious

beliefs

and

p ra c tic e s.
Principle Five: Commission/Omission
1. How does the literature that the professors use in class address
d isto rtio n s

and

o m issio n s

re g a rd in g

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s?

Key exam ples o f com m ission/om ission include assertions that
slaves cam e

from

Africa,

made into slaves"
Africans did not

when

"Africans cam e from

(The Detroit Public

Africa and

were

Schools. 1994, p. 10), and

have a civilization, and have

not made contributions

to world civilizations, when, in fact, "...East Africa and the Nile were
highly

sophisticated

m onum ents

that

in

cannot

their
be

social

interactions.

d uplicated

even

They

with

produced

today's

technology"

(The Detroit Public Schools.

1994, p.

10). The instructors' published

w orks

are

relevant

(articles,

books,

etc.)

also

because

they

represent

2 7
inform ation

that

is

"im portant

cu rricu lum "

(P rin cip le

to

a balanced

and

intellectually

sound

Five).

Principle Six: Deconstruction
1. Is the class centered on

the African-A m erican experience, or is the

history o f A frican-A m ericans
o th e r

placed at the

m argins o f the stories o f

p e o p le ?
The main concern with respect to Deconstruction is to view

A frican-A m ericans
acted

as

actors

in

their

history,

and

not

merely

the

upon.
Principle

1. W hat

Seven:

self-help

R econstruction/S elf-D eterm ination

strategies are posed to resolve the problem s o f

A frican -A m erican

p e o p le ?

Principle seven was a focal point for the study. In addition to
being

used

surveys
the

to evaluate

addressed

needs

of

how

the

in stru cto rs’

the

students

teaching

w ere

and research,

encou raged

to

resp on d

to

A frican -A m erican s.

Scholars o f A frican-A m ericans have dism issed m ovements such
as

M arxism

and

p o w erlessn ess
M adhubuti,

Com m unism

and

1977)

as

irrelevant

d ise n fra n c h ise m e n t
in

the

in

addressing

(A sante,

Black com m unity.

1992;

T hey

say

political

Cruse,

1967;

that analyses

that focus strictly on social class, may apply to ethnically and
cu lturally

hom o geneou s

generate possibilities
heterogeneous
1977).
the

and

T herefore,

p articular

societies,

but

that

C om m unism

in

co untries

such as the

also

organized

along

the

strategies

conditions o f

the

presented

Africans

in

does

United States
lines o f race

w ere

America.

expected

not
that

are

(M adhubuti,
to

speak

to

Again, Principle Seven
attem pts to define
representation.
A m ericans

pinpoints African and

who they are and the best

Thus,

possess

it is believed
the

that

means o f self-

scholars o f

greatest potential

Africans in America (Asante,

A frican-Am ericans'

for

African-

identifying

the

plight

of

1991). Cruse spoke o f the need for

Blacks to act out o f a "group cultural com pulsive" (1967) to respond
to the needs o f Black people.
"cultural

nationalism "

m ovem ent,
posed

for

to

exam ple,

help

Academ ic

and

and

As the subjects o f this project discuss

M arcus G arvey's
w hat

specific

Blacks realize
Social

"Back

solutions

K ujichagulia

to
and

Africa"
strategies

were

(S elf-D eterm ination )?

M issions

Most o f what was considered under the discussion o f instructors'
academ ic
seven

m issions

principles.

p artic ip a n ts
record

of

in

was

addressed

The p rin c ip les

the study

Africans

in

w ere

through
w ere

the

application

central

presenting

A m erica, according

the

in determ inin g

an
to

of

historically
A frocentric

w h ether

accurate
standards.

Evidence o f professors' social missions was assessed by examining
p u b lish ed

w orks,

o rg anization s,

inv olv em en t

and

student

surveys

of

and

classroom

according
w elfare,

to Asante (1992,
and

em p lo y m en t

Furthermore, w h e r e
policy

issues can

p.
are

affecting

debate

A frican

aro u n d

"The

or ought to be political, social, cultural, or econom ic actions
c o n d itio n s

and

instruction.

should

critical

discussion

social

issue

to

includes

p rofessio n al

policy

resp on se

clu ster

with

what

com m unities,"

22). He adds that health, education,
exam ples.

a professor publishes

also be assessed

scholarly

A frocentrically.

Asante

w orks on
says,

in

29
"When a dean o f a college says to a faculty member, as one recently
said, 'You ought to publish in mainstream journals,' the dean
Journal o f Black Studies or B lack

m eaning

S c h o l a r . Spring, 1991, p. 269). T he
W estern

Journal

o f Black

Scholar* (Asante, A m e r i c a n

A fro cen tric

Studies

are

is not

o th er

Scholar and T h e

A frican-centered

jou rn als.

Work in the policy arena was defined by involvement in projects,
activ ities
how

that

professo rs

consulting
with
in

directly
in

with

the

im pacted

M ichigan

traditional

business

the

Black

provide

com m u n ity

institutions

sector

and

com m unity.

such

securing

as

Exam ples

service

include

the NAACP,

funds

for

of

teaming

developm ent

projects

Black neighborhoods and acting in an advisory capacity to school

d istricts

that

attem pt

were collected
social

adopt

by asking

challenges

e x tra c u rric u la r

to

posed

the

by

activ ities

an

A frocentric

education.

subjects o f this research

the

w ere

discipline,
they

and

in v olved

T hese

w hat

data

were the

what org anizatio ns
with

that

respo nd ed

and
to

t hem?
At Temple, Asante's African-A m erican History Departm ent is
involved

in G.E.D.

C om m unity

Education

P hiladelp h ia
s tu d e n ts

tutoring

public

(E m e r g e .

through P A S C E P (Pan-African

P rogram ),

schools,

w orks

and

S eptem ber,

directly

pu blishes

with

Studies

three

textbooks

for

North
grade-school

1995).

The instructors' affiliation with professional organizations was
also

indicative

A m erican
the
of

of

H istorical

nation's

H istory

A frocentric

their

com m itm en t

Association

is

professors.

The

phenom ena

at

the

to

the

professional

developm ent.

largest organizational

lead

organizations

postsecondary

level

for
are

body
the

the

The
for

study
African

30
H eritage Studies

Association

(AHSA), and the National Council

for

Black Studies (NCBS), according to Karenga (1993).
Karenga (1993) says that the AHSA has primarily served three
functions.

First, it is a context for scholarly exchange. The group's

co nferen ces

attract

sch o lars

from

the

"world

African

com m unity"

(1993, pp. 30-31). Second, the AHSA has played a role in the
founding

o f other

African

associations

such

as

T rans-A frica,

the

National Council

for Black Studies, and the National Association o f

Black Educators.

Third, the

"AHSA

has been an advocacy organization

for Black interests in education in general as well as on larger social
issues

organizing

p a rtic ip a tin g
(Karenga,

in

forum s,

engaging

go v ern m en tal

and

in

dem on stration s

in stitu tio nal

establish m ent

p ro g ram s
T rainin g
(Karenga,
im p o r ta n t

discussions"

1993, p. 31).

The significant projects undertaken by

w orkshops

policy

and

of

on
such

an

accred itation

m ulticultural
as

W orkshop

the
and

process

education

S u m m er

C urriculum

for

and

Faculty

the NCBS include the
Black

Black

Institute,

D evelopm ent

Studies courses,

w om en's
the
and

issues,

and

A dm in istrative
Data

Collection

1993). Asante says that the AHSA and the NCBS are
b e cau se,

Many people now in African American studies do not attend
A frican A m erican studies p rofessional m eetings. They attend
m eetings o f their trad ition al disciplines, and consequently they
do not engage in the dialogue that's making the discipline.
That's people like Gates (Harvard's Henry Louis Gates Jr.),
Cornel West and so on. (Black Issues in H igher Education. May
5, 1994, "25 Years o f Black Studies: Pondering Strategies for the
Future," M ary-C h ristin e Phillip, p. 15)

3 1
Student surveys were an excellent source of confirming evidence
determ ining

the academ ic

and

social

m issions o f the professors

study. A total o f 172 students were asked to explain:
c o u rse

was

about

helpful

in

ad d ressin g

A frican-A m erican

as critical

to the

encou rag ed

to

E d u c atio n a l

people,

stereotypes

and,

2)

W hat

Black com m unity, and

respond

to

and

in the

1) How the

m isconceptions

issues

how were

were

identified

students

them ?

Conte x t

Because Afrocentric instruction does not operate in a vacuum, it
was

necessary

teaching
and

that

Bascia

to

discuss

the

this

project

concerned

(1990)

prov ide

contexts

a

for

the

A frican-centered

itself with.

fram ew ork

for

M cLaughlin,

assessing

an

Talbert,

educational

co n tex t.
Interviews
a d m in istra to rs
inform ation

with A frican-centered professors and their

(four),

(mission

M cLaughlin,

alo n g

statem ent),

Talbert,

P ro fesso rs

d ep artm en t

w ere

p ractice

A frocentric

p rofessors
d eg rees

included

the

dep artm en t's

provided

the data

and Bascia's taxonom y:

A rea/D ep artm ent.
level

with

were

asked

instruction.
both

P rofiles

their age and

to
of

for

Level

One

of

Subject

what

en ab lin g /d isab lin g

archival

factors
their

at

the

attem pt

a d m in istrato rs

area

that

they

to
and

received

their

in.

Linda James Myers (1988) says that, "...society may espouse the
value o f cultural pluralism , and, at the same time, condone
institutional

structures

society, an individual

that im pose assim ilation"

(p.

may (on a conscious level)

88).
say,

"In such
'I support the

a

3 2
right of every ethnic group to participate, as long as they do it my
w a y .”'
Another contextual
acad em ic

and

d escribe

what

feature o f the study was the instructors'

p ro fession al
they

back g ro u n d s

b rought to their

which

w ere

respective

classroom s.

were asked to discuss the occasion

for their

A m erican

dissertation

H istory.

u n iv ersities
and

they

in stru cto rs'

atten ded ,

the research

in te rp re ta tio n

The

projects

w ere

w h eth er
that they

g e rm a n e

their

inven toried

teaching

Subjects

African-

topics,

d egrees

what

w ere

said led them

to

in

history,

to an A frocentric

here.

A key variable was the history o f the department, as well as the
Introd ucto ry

courses

that

w ere

studied.

The events

unit and courses were part o f this analysis.
academ ic

unit was assessed for

c e n te r e d

in s tru c tio n .

Archival data
how

the

Subject

A rea/D epartm ent

S tructure
as

and Culture.

w h eth er

norm s.

Talbert,

The

to

g ran t

mission

was

and

C learly,

the

school

and

also a key, especially

since the mission

u n iv ersity ’s attem pt

codify

to

connected

status

what

African-

statements also

university's

with

indicated

the

second

structure:

School

policy

rep resen t

student

the

structure o f the

Bascia's (1990)

d ep artm en tal
o f the

created

its potential for enhancing

such as university policy

level o f M cLaughlin,

The

that

on

m atters

in stitu tio nal

dem ographics

statement,

they perceive

were

for example,
as

its raison

is the
d'etre.

Levels Three: School Sector/Policy System, Four: Community
C ulture,

and Five:

C om m unity,
im pact

on

as

Educational

m entioned

A frocentric

Values

above,

teaching.

were

System:
also

Societal

exam ined

such

Professional
for

their

The

"M odel"

M ulticultu ral

C urriculum

The context for the presence o f Black Studies, and later, the
Afrocentric

idea,

acad em ia

(Hare,

proactive:

they

w ere

cen tered

1990).

Studies

c am p us

on

Black
to

cu rricu la

by

as
and

acq uiesced

student

students

and intellectuals

integrate

the study

was

often

jo in e d

and

the

tak eo vers.

program s

(1990)

says

for

white

aim ed
T hose

at

of

stem m ing

pro tests

w ere

in cam pus

that,

"The

m ovem ent

educational institutions
A m ericans into

students

that

(A nderson,

esta b lish m en t

residents

o f African

by

to

posture

students and

A nderson

co urses

not

o f A frican-A m ericans

a reactionary

Black

T alm ad ge

U niversities w ere

adopt

the ex p erien ces

program s

o f such approaches in

1993).

v olu ntarily

a d m in istra to rs

m anned

co m m un ities.

levels

not

d e m o n stratio n s

not ju st

by

1972; K arenga,
did

Instead,

Black

was the prior exclusion

who

at

all

textbooks

understood

own need to learn o f the Black Americans' experience" (p.

and

their

1).

As mentioned above, from their inception, Black Studies courses
have
1972;

focused

on

academ ic

Blassingame,

1973).

excellence

and

A key point

social

was that

had to address the condition o f Black people.

responsibility

(Hare,

Black scholarship

A further feature was

for the discipline to "reach out and touch" all forms o f human
understanding

(Du

Bois,

1969;

K arenga,

1993).

By their actions, the non African-American students that
Anderson

speaks

o f who

participated

in cam pus

protests

for

Black

Studies appeared to be cognizant o f the need for a "model"
m u ltic u ltu ra l

c u rric u lu m --a n

e d u c a tio n a l

o ffe rin g

diverse groups and denies no one. O f course,

that

resp ects

such a curriculum

does

3 4

not

yet

exist

because

(M cIntosh,

1990).

A frican -A m ericans

A m erican

H istory

are

A frican-A m erican

not

an

integral

studies

part

of

exist

"traditional"

co urses.

Afroccntricity has as one o f its missions a "humanizing" function
(A san te,
of

1992)--a

prom o ting

T hus,

the

in ter-eth n ic

m anner

ex periences
g ro up s

of

in

d urin g

what

the

c o u rses

and

w hich

to

calls

with

w here

the

A sians

and

v ario u s

"spaces

sought to explain

was
of

of

p erio d s

A frican-A m erican
First

com p etition

The

and

"Model"

and

occu rred ?

tied

(Asante,

potential

to

p erceptio ns

inform ation

inform

the

was

of

the

necessary

teaching

of

the

others,

M ulticultural

in

mission

ev iden ce
c lassro o m
indicators

this

study

this

o f attem pts

The

to

interracial
to

including

C urriculum

prom ote

"Model"

and
to

c u r r ic u lu m .

student

provide

if the

what were the
links

exam ine

the

that
courses'
experience,

M oreover, all o f the
m ulticulturalism

M ulticu ltural

m eant at the classroom

o b serv atio n s,

m u lt i c u l tu r a l

pledged

statem ents.

o f what

The

history

A frican-A m erican

and how it related to other perspectives.
in stitu tion s

1992)

phenom ena.

to

used

the quality o f these interactions. For exam ple,

teachers'

T h is

the

ethnic

A frican -A m erican
was

hostility.

strategies were

Rights M ovem ent was used as a reference point,

stud ents

th eir

what

instead

connect

understanding"

experience

Am ericans.

racial

intercultural

in

and

scholars

o th er

asked

p ro fe sso rs’ discu ssion s

ad d ressed

in te rc u ltu ra lism ,

A frican-centered

The question

Asante

ad v an ce

interracial

A frican -A m erican s

is critical.

to create

Civil

re sp o n s ib ility

level.

q u e s tio n n a ire s

students

with

a

in

C urriculum
Interview s,
all

p ro vid ed

"model"

was

A "model" multicultural curriculum was expected to be an
outcome o f this inquiry

in that it was addressed once the seven

principles o f an

A frocentric

m issions

p rogram s

of

the

education
w ere

and

analyzed.

the academ ic

and

social

CHAPTER III

ANALYSIS OF DATA

This
at

three

data.

universities.

Such

the courses
each

an

the

and

study

was

addressed

com position

them es,

by

was
the

the

used

unique

d ifferen ces

o f the

student

bodies

a central

thrust

of

professors

to present
nature

m anner in

them es,

educational

four

variegated

these

nature o f each

are

approach

w arranted

their central

distinct

com p ariso ns

A case

approach

p ro fesso r

racial/ethnic
and

study involved analyzing data obtained from

in

from

the Sum m ary

of

which

the

school to

context.

the

school,

C ross-case

and Im plications

C h ap ter.
S u m m ary

of

A n aly sis P rocedu res

The analysis o f the cases o f Afrocentric teaching for this project
was

four-fold:

Talbert,

and

1) The co ntext
Bascia,

with

d ep artm en t

w ere

included

2)

B ackground

ch airs

in

the

stated

educational

offering

benchm ark.

and

the

study

at

with

w ere

Level

(D etroit

w ere

was

the

Public
placed

36

history

Subject

im p licatio n s
using

(M cLaughlin,

was discussed.

One:

pro fessors

assessed

em p hasis

locale

inquiry

A frican -A m erican

p racticed

Education"

Special

for each

of

interview s

in stru cto rs'

A frican-centered

1990)

o f educational

on

an

"Seven

Schools,

p rofesso rs

A rea/D epartm ent.

conducted.

for

Interviews

3)

T he

A frican -cen tered
Principles

1994)

Principle

as a

Seven:

o f an

37
"Reconstruction,"

since it presents vistas that need

A frican -A m erican s
addition,

three

are

to

scholarly

becom e
works

m ore

"self-d eterm in ed ."

produced

by

review ed in an effort to discern how well
principles:

In

com m ittees
(D etroit

the Detroit

reject

Public

books

Public
that

Schools,

Schools,

each

4)

if

In

professo r

were

they adhered to the
textbook

transgress one o r

1994).

to be explored

Student

selection

more o f the

Surveys

were

tenets

adm inistered.

The identities o f the schools as well as the individuals who
participated
identities.
p ro te cted

in

this

Instead,
by

paper

will

p seu d o n y m s

having

them

remain
were

co m plete

I. Case One:

confidential
used.

to

protect

T he

students

anon ym o us

surveys.

their

were

Professor Moses

P rofessor M oses to ld the class th a t som e people think that
historians are objective. "TH A T'S BU LL!!! You have your p et areas, as
you can tell, M IN E IS L A W !!!”
E d u c atio n a l

C o ntex t

Halcyon is in a rural community that is approximately a threehour drive from
with

two local

Detroit.

To get there, the trip requires connections

freeways o f f the interstate.

The

second com bines

the

old with the new in a particularly poignant way. Along this
thoroughfare,

w ood-carved

signs

point

to

the

First Am ericans live.

T hese reservations are on

university com m unity.

The

obvious

the

under construction

will

developm ent are.
becom e

neighbors

areas

where

margins o f the

closer one gets to cam pus,

the effects o f com m ercial

businesses

w ooded

the

more

Hotels and
to

the

other

76 gas

3 8

stations,

Kinko's

copy

centers,

and

sim ilar

already -existing

e n te rp rise s.
Halcyon’s surrounding com munity has nearly 25,000 residents, o f
whom 22,000, or 94.5 percent, are White.
percent,

are

Black.

im m ediately
there,
and

as

conscious

of

I approached

ties

who were

distracted as
before

W ithout knowing

a

sitting

lack

of

facts,

an

T w o gentlem en

together

presence

attired in suits

in a M cDonald's appeared

was broken

and egg

I becam e

A frican-A m erican

to order breakfast.

silence

their conversation

these

the cam pus.

I entered

sudden

the

A mere 500, or 2.3

and

m cm uffins.

A long
their

Across

second passed

attention s
the

returned

street at

to

M eijer's,

stares and glares escorted me in and out o f the store.
Because o f the curious looks I received everyw here near Halcyon,
and

the obvious

im pression
centered

was

lack

o f an

that

approach.

this

T he

students attend from

u n iversity's
A m erican

com m unity

w ould

school's public

presence,

not

my

prom o te

status and

the

an

fact

Africanthat

"all ov er the state o f M ichigan," according

one adm issions officer,
m u lticu ltu ralism .

A frican-A m erican

appeared

H ow ever,

relative

these

isolation

students are

to

m ost

be positive factors

features

from
likely

the

w ere

urban

for

n eu traliz ed
centers

to

by

w here

the

African-

to live.

Perhaps the environm ent was less than ideal for AfricanA m erican
this

faculty

locale

there w ould
d rink ing

as

well.

prom pted

one

have a hard

beer

and

The

m onocultural,

professor

to

say

sm all-tow n

character

of

that A frican-A m ericans

time unless they w ere into "sitting around

w atching

rented

m ovies."

3 9
On cam pus, the A frican-Am erican
that

in

the

percen t

of

com m unity.
the

total.

The

500

The

student population

A frican-A m erican

A frican-A m erican

students

student

mirrored
were

3

rep resen tatio n

was so small that the faces were conspicuous. In fact, as with the
other cam puses,

I w as

fam iliar with some o f them. "What are you

doing, here, Mr. Woods?" becam e a refrain echoed by several o f my
form er high

school

students.

Black

course

with

in

a

One form er

appro xim ately

student,
40

who was the only

E uropean-A m ericans,

stepped out o f class for a moment to greet me, before returning to
the lecture. He said that

he was looking forward

spring. The student m ajored in Social
o f Halcyon's m ost significant

to graduating in the

Studies Education.

m issions

is training

K-12

In fact, one
teachers.

However, editorials in the school newspaper that detailed a
cam p u s

rife

with

racial

ran co r and

hom ophobia

may

that the university was not setting a good exam ple
teachers.

In one article,

a w riter rem inded

vigilant against racial and

ethnic slurs.

fellow

have

indicated

for its future
students

to be

"And let's not forget the ugly

Barney Bunker issue." In this instance, a coach o f an athletic team
was alleged to have made a derisive com m ent in front o f players
from the ethnic group for

which the slur was intended.

rights leader spoke out against the

incident,

the coach

After a civil
was dismissed.

On three separate occasions, books on gays and lesbians were
defaced in the school's library.

Moses, a co-chair o f the university's

affirm ative action com m ittee, join ed
editorial

which

repudiated

denounce this violent and

the

attack

tw o other
in

the

school officials in an
school

hateful act, and ask all

newspaper.

"We

o f you who believe

4 0

that hate has no place in our comm unity to join us in denouncing this
b eh av io r,"

the

ed ito rial

stated.

A Halcyon chapter o f the nationw ide "Young Republicans" wrote
several

editorials

in

student

organization

the

school

because

it

paper
was

Moses

C ulture"
that

to

invited

discuss

Republicans

when

the

n ation

real

were
issue

need
using

was

for

A frican-A m erican

in

nature.

o f the cam pus's lack o f

a professor o f

the

an

"separatist"

A pparently, because o f his perception
diversity,

attacking

"Am erican

History and

m ulticulturalism .

A ffirm ative

Action

The

lecturer

said

as a sacrificial

the profound econom ic

problem s

lamb,

that

the

faced.
Moses's involvem ent on Halcyon's affirm ative action com m ittee

was

his

most

sig nifican t

clim ate.

In addition,

ex p ertise

influenced

However,

other professors

p articu larly
w hich

in

in

ch allen g ed

o fferin g s

in

"Halcyon

currently

his

service

im proving

the

the

the

un iv ersity

A frican-A m erican

school

H alcy on 's

offers

to

said that H alcyon

A frican-A m erican

A frican-A m erican

to

cam pus

it was an exam ple o f how the instructor's legal

su p po rtin g

appeared

d ire ctly

contribution

new spaper,

several

In

a political

T he

courses

not doing enough,

H istory.

ad m in istration
studies.

was

com m unity.

in

to

professor

more

m entioned

subjects

article

science

p ro v id e

story

an

cou rse
that

relating

to

topics, but does not offer a degree in the field."

"We have content courses in African-Am erican studies, but we
don't have a discipline or field or major or minor as such," the
p rofessor
hearing

said

(S tu dent

anything

o ffer a Ph.D.

from

newspaper,
the

p.

university

3).
on

F urtherm ore,
this

subject.

"I don't

recall

W e don't even

in political science." Despite this, History Department

4 1

C hair

Jeanette

ad m in istratio n ,
his

C urie

w ould

from

A frocentric

the

jo in ed

nearly 50

presented

to

students

within

down,

su pported

on

the

the

Curie and

Baseball

and

history.

several professors

a conference room

"Negro

university's

M oses

A frican -A m erican

was when

to fill

on

everyone

teaching

o f this

his research

that

president

approach

Perhaps a reflection

say

when

League"

Moses

during the Fall

S e m e ste r.
Summary:
follow ing
co n tex t

im ages
w ould

A m ericans
a

small

Despite

M oses's

left

with

not

confined

me

su pport
to

university

com m unity;

the

certain

the

presence

both

activism

o f the

of

respected.

M oses's academ ic

faculty

that
unit,

A frican-A m erican

H istory

m ajor,

b rie f exam ination

o f the

unit

d epartm ent

A cad em ic

ch air

im pression

m argins o f the

p erceptio n

M oses's

attended

A frican -cen tered

the

A frican-A m erican

well

is

presentation,
that

the educational

in structio n:
area

inside

and

"Young

did

H istory
not

Halcyon;

outside

the

Republicans";
studies

D epartm ent

ap pear

is necessary

F irst

surrounding

A frican -A m erican
a

the

w ere

with

su pportive

before

the

the
not

no
either.

interview

A

with

discussed.

Unit

The Introductory classes that Moses taught: "HST 324; AfricanA m erican
to

H istory

to

1915,"

and

"HST

325;

A frican-A m erican

History

1915," as well as his graduate courses, are housed in Halcyon

U n iv ersity 's
H istory

H istory

m ajor at

D epartm ent.

H alcyon.

1915" classes were the

Tw o

T here
separate

is

no

A frican-A m erican

"A frican-A m erican

subjects o f analysis

for

M oses's

H istory

teaching.

to

4 2
As with other

universities, African-Am erican History courses

appeared at Halcyon

in the early

d em o n stratio n s, protests,

and

because o f

M oses's

academ ic

unit,

not expect

I did

Afrocentricity.
h ap p en

As a result,

1970's in the afterm ath o f the

cam pus unrest

How ever,

first

educational

that

marked

the period.

context including

his

the adm inistrator to support

I was not prepared

for what would

next.

Interview

with

the

D epartm ent

C hair

The Department Chair could be found at the end o f a hallway o f
faculty offices.
office.

"Come on

in," Jeanette Curie said, from inside her

open

Upon entering, Curie stood up to shake my hand, before

inviting me to take a seat. The office was approximately the size o f a
closet, and adjoined another small room with a copy machine in it.
The

most prominent

the French

wall

fixtures were a calendar and a picture o f

flag, with the proclam ation,

"Vive La Revolution."

Curie said that she is a Europeanist who specializes in French
history,

particularly

the

French R evolution. H er enthusiasm

for

field becam e clear as she handed me a m iniature French
o rn am en t,
archival

and
data

started
in

France,

Though Curie's
im portance

discussing

o f valuing

seven

principles

o f an

about

som ething

that

her ex p erien ce

w hile com pleting her

the

flag

w orking

with

dissertation.

scholarship is Eurocentric, she expressed the
o th er centers.

M oreover,

A frican-centered
she

had

knew that civilization started in
occur to me that it was

never

she

education

seriously

said
forced

considered

that the
her

to

think

before: "I

Africa, but I guess that it did not

started by Africans." What Curie could

4 3

appreciate about
language
quoting

in which
Michel

instance,
is

the principles
things

are

Foucault.

"we should

couched and

She added

the split between

p rim arily

was that

look at the
messages,"

that she realized

what is called

that,

"North" and

she said,

for

"South Africa"

"political."

The text that supplied Curie with the strongest foundation for
view ing

African

discusses
G reece.
at

the

history

cultural

Another

w as

Bernal's B lack

co n trib u tio n s that

perspective

A frican -cen tered

Martin

that

ph en om en a

A frica

gives

is

her

A thena,

m ade

the ch air
interest

to ancient

insight

in

which

when

G ender

looking

Studies.

The

works o f Joan Scott and G erda Lerner, are two o f her favorites in this
reg ard .
The African-A m erican experience has been particularly
instructive
said.

for

women

of

all cultures and

"If there hadn't been a Civil

not have been

mobilized.
change'

process and

is power."

what

Summary:
m ulticu ltu ralism

Curie's

as people

were

many

scholars

to

p ersp ectiv e

beneath

o th er

In addition,

she

they
human

of

w ere

to

civilizations began

ed ucation al

ex periences

unqualified.
subm erge

her

p rep ared

an

the principles,

in Africa.
her

the

political

avoided

the

A frican-cen tered
negating
and

base,

Beyond
to

would

in particular and

She

th ereb y

know ledge

women

Curie

M ovem ent created a

began rethinking

ap p ro ach es,

actually r e a d

c o n trib u tiv e

Rights

support for A frocentricity

general

tendency

in

backgrounds,

Rights M ovement,

The Civil

clim ate o f 'social

ethnic

viability.

acknow ledged

m entioning

that, C urie's

accept

its

that

that

that

prior

perspectives

o th er cultures and peoples could be just as validate as hers.

of

4 4

F urtherm ore,
that

the

co nn ects

context for
a p p eared

chair's

interest

E u rocentricity,

view ing

that

there

in

A frocentricity,

intercultural
w ould

G ender

be

Studies
and

phenom ena.

fem inism :

For

dep artm en tal

creates

these

su pport

for

a bridge
a

rich

reasons, it
M oses's

in stru c tio n .
I n s t r u c t o r ’s

B a c k g ro u n d

When I left Curie, I passed a row of faculty offices, before
stopping at a lighted aperture in the middle o f the hallway.

"Ah, Mr.

W oods," Moses said, in the dignified tone that is his trademark, as I
m oved

toward him in his office. After filling his open hand with

own,

I couldn't help but

no doubt

notice how tidy everything

that this order was organized

m ulticulturalism .

His officem ate,

A m ericans,

large

had

p ictu re s

around

a feminist and
of

notable

was. T here

my
was

the theme o f
scholar o f First

A frican-A m erican

wom en

such as Mary McLeod Bethune and Rosa Parks over her desk. On the
opposing

wall, there was a bookshelf filled with texts on Women and

F irst A m ericans such as C h ief Pontiac.
But from the middle wall to the back o f the office, it was all
Moses.

The center wall contained a Budweiser

Q ueens o f Africa" poster.
A frica were N zinga o f

"Great Kings and

Superim posed on an icon o f the continent o f

17th century

Angola, and M aqueda (The Queen

o f Sheba), among others. A small portrait o f a Negro Baseball League
team hovered over his desk near the back. On the back wall facing
the door, near the window, was a poster o f Ida B. Wells. Her head
was held high.

Beneath

this

prom inent

pose

was the quote

that

made

4 5

W ells famous:
the

"He who would be free...m ust first strike the blow for

race."
On the lefthand side o f the back o f the office, was a strong clue as

to how M oses thought the blow for freedom
shelf contained
all o f
as

hundreds o f history

should be struck.

His

texts. The theme o f most,

if not

them, was justice. Case law books, and essays by scholars

form er

H arvard

were typical.

This

law

pro fessor

Derrick

small repository

Bell,

an

such

A frican-A m erican,

was a strong indication

that I was

in the

presence o f a legal scholar. "You can keep this, I have

an extra

copy,"

Moses said, as he handed me a book entitled Promises

to Keep:

A frican -A m erican s
(1991),

by

and

Donald

the

C on stitutio nal

O rder.

1776

to

the

Present

Nieman.

Moses, who is nearly 50, is a bespectacled, rail-thin 6'3-4"
A frican-A m erican
usual,

m ale

with

he wore a cap,

a

graying

turtleneck

beard

sweater,

and

m oustache.

As

per

and blue jeans and tennis

shoes. At other times, his attire would include a shirt and colorful tie,
and

dress

slacks

and

leather

dress

shoes.

But

the

p redom inant

image

was the form er one, which allowed him to more easily blend into this
p lacid

a cad em ic

co m m u n ity .

Outside Moses's window, snow crescents calmly concluded on the
co urty ard .
than

Small

bands

of

E uropean-A m erican

students,

no

more

two o r three at a time, briskly shivered past in heavy jackets.

Inside,

the

presence

several

o f the

of

an

professor's

un fam iliar

colleagues

in

A frican-A m erican
the

departm ent

face,

caused

to pause

after

seeing me and say, "Hi, I was just wondering who your friend was."
After acknowledging them, he turned to our discussion. When one
speaks o f A frican-A m erican

history,

Moses

said

that

it is first

4 6

necessary

to

have

professo r

used

a

fundam ental

the index

und erstand in g

fingers o f both

about

hands

America.

to signal

The

reserved

spaces on a shelf. "In America, law is placed up there on the mantle
next to God and country," he said.
The scholar said that his legal focus in African-American history
was

heavily

influenced

by

his

graduate education.

m aster's thesis on picketing at a public

M oses did

institution

in Michigan.

later received a doctorate, also in History, at this university.
dissertation

research

Reconstruction
A m erican

was on

to restrict

South.

The

the

the

Black

rights

Codes,

of

laws passed

A frican-A m ericans

study o f this period

his

was essential

He

His
during

in

the

in forming

the professor's thesis on w hat Blacks w ould need to be self­
determ ining.
m ust

said

first control

Sou thern
labor.

He

plan ters

H ow ever,

that

the

to

defin itio n

defin ed
M oses

th eir

said,

the

en cod ing

assault

th eir

on

the

su b o rd in ate

tow ard

of

independence,

independence.

Blacks

The Jim
liberties

status,

he

w anted

Crow
of

a group

For example,

self-d eterm in atio n

"that

W hites' scrutiny and control."
resu m ed

move

as

linked

freedom

laws that

to

slave

from

followed,

A frican -A m ericans

by

further

added.

Moses said that Jim Crow kept two things on Blacks' minds: 1)
D ifference 2) Inferiority.
factors

is

really

how

In spite o f these events,

much

A frican-A m ericans

"one o f the key

have

been

actors

in

history. Especially change |o f policies]. A lot o f people think Lincoln
said, 'DAMN, I THINK I’LL FREE THE SLAVES.' People discovered that
this was wrong, and seek to correct it. Almost any
em ancipation

to confiscation acts,

w here the em phasis is for me."

you'll find

instance from

Black activists

This

is

4 7

T he instructor’s legal em phasis also perm eated his community
service.

A concern

A m erican

for equity

elem entary

students

a school 45 minutes away.
The

school

was

tests, so that

trying

in

illu stratio n

in

math,

his decision
an o th er

area

to tutor Africano f expertise,

at

He smiled as he recalled the experience.

to boost

its

math

achievem ent on

standardized

it could be more com petitive with a city rival. Above

desk (next to the N egro
ap peared

influenced

the

Baseball

new sp aper

showed

M oses

his

team portrait), a picture that had

exh ib ited
looking

up

one
with

such

presentation.

several

fingers

The

held

together, as if he was counting. "I was trying to figure out a math
problem ," he
sell

the

said. O f course, the professor also used such occasions

students on

Baseball

A frican-A m erican

League caps and

T-shirts

to

history.

He

wore

provoke

discussions on

to

Negro
these

to p ics.
Moses said that the two professional organizations that he was
m ost
the
T he

involved
A ssociation

were

for the

form er is com posed

activ ity

of

historical

this

registry.

L ife

and

H istory

T he

H isto ry's

professors.

dissertation

the

M ichigan

Study

mostly

at

is

subm itting

History

o f non-academ ic
identifyin g

proposals

A ssociation
m em b ersh ip
T he

Black

o f A frican-A m erican

organization

sites and

state

his

with

for
is

in stru cto r

the

to

Life and
history

and

History.

buffs.

A key

A frican -A m erican
have

Study

d o m in ated
has

N etw ork

them

placed on

the

o f A frican-A m erican
by

presented

A frican-A m erican
research

related

to

both.

With respect to his classroom instruction, Moses shook his head
while saying

that he did not allow his students to be "neutral."

Instead,

have to choose

they

which

side they are on during the

4 8

discussion o f certain topics.
rarely
not

the case.

publicly

The

As I was to discover, however, this was

students were

com m itted

to

more

rendering

like silent judges who were

op inions

on

the

inform ation

p re se n te d .
Summary:
p ro fesso r
prism

has

From

his m aster's research

view ed

o f A m erican

the

jurisprudence.

justified by the position
traditionally

history

occupied

of

A frican-A m ericans

He argued

"on the mantle"

alon gside

to the present,

"God

that

such

the

through

the

a posture

was

that the law has

and

country"

in

the

United

S tates.
Hence, it came as no surprise that his social missions and
organizational

affiliations,

were

also

influenced

by

this

w ere forum s that Moses used to address his concern
and

for

the

A frican -A m erican

pro fessor

said

Am erican

com m unity

o f pursuing

that

in ord er
w ould

freedom on

C la s sro o m

com m u nity .

to be
have

its own

to

Both

for equity

F u rtherm ore,

self-determ ining,
be

motif.

the

the

self-defining,

in

African-

that

is,

capable

terms.

O b s e rv a tio n s

Based on my observations, 82, or 87%, o f the students in Moses's
classes

were

European-A m ericans.

A frican-A m ericans.

Each

section

Though understated,
volum es.

suede

and

norm:

the fabrics were w arm
usually

leather

cold)

shoes

and

had

12, or

approxim ately

13%,
47

were

students

in

it.

the dress and appearance o f these students

spoke

w as

Flannel

The oth er

shirts

and jack ets

and boots,
(partly

durable,

and

in conventional colors,

bulk sweaters,

in keeping

nothing

flashy

were

the

with the fact that it
or extravagant.

Although few, if any, wore dresses or shirts and ties, the colors as
well

as

the

clothes

trad itio n al-ag ed ,

app eared

"conservative."

y o u th fu l-lo o k in g

students

M oreover,

had

an

air

these
of

in nocence

about them. From this, I inferred that most had not lost sleep from,
for

instance,

w orking

the

graveyard

shift

to

finance

their educations.

On a num ber o f occasions, I scanned the room to check if students
were

nodding

open,

and

through

during

the

90-m inu te

classes:

followed the pro fessor as

the

material:

he

their

he literally

was constantly

in

eyes

w ere

"walked"

m otion

during

wide

them
class

d isc u ssio n s.
Despite the fact that both sections o f Moses's Introductory
A frican-A m erican

H istory

courses

w ere

filled,

the

lecture

room

still

had vacant space in the front. The instructor made good use o f this
horizontal

zone, as his peripatetic

teaching style took him

from one

side to the other. His coffee mug was a constant com panion during
these
that

excursions.

The

free

hand

often

drove hom e a p articu lar point.

assisted

in

making

The quickening

gestures

o f the professor's

pace and voice generally signalled the introduction o f a key piece of
historical

evidence.

The

cou rse

syllabus

em p hasized

the

im p o rtance

o f "the right o f all class members to S P E A K F R E E L Y " at all times.
H ow ever,

students

reco rd in g

o bjectio ns

Because

the

focus on
for

in

the

this

usually

students'

nor

sat as

still

a ffirm a tio n s

dem ean o r

could

as
to

cardboard
the

have

high am ount o f inform ation
Introductory

course,

I analyzed

cutouts,

arg um en ts
been

related

that they
the

neither

presented.
to

their

were responsible

course

requirem ents.

The fact that Moses's course covered 300 years o f African and
A frican-A m erican

H istory

was

d ifficu lt

to

ignore.

5 0

A ssessm ent
M oses’s Introductory

A frican-A m erican

the history o f A fricans in A m erica

from

H istory

students

17th century

W est

learned
Africa

and their first appearance in the Americas to the dawn o f the 20th
century with "The Age o f Booker T. and W.E.B. Du Bois." The
assignm ents

were

three

and a book analysis.
from

classroom

F ra n k lin 's

exam s,

for each

Students received

participation.

From

one

Slavery

(1995), edited by Steven

to

The

third

o f the

semester,

10 percent o f their grade

required

texts

w ere

Freedom (1994); A frican

Mintz; and N egro

John

Hope

A m erican

T hought

in

Voices

A m erica.

1 8 8 0 - 1 9 15 (1963), by August Meier.
The instructor's legal orientation was present in course
assessm ent.

For instance,

"argum ents"

and

classroo m

the book

"evidence."

discussion

of

A

the

legal

would

be

needed

for

honed

in on

em phasis

also guided

A frican-A m erican

ex perien ce.

w ere no greater exam ples o f this
w hat

analysis

the

than

during

the

students'

the
T h ere

M oses's lectures on

A frican-A m erican

com m unity

to

be

sel f - d e te r m in in g .
The

Seven

Principles

of

an

A frican-cen tered

Education

During the Fall Semester, the professor used two lectures to
ex h ib it

how

A frican -A m erican s’ reco nstru ctio n

was

lin k ed

to

the

place that law has "on the mantle." At the beginning o f the first
lecture

w here

this

W hat's

Politics?"

was

were

displayed,
written

on

"W hat's

Power?

the board.

W h at’s C ontrol?

After asking

students

to

5 1

provide

their own

definitions,

a few

in

this alm ost-alw ays

quiet

class

resp o n d ed .
Moses grabbed his mug o ff the table that the small lectern stood
on, and paced toward the door.
look

at

A frican-A m ericans'

"Keep your definitions in mind as you

involvem ent

said, his volum e increasing

in

the

with each word.

political

As

arena,"

he

Moses headed back

tow ard the center o f the room, he launched into his opening
statem ent.

The professor chronicled

C ongress and the

Senate in the

the

Black

reasons

electoral

why

w ere

the first

disenfranchised,

successes o f Reconstruction.

"Whites w eren't concerned

the

19th century, before providing one o f

"The

because Blacks didn't have access to r e a l
that

Blacks to serve in

about

even

during

Black C odes
political

a few

B lacks

the

were

passed

power." He added
gaining

positions

in the House, as long as they controlled politics at the local level."
H ow ever,

"it

w ould

be

100

years

before

A frican -A m erican s

w ould

have as many men in Congress as we did then."
Sheriff and School Board slots were the first ones that Blacks ran
for

during

im p o rtan t
S h e r if f s

R econstruction,
becau se

B lack

departm ent

was

them selves.
p riority

In addition,

today,

d e te rm in in g ,

if
he

M oses

noted.

d istricts

w ere

a
law

key

because

enforcem ent

A frican -A m erican s

are

School

board

gen erally
Blacks

positions

were

un d erfu n d ed .

w anted

and education
to becom e

to

protect

are

more

T he

no

less a

self-

added.

Essentially, there are three foci in this equation, according to
M oses:
1)

L an d—A

key

to

ind epend en ce,

econom ic

and

otherw ise.

5 2

2) Education--"A nything that people work so hard to deny you, it
m ust be im p o rtan t."
3) Political p ow er--A frican-A m ericans need to follow the advice o f T.
T hom as Fortune, and vote "Race First," which
means they should vote
as a bloc for Black candidates, and make them responsive to the
needs o f the Black com m unity. If they are not, then the candidate, or
anyone else, should be voted out o f office.
F urtherm ore, "Political p o w er means you
y o u r friends and punish yo ur enem ies."

must

be

able

to rew ard

During an exercise at the end o f the class period, Moses wrote the
nam es o f
knew

ten Black colleges on the board, and asked students

w here

they

some o f whom
cam puses,

w ere

located.

w here the

racetrack

A lab am a.

But

a sk ed

necessary,

as per usual,

co m m u nity

semester.

a lecture

During

was

placing Taladega

in

A frican -A m erican

the class

invoked its

Fifth

established

received

that

C onstitutional

T herefore,

he

ad d ressin g

the

reasoned

presented in

from

First
the

that

last

em anated

reparations w ould

of

the

ended with a flurry.

A m ericans,

federal

class

like a closing

and

notion

from the
be

that A frican -A m erican s

"S H O U L D A F R IC A N -A M E R IC A N S BE T H E O N L Y

The

o th er groups

g o v ern m en t

past. He said that this
law, which

in ju stices

the

more

session, M oses

Asians,

rem u n eratio n

discrim inatory acts in the

for the reconstruction o f the

that appeared

argum ent than a closing class

to

"That's

p r iv il e g e .

A frican-A m erican

traced

correctly

why in d e p e n d e n t

An alternative recom m endation

had

students,

that the class was able to pinpoint.

is," a fem ale said,

when

institutions were

p ro fessor

E u ro p ean -A m eric an

said that they had traveled to areas near these

identified all

A m endm ent

T he

if they

for
could be

M agna

the best

Carta.

means o f

have faced.
PEOPLE WHO

5 3

H A V E BEEN W R O N G E I) BY T H E LAW W H O R E C E IV E NO
C O M P E N SA T IO N ?"

Perhaps because it

lecture,

not com m ent

students did

S u m m ary :

During

on

came at the end o f the
this

the first session

item

either.

that addressed

this topic,

Moses identified land, education, and political pow er as crucial
reco n stru ctio n
that

land

w ould

plausible.
and

of

of

A frican -A m erican com m u nity .

p ro v id e

However,

politics

level,

the

when

the

Blacks

with

M oses

spoke

A frican-A m erican

g reater

H is contention

em po w erm ent

o f controlling
com m unity,

to the

at

appeared

the education
a

fundam ental

he addressed the generic concerns o f equity and power.

p re d o m in a n tly

E u ro p e a n -A m e ric a n

stud en ts,

to pick up on this cue, however.
not appreciate
setting

that

Perhaps

a

could

not

centered
norm ative
provide

w ithin

validating
H alcyon

ratio n a le

for

independent

students

anything

a

of

a

If

in

seem

eq uip ped

were in an academ ic

perception

institution s.

A frican-A m erican
say

them

not

In other words, they probably could

the fact that at Halcyon, they

po stseco n d ary

didn 't

did

His

contributed

responses w ere

the

class

sociocultural
to

context.
why

they

A frican-A m erican
in dicative, then

w ere ju st

as

the

m ystified:

they

either.

If students had no conceptual fram ework for understanding
equity,

the

deeper

( A frocentricity),
baffling.
that
such
not

they

of a

race-specific

race

politics

have

been ju st

One reason

why

students were so quiet could

have been

have

felt

might

not

A nother

w anted

to

know ledgeable

explanation

tell

their

would obviously

education

and

dialogue.
have

discussio ns

could

enough

have

A frican-A m erican

been

to

as

participate

that

instructo r

they
that

may
they

in

5 4

did

not

believe in

w h a te v e r

p red o m in an tly

A frican-A m erican

u niversities

(for

r e a s o n s ).

The fact that on numerous occasions the class was asked to
respond

and

discuss
speak,
the

key

didn't,

points

generally

for instance

sem ester

separately

if

that

in c lu d e

an

History

would

when

professor's invitation

unheeded.

H istory

H istory,

H istory

most

would

unnecessary, was

to

students

during the last

should

be

did

lecture o f

taught

disagreed.

have

A fric a n -A m e ric a n p e rsp e c tiv e
be

W hen the

M oses asked them

"A m erican"

Am erican

the

w ent

A frican-A m erican

from

assertion

displayed that

The

in stru cto r's

to be redefined

to

b e fo re A frican -A m erican

not a popular notion

am ong

the

s tu d e n ts .
The professor's second platform for reconstruction was
"reparations."
surprise,

This

given

recom m endation

the

used as a lever

instructor's
to prom ote

cannot

b elief that

be view ed
the

social justice

as

a

com plete

legal process

for

should

be

A frican-Am ericans.

These lectures confirm ed the professor's academic mission o f a
legal

thrust.

context

of

M oses's
research.

co m m itm ent

to

scholarship
To

further

A frocentric

detailed
explore

principles,

what

equity

the professor's
1 exam ined

meant

in

the

scholarly

three

exam ples o f

his scholarly research. The first was a forthcom ing article in the
M ichigan

Law

this article,
apply

to

the

race

Review entitled "The Northw ard
instructor argues
restrictiv e

that

covenants.

Plessy

Reach o f Plessy."
was

In

never meant to

S cholarly
a.

Research

(T hree

works)

"The Northward Reach o f Plessy: The Michigan Supreme Court,

Property

Rights

M ichigan

Law

and

R estrictive

Review .

Race

C ovenants"

(Forthcom ing,

1996)

Thesis: Despite its questionable applicability at the state level,
Plessy

v. Ferguson (1896)

restrictiv e

covenants,

was used as a justification

even

in

N orthern

states

such

to enforce race

as

M ichigan.

Summary: The author uses Parmlee v. Morris (1922) as an
instantiation

o f the w ide-ranging

Parm lee,

W hite

the

a

tenant,

latter attem pted

to

sued

inhabit

it to Parmlee for a year.
occupying

his own

impact o f Plessy.
M orris,
his

an

In this

case,

A frican-A m erican,

Pontiac

home after he

had

when
rented

Parmlee based his objection to Morris's

property on a restriction

in the deed

that

stated

"said lot shall not be occupied by a colored person..." The court ruled
in favor o f Parmlee, citing

Plessy to buttress its position.

Moses says that this meant that Plessy’s influence on Northern
States

was

that

it gave

sep arate-b u t-e q u al

racial

av ailab le

to

the court's finding is three-fold:
Suprem e

Court

recognition

to use his property

distinctions
N orthern

sanction
ju dg es.

that the

"constitutional

w ithout regulation

1896). 2) Plessy

case, since it r e g u l a t e d
did not d e n y

M oses's

made
o bjection

to

1) It conflicted with a Michigan

is plain,

w elfare requires that such use be regulated" (p.
Mich 527,

and

right o f the citizen

unless the public
8, P e o p l e v. S m i t h

was problem atic in being applied to this

Blacks' capacity to exercise their rights, but

the rights in question.

For instance,

Plessy meant that

Blacks had to sit at the back o f the bus, front o f a train, etc., but it did
not nullify their right to ride. O f course in M orris, the defendant was

5 6

denied the privilege o f living in a home that he owned. 3) As Morris's
atto rn ey

pointed

out

during

the trial,

pro p erty con tains

w ithout which, it cannot b e conceived o f as property.
"the covenants brought in the coercive
what prejudice alone could
A n a l y s is
the

co urt

B ased

record

on

S ev en

represented

docum ents"
instances,

stated,
there

or what

is

(p.

was

little o r no

32).

P r i n c i p l e s : The case as well as

M o rris’s plight

standpoint; the story is told from

With Plessy,

pow er o f the state to enforce

not accom plish"
th e

"attributes,"

from

an

"institutional"

the perspective o f w hat the "official
submitted

for the

opportunity

"record."

for those with

In

such

the greatest

stake in the matter to speak to their special plight.
So, even though the article does not transgress the content o f the
p rinciples

(the case

A m erican),

it does

A frican -A m erican

revolves

around

the

property

o f an

African-

not convey the thoughts and feelings o f
and

the

prim e stakeholder

in

this

M orris, an

scenario.

Despite

the fact that the content is relevant, the spirit o f the principles is to
place

the

A frican /A frican -A m erican

m atters that affect him /her:

from

A m ericans
use

this

b. "N

race restrictive
facing

housing

info rm ation

to

the

center

In this instance, the

from M orris's point o f view.
learn

at

of

discourse

story

Beyond that, the question

covenants

that is

discrim ination

useful

today,

on

is not told
is what can we

to African-

and,

how

can

they

becom e m ore self-d eterm in in g ?

: A History o f Pain and Degradation" (U niversity

Paper,

19 9 3 )
Thesis: The use of the n
connotations,

has

word, with all o f its depredating

been the source o f an

endless am ount o f pain,

5 7

su fferin g,
A lthough
racial
it,"

and
its

frustratio n
derisiveness

epithets,

those

according

is

who

had b etter know

used,

in

the

A frican -A m erican

virtually

find

that

when and

com m unity.

unparalleled in
they

the

"can't leave

arena

home

under what circum stances

of

without

it can be

to the author.

Summary: Moses, the co-chair o f the university's affirm ative
action

com m ittee,

slur uttered by
team ,
M oses

uses

the essay

Halcyon

Coach

some o f whom

are

as an opportunity

Barney

S ud an ese

and

con sistent

in

Ethiopians."
defining

in teg rity

has

'A frican '

or

been
its

a high

A fricans
process

nonetheless.

(A fro -A m erican ,

w ithout any

contains none

the

word

is w rought with

supporting

general categ ories

the

slave

of

hum an

imagery,
trade,

been

has

with

time

varied

and ethnic
of

'A frican -A m erican ,'

or

United States"

(p.

2).

o f these. Since it is a bastardized term

geographic or ethnic content,

from

have

"The designation

'A frico-A m erican') has the longest history in the
But, "n

"Kushites,

in A m erica

level o f geographical

m aintained,

v ariants

The

his

in the locker room.

descent have been

M oreover,

them selves.

and circum stances, but

Bunker as he addressed

A frican-A m erican,

says that people o f African

to com m ent on a

it rem oves people o f color

classifications. Further,

containing

slavery,

and

the

all o f the argum ents

the concept o f African

'i n f e r i o r i t y . '"
M oreover, "Barney Bunker broke the cardinal rule separating
A frican -A m ericans

and

n e v e r be included in

people

of

European

descent.

Because

he can

the classification, he has no right, granted

by

a

select few or not, to use the term. The crucial issue is not whether or

5 8

not

A frican-A m erican

the

term

means, and has

A n a ly sis
easily

athletes

B ased

argue

that

on

Moses

used

the

term

meant,

when applied

th e

Seven

is

m erely

or

not...but

rather

externally"

(p.

legitim izing

an

already

derisive

essay to it, one could also assert that he

"cleansing"

This

e ty m o lo g ical

and

paper discusses

historical

perspective;

3).

P r i n c i p l e s : Although one could

label by devoting an
the term.

what

the

is

slur from an

m oreover,

the

article's

voice

is that o f an insider, a m em ber o f the group that the term seeks to
d efin e .
In addition, Moses acknowledges that the word, like any, is a
social

construction,

"means."
A frican

In doing
descent

and

therefore,

so, he counters with

have chosen

to define

"Sudanese"). T he point is that
defined,

By extension,

make o f words such
o r negative, that such
define

po ssible
c.

his em phasis
term inology
them selves

on

what

it

that people o f
("K ushites,"

when groups control how they will be

they can also delim it the range o f m eanings for a particular

d efinition.

to

places

resides
and

Africans

determ ine what use

they

as "n------ ," they also control the impact,
language will have on

outside

of

the group,

them.

distortions

will

positive

When the ability
(comm issions)

are

likely.

"The N egro

S e m e s te r,

when

Baseball

League" (Speech given on campus, Fall

1995)

Thesis; A frican-A m ericans have excelled when they have
com peted

with

W hites on

equal or near equal

terms.

Summary: Moses said that the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords o f the
N egro

Baseball

League w ere "arguably the greatest

team o f

all

time."

59
The squad included Josh Gibson, Satchel

Paige, and Cool Papa Bell.

Gibson, o f course, is the only player to hit a fair ball out o f Yankee
Stadium .

Five

m em bers

o f the

squad w ere

inducted

into

B aseball’s

Hall o f Fame. The team was good enough to beat John M cGraw’s New
York

Giants.
The Negro Baseball League, whose version o f the game was called

"Blackball," began in 1862. One o f the reasons that it was so
com petitive,

was

D uring

1920's,

the

that

M ajor

Landis banned W hite
League,

Blacks

w ere

League

team s

from

banned
Baseball
playing

from

the

M ajor

C om m issioner
those

Leagues.
Kennesaw

in the N egro

Baseball

since it defeated the M ajor Leaguers 70 percent o f the time.

The "Ethiopian Clowns" was an example o f the type o f name ihat
N egro

Baseball

team s

W hites

did

like

not

w ould

give

this reference

the nam e had to be changed
to

themselves.

However,

because

to the players' African

local

ancestry,

to the "Indianapolis Clowns,"

according

Moses.
The popularity o f the Negro Baseball League also became its

downfall.

At one point,

M oreover,
fans

to

attractions

Black A ll-S tar games averaged

such

as

"Ladies" and

"C hildren's

40,000
Days"

fans.
brought

the ballpark.

A key was White players' acceptance o f the quality o f talent in
the N egro Baseball League.
award,
than

Ted

W illiam s once

M oses noted that upon receiving an MVP
said,

"there are players

far more

deserving

me."
After World W ar II, the Negro Leagues died out as integration

into

the M ajors

Robinson

signified

integrated

the

the league

dism antlem ent o f
in

1947,

"Blackball."

followed by

Larry

Jackie
Doby and

60
others.
its

A cceptance

"social

into the W hite

significance,"

A n a l y s is

B a se d

face research

when

because

given

th e

an

"Blackball"

S ev en

P r i n c i p l e s : Although on its
League may appear to be

the plight o f A frican-A m ericans

it

M oses's

show s

scholarship on

how

oppo rtu nity ,

can

to lose

to the presenter.

on the defunct N egro Baseball

would be naive.

im po rtan t

according

on

too passe' to inform
posture

Leagues caused

"Blackball"

independent
be

today,

Black

com petitive

such

a

is

institutions,

with

others.

In addition, the presentation clearly docum ented the effect that
absorption
these

and

assim ilation

processes.

e n te rp rise s

D espite

are

few

such as the N egro
p o s s ib ility

for

and

are

d efin e

in d e p e n d e n t
ex isten c e,

Baseball

that

that

are

B lack-ow ned

betw een

subjected
and

self-d eterm in in g

League are potential

discussed

what
In

is

to

operated
o rg a n iz a tio n s

paradigm s o f human

the

p o ssib le

w hen

African-

fo rm er

case,

self-k n o w led g e

were posed as an effective

A frican -A m erican s
A fric a n -A m e ric a n

sum m arily

d ism isse s

o f developing

S elf-d eterm in atio n

a c h ie v in g

far

self-d eterm in in g .

not capable

im ages.

fact

groups

T he "History o f Pain" essay and the Negro Baseball

self-definition

m ight

are

and

p resentatio n

A m ericans

the

on

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s.

S um m ary :
League

have

and

derisively.
in stitu tio n ;
the

counter to those

The

latter

who

described

an

m erely

ac k n o w le d g in g

that

A frican -A m erican s

notion

organizations
in dependence

in

their

are

also

interests

and

essential

to

equ ity.

However, "The N orthward Push o f Plessy" treatise was
prob lem atic
published

from

an

A frican -cen tered

in a law jo urnal

perspective.

that is considered

T hough

it

"prestigious" by

was
the

its

6 1
larger society,

the article

was not prescriptive.

on what the law has d o n e

to

analysis would detail

the law can do

Despite the

what

A frican -A m erican s,

fact that disillusionm ent with

docum ented among

Blacks,

served,

have

such cases

Instead o f honing

for

an

in

A fro cen tric

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s .

the legal

system

is well

without a critique o f how justice can

the potential

to becom e

be

studies in

v ic t im i z a tio n .
S tu d e n t

S u rv e y s

The study was also concerned with describing and analyzing the
stu d en ts'

re sp o n se s

com prised

three

to

parts:

A fric a n -c e n te re d
an

introductory

in stru c tio n .
question

to

S tu d en t
glean

professor

secured an

A frican center for

his

discussion

Am erican

experience;

two

the

the academ ic

m issions m entioned
m u lticu ltu ral
tw o
same

in the courses; and a question

cu rricu lu m .

In tro du cto ry

questions on

Q u estio n n a ires

A frican -A m erican

content was covered

in both

w ere

surveys

how

the

o f the
and

on the

co m pleted

Africansocial

"model"
in

H istory

classes.

Because

sections,

the results were

M oses’s
the

co m b in e d .
The first question, " P l e a s e
c u ltu re
th is
to

of

A fric a

c o u rse ,"
cen ter

his

sought

w as

d is c u s s

l i n k e d to

exam ples

presentation

of

h ow

h isto ry

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s

o f attem pts

the

th e

that

the

A frican-A m erican

and
d u rin g

instructor
exp erien ce

made
within

the context o f its African heritage. M oses said that he tried to focus
on

"experiences,

cited

responses

custom s,
were:

and

C ultural

African
variants,

culture."

The

inclu din g

most

frequently

A frican

languages

6 2
(61% =54),

Religion (43% =38),

c iv iliz a tio n s

Family

(25% =22), and West

African

(17% = 15).

As Karenga (1993) et al. have mentioned (Cruse, 1967; Frazier,
1962),

the

present

an

academ ic
historically

A m erican

experience.

le a rn e d

about

students

mission

to

correct and
Q uestion

how

2b. inquires as to, " H o w
and

to glean

the

d eb u n k ed

o f the

"W hat

'tr u th s '

have

p eo p le

in

th is

p ro fessor
th e

m isc o n c e p tio n s

A fric a n -A m e ric a n
e x p e rie n c e )? "

w as

(or

is

account

2a.:

the

H istory

accurate

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s

d ocum ent

s te re o ty p e s

o f A frican-A m erican

c la s s? "

acco m p lish ed

course

h elp fu l
m ay

to
Africanyou

asked
this.

in

Q uestion

c learin g

th a t

you

have

had

th e

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

up
of

The purpose o f the second half o f the question was

m anner

th ro u g h o u t

in
the

which

negative

inform ation,

and

myths

were

course.

The "truth" that students listed most frequently that they learned
in the class was that A frican-A m ericans had to be strong
survive a legacy

of

enslav em en t and racial

oppression

(31% =27)

to

in North

A m e ric a .
As a
being
They
taken
never

people
ripped
fought
in the
knew

they [A frican-A m ericansl had a lot to endure with
out o f their homes and treated as an inferior race.
hard for a freedom that never should have been
first place...Ida B. Wells is now a hero o f mine. I
o f her before.

A frican -A m ericans are strong people who have been through
hell. A-A are intellectuals, and they have la] strong religious
background. For exam ple, as far back as slavery African
A m ericans are noted for their religious ties.

6 3

In addition, several said that they
A m ericans

had

leaders,

inventors,

learned that African-

etc., ju st as other

groups

did

(14% —12).
Among the most popular m isconceptions that the course
d eb u n k ed
did

(2b.),

nothing

acco rdin g

to gain

to

their

the

students,

freedom

(26% = 23),

were:

A frican -A m erican s

A frican-A m ericans

not contribute to the building o f A m erica (22% =20), and
A m ericans are

m onolithic

that A frican-A m ericans did
and

indep end en ce

(12.5% = 11).
not have

was add ressed

is

An
to

this

exam ple

African-

o f how

the myth

do anything to gain
incisive

did

freedom

com m ent:

T he course cleared up the perceptions o f Booker T. W ashington
who many considered to be a Uncle Tom, traitor or a fool, but
in some ways he was cunning by lulling W hites into a false
sense o f security, w hile trying to unify blacks and create a
com m unity that was com pletely self-sufficient. He hoped to
accom plish this through T uskegee Institute, but he still was
naive to in terfere with o ther black organizations w orking
tow ards the sam e goal.
A similar view was that many Blacks were not passive,
...A nd further w ould rather fight for their freedom during
Civil W ar rather than waiting for the North to win.

the

Another fam iliar theme was that A frican-Am ericans did, in fact,
contribute
A

to Am erica;

typical

A m erica

co m m en t
was

this

this activity

d iscu ssin g

included

fighting

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s'

in

her wars.

co n trib u tio n s

to

response:

I f A frican A m ericans hadn't co m e to A m erica
been no open heart surgery, no peanut butter,
etc...

there w ould have
street lights,

The rationale for questions 3a. and 3b. was to gauge the classes'
p erceptio ns

of

the

critical

needs

of

the

A frican-A m erican

com m unity,

6 4

and

the

them.

manner

in

which

the course

prepared

students to respond

to

The point was to identify evidence o f the professors' social

m issions.

These

item s

self-d eterm in atio n
"D iscu ss

th e

th at

w ere

you

en couraged

that

w ere essential
w ere

needs

m en tio n ed
to

in

to recording

p resen ted
of

th e

th i s

respond

in

strategies

for

course.

A fric a n -A m e ric a n c o m m u n ity

course"
to

the

the

(3 a .),

th e m ? "

and

(3 b.),

"H ow

were

w ere

the questions

posed.
Social and political equality were mentioned as needs o f AfricanAmericans

39 percent (34) o f the time.

Family, religion, and

education,

or any com bination

were listed on 30 percent

o f these,

(26) o f the surveys. No o th er item appeared as a response
six

more than

times.
A typical statement addressing equality was,
Some o f the needs were Economic Equality, Social Equality,
Educational Industrial, Equal Rights and Equal Protection o f
Law .

the

Also,
A frican -A m erican s are still fighting for
equality, and also want to learn more about
|th e 1 presence o f their A frican heritage.
Several exam ples o f the need for stronger family and religious
ties

and

ed u catio n al

o p p o rtu n itie s

for

A fric a n -A m e ric a n s

were,

Strong family ties were im portant for Africans, and when they
w ere brought to A m erica as slaves--they recreated the fam ily
unit adopting others as their own. This was necessary because
fam ilies were often separated due to slave trading/buying.
Religion was im portant as a source o f strength to cope with
th e ir situation .

6 5

Som e o f the needs m entioned were fam ily and
ch urch. The A frican -A m erican co m m u n ity relies
heavily on these institutions for support and
u n d e rsta n d in g .
The responses to question 3b. were the least direct o f any in the
survey.
the

12.5

needs

of

percent
the

(11)

students

A frican-A m erican

Am erican

H istory

class

T he

highest

answer

next

o f the

regularly,
was

said

com m unity
and

by

that

they

by

attending

com p letin g

to be open-m inded

responded

to

African-

assignm ents.

and /or color blind

(7% =6). Three said that they took Professor Moses up on an invitation
to attend a Black Church,
re lig io n

on

so they could understand the impact o f

A frican -A m erican s.

The clearest plans for action to address the needs o f the AfricanA m erican

co m m u nity

w ere

through

social

m issions

that

students

could realize as professionals in the arena o f public service.
I can respond by not thinking o f people on race, but on the
person themselves, I can, as a teacher, teach African history,
m usic and literature.
As a social worker, I hope to promote the importance o f these
for every type o f com m unity, and try to help people remain
close to these things.
S um m ary :
the

students'

three

Regarding
com m ents

(A ppendix)

social challenges).
point

| in

noble

c o n trib u tio n s

on

the

w ere

the

academ ic
sim ilar

in stru cto r's

to

mission

of

debunking

M oses's

answ er

q u e stio n n aire

to

myths,

question

(academ ic

and

His intention was to exhibit that "there was no

Am erican

history]
to."

The

that

A frican -A m erican s

students'

perceptions

d id n ’t

that

make

African-

6 6

A m ericans

fought

for

A m erica

correlated

their

freedom

with M oses's

and

they

helped

to build

intent.

Moreover, the fact that students viewed social and political
equality

as

the

co nnected

with

suggested

that

a

to

response

m ajority

g reatest needs
the pro fesso r's
they w ould

the

prov ided

needs

o f the

an sw ers

that

in the other cases, which

A frican -A m erican

the

and

method.

A lthough

A frican-A m erican

A frican-A m erican
w ere

eith er

com m unity

experience

com m unity,

in co heren t

some

or

as

the

cryptic.

more direct and explicit responses noted

had a higher percentage o f African-

s tu d e n ts .

S um m ary

of

C ase

H alcyon

did

not

T herefore

the

support

the

the

research

teach

T his was in contrast to the

A m e ric a n

of

professor's

n o n eth eless,

The com m unity

appear to
at

support

the

educational

p resen ted

instruction

O ne:

and

w ithout

a

program

courses

did

or

not enjoy

level

m ajor,
the

was

not the

strong in stan tiatio n

based on a legal paradigm .

the exception

rule.

of

H alcyon's

in

Moses,

A fric a n -c e n te re d

But as a colleague

status o f

at

A frican -cen tered orientation.

departm ent

context,

a

an

and cam pus context

A frican-A m erican

m entioned,
H istory

institutionalization.

The motif o f equity and the pursuit o f justice via the legal system,
were constants
academ ic

and

in

M oses's

social

F urtherm ore, equity
reparations,

was

A fric a n -A m e ric a n
dissem ination
co m m itm ent

teaching

m issions,
in

the

viewed

form o f

as

o f cov erin g

the

could

It guided

students'

perceptions

com pensatory

necessary

c o m m u n ity .

o f content

and

and research.

for

m easures

the reconstruction

T he

p ro fe s s o r's

ra p id -fire

have

related

the

several centuries

of

to

the

his
o f theirs.
such

as

o f the

challenging
A frican

experience

6 7

in America.
why

students

p a rtic ip a te .

This could have also provided a partial explanation
were

silent,

som etim es

even

after

being

invited

for
to

6 8

II. Case Two;

Professor

Robeson

D uring a lecture on cu ltu ra l nationalism , P rofessor Robeson
d e fin ed cu ltu ra l natio n a lism as ”m aking a rt relevant to the / struggle
o f th e I p e o p l e T h u s , " If I'm a painter, that m eans I'm not going to
pain t a tree. I ’m going to paint a picture o f m y grandm other standing
at the bus stop with a stern look on her fa c e in a w hite uniform , A N D
SHE A IN 'T NO N U RSE!!!”
E d u c a tio n a l
In some respects, Ekrich
billow ed

from

the

heavy

C o n tex t

was several cities in one. The smoke

m anufacturing

in dustries

that

lined

that

the

main road ju st o ff the interstate on the outskirts o f town, left one
impression.
changed.

But

U nlike

mostly

counter.

am on g

In

and

there.

the central business district,

restaurant

H alcyon, my

A frican -A m erican s were
the

positive energy

E u ro p e a n -A m e ric a n

M cD onald's,

a tm o sp h e re

near

varied

s u rro u n d in g

on

and

and

the scenery
I

stopped at a

presence

This was probably because I

addition,

b etw een

patrons in t h i s
p aced

the

unnoticed.

A frican -A m erican
the

I got to downtown, the more

Before I reached

M cD onald's.
to go

the closer

seem ed

wasn't the only
both

lively

sides

of

exchanges

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

im m ensely from

the

still-po rtrait

H alcyon.

M oreover, the restaurant's multicultural character was a
microcosm o f Ekrich.

Renaissance is

excess o f 80,000 residents, o f
p ercent,

are

com m unity

A frican -A m erican s.

was just

North

of

located in an urban

which more than
In

fact,

an

area with in

15,000, or nearly

20

A frican-A m erican

w here I ate breakfast.

After leaving McDonald's, the sight o f graying old buildings gave
way

to the glistening and glittering

dow ntow n.

Brokerage

firms,

a

Hyatt

silver chro m e and glass edifices
Regency,

and

fine clothing

stores,

dom inated

the

landscape.

c o ffeeh o u ses,

restau ran ts,

telling.

wearing

Men

gleam ing
pow der

shirts

o th er

suspender

blue glass.
blue

and

A nearby

They
with

strip

mall,

with

b usinesses,

was

p artic u la rly

belts

strode

starched

em erged

from

rapidly across
white collars.

banks

with

the

prom enade in

This

com bination

was

generally topped o ff with a yellow "power" tie. On the next block, a
M ercedes

Benz

d ealership

displayed

its wares.

that

A

fronted

Dairy

Queen and

changed again, as I was on campus.
"R"

(for

"Renaissance"),

that

resem bled

those

and

the

co nspicuously

m ini-m art later the area

A new track, a large luminescent

modern

dow ntow n,

main road

m ostly-glass

assured me

of

academ ic
that.

Students o f all shapes and colors were running
track as well as off, and walking to and from

buildings

and jogging, on the

class. There was so

much activity that the cam pus itself seemed

to be in

motion.

The

hustle,

in sharp

polarity

to the

bustle am biance o f

s o m n ife ro u sn e ss

of

Renaissance,

was

H alcyon.

In terms o f racial representation, appearances did not deceive me.
A lthough only
2 6,0 0 0
stu dent

6 percent o f the student body,

students

were

p o p u latio n

p u b lish e d

fact that the university
a

story

the

in

the

edito rs

alternative

of
was

A frican-A m erican s. This

in d ep en d en t n ew sp aper,

student

newspaper.

A frican-A m erican

needed

segm ent o f

the

despite

reneged on a prom ise to fund it, according

university's
the

an

1,600 of Renaissance's

if key

new spaper

issues w ere to be

T h e article
felt

part

of

mass

to justify

the

university's

tw o

tracks for

academ ic

that an

addressed

A frican-A m erican

structure.

to

added that

from their

perspective. As I would later find, this group was also enough o f a
critical

the

H istory as

70
As with other schools in the study, a key mission for Renaissance
was
to,

teacher

training.

said that they

two

o f my

ironically,

science

A frican-A m erican

were considering

they

said that
were

prepared
and

to tak e

technology,

them

who

aw ay

advantage

how ever.

that

I

spoke

However,

law or other professions;

their parents,

pushing

students

a career in education.

form er students discussed

ad m in istrato rs,
appeared

Several

from

of

T h is

were school

the

the

classroom .

school's

public

None

com m itm ent

in stitu tio n 's

to

p artn ership

with a large corporation resulted in millions o f dollars in
co n trib u tio n s
p ro fesso rsh ip s,
using

the constru ction

and

research

of

w ould

p re sid e n t
be

receiving

advantage.

pro m o ted
from

It com peted

science

facilities.

Renaissance as a training

sc h o o l’s

an

for

this

E v idently,

ground

the

venture.
a

the

benefits

Perhaps

Big-Ten

schools in the study for its students,

halls,

endow ed

com pany

for future em ployees.

co llateral

with

lecture

the

this

university

was
The

un iversity

gave

Renaissance

and

the other

according to an adm issions

o fficer.
None o f the above accom plishm ents were enough to impress
Professor Robeson.
con fro n t,

esp ecially

One o f the defining
with

its

issues

A frican -A m erican

that Renaissance had to
students,

was

the

treatment o f the the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Up until
recently, classes were held on this day. Tw o years ago, however,
classes were cancelled in the middle o f the day to honor the slain
civil rights leader. This year,
celebration

entitled,

instead o f classes, a university

"Transform ing

the

Dream

into

Action"

was

held.

This event included speeches and a perform ance by a gospel choir.
ad d itio n ,

P resident

Benz

m ade

rem arks.

In

7 1

The failure to cancel classes for the entire day, and not just the 50
percent o f sessions that were held from
ire

o f A frican-A m erican

clashed with

for

d isp leasu re
on

as

well

as

Professor Robeson,

who

Benz over the issue. To Robeson, anything less than a

total cancellation
u niversity

students

11 a.m. to 4 p.m., drew the

showed a lack o f deference by

the

with

accom plishm ents
the

hom ecom ing

university's

week.

that F riday because

of

King.

posture

He announced

o f the annual

Benz and the

T he

was

professor's

shared

that the class

with

his

classes

would not

meet

event.

"Why have class on the King holiday, and cancel it for
hom ecom ing?"

he

asked.

He

added

that

Renaissance's

policy

was

m erely a reflection o f what the school valued.
S um m ary :

D em ographic

A frican -A m erican

presence

data
at

in d e p e n d e n t

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

in stitu tio n al

structure

H istory,

also

w ith

ap peared

confirm ed

R enaissance.
stu d en t

two

favorable

o bservations

M o reov er,

n ew sp ap er,

tracks
for

my

for

an

an

and

teach in g

of

an

A frican-A m erican

A fro cen tricity .

Though Ekrich was an urban area, it really seemed as if it were
three cities rolled into one:

1) a town with labor intensive industry;

2) an area o f business and commerce; 3) a city with a variety of
cu ltu ra l

c o m b in atio n s.

A m erican
distance

and
of

For

instance,

A frican -A m erican

p red o m in a n tly

co m m u n ities

w ere

Europeanw ithin

w alking

the campus.

Despite the fact that Robeson has had open disagreements with
the

president,

R enaissance's

dynam ic

ecology

may

the airing o f such differences in the first place.
greater impression

have

allow ed

In any event, the

that I had o f the school’s context was that it

for

72
would

support

a

b o lste rin g

an

A cadem ic

Unit

d ep artm en t

structure

A f ric a n -c e n te re d

with

the

potential

of

o rie n ta tio n .

During the Fall Semester, Robeson taught two sections o f the basic
A frican -A m erican
300-level

Black

S tu dies

Experience to

A frican-A m erican
sectio ns

of

class,

popular

the

A frican-A m erican

200;

1865 class; and a graduate course

culture.

200-level

Presence

This

cou rse,

an

study

focused

In tro du ctory

on

the

the
in

two

m ultid iscip linary

o ffe rin g .
A student takeover at Renaissance University led to the creation
of a

Black Studies Program

faculty

in

p rogram

w hat

were

w ould

hired

in

in the late-1960's. The

later
the

becom e
early

the

to

first full-tim e

A frican-A m erican

mid-1970's.

Studies

T he program ,

which

is housed in Renaissance's College o f Arts and Sciences, grants a
m ajo r

in

H istory
ch air

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

had

to

prog ram m atic

em brace

an

S tudies.
inclusion

Because
at

A frican-cen tered

A frican -A m erican

R enaissance,
perspective.

I anticipated
D espite

the

the

fact

that Dr. Abernathy did his dissertation on Du Bois, I was surprised at
his

ap p aren t

am b iv alen ce

to

curren t

research

in

A frican -A m erican

S tu d ie s.
In terv iew

with

the

D ep artm en t

C hair

Because o f scheduling difficulties, I could not interview Dr.
A bernathy in his office. He asked if the discussion could be done by
phone.

Since this was the only alternative,

I agreed.

7 3

Abernathy
first

full-tim e

was hired as the African-American

director

year

the early

his

thereafter.

A student takeover at Renaissance

Studies Program

A m erican

H istory

A m erican

in

of

1970’s;

celeb rated

Black

20th

in

teaching

at

also

began

Robeson,

who recently

R enaissance,

the late-1960's.

D epartm ent

History Program's

arrived

shortly

led to the creation o f
During this time,
offerin g

courses

a

the
in

African-

H isto ry .

Several pictures on his office door, and a glimpse I caught of
A bernathy on the way out o f the office one morning, helped to
d escribe

him.

He

A frican-A m erican
pictures, often

w as

a

slender,

male. He had

wore tu rtleneck

approx im ately
a full beard,

sweaters

with

5 '-10"

m iddle-aged

and according to the
vests.

He could

have

fit

the image o f a 60's activist.
The scholar told me to call him at exactly 10 a.m., since time was
o f the essence,

and

he had to leave for an appointm ent im m ediately

a fter we finished. The day o f the interview,
second hand split the
the

phone.

Abernathy
several

A fter

12 precisely

we q u ickly

was ready. T o

times

em barking

on

during
his

in the middle, before

dispensed

no surprise,

half-second

I made sure that the

with

the

form alities,

he interjected

"Come on!!"

lags in our dialogue.

background, A bernathy

said

that

1 picked up

Before

he did

not

read

the literature that I sent him on the Seven Principles o f an Africancentered

Education.

It occurred

to

me that he probably

didn't

have

tim e.
Abernathy did

his dissertation on W.E.B. Du Bois's research and

m ethod used in the latter's P h ila d e lp h ia
background

is in

N e g ro (1900).

Although

Biochem istry, Abernathy felt the need to get

his

into a

7 4

university to make Du Bois's model
A frican -A m erican

H istory

kicking

work.

and

But,

"I was dragged into

scream ing."

Before

he

arrived

at Renaissance, he was a dean at a small M idw estern college.
this

ap po intm en t,

and

his

ad m in istrato r's

university, he w rote the proposal

post

for a Black

at

the

Before

M idw estern

Studies program

at a

school on the East Coast.
Abernathy said that A frican-Am erican
b ecause

it

"draw s

atten tio n

to

the

History is essential

academ y 's

w eaknesses

and

strengths.

It [the academ y] can bend, do good research, |or] it can

wrap

its

arm

thus,

becom ing

W ashington

around

the enem y

D estruction

W illiam s

of

Studies,

on

A frican-A m erican

the

Studies."

other

hand,

Booker

T.

has had an im m ense influence on him as a chair o f

A frican-A m erican

im po rtan t

A frican-A m erican

Studies,

he

said.

C hancellor

W illiam s's T h e

o f Black C ivilization (1974) has too. "|W illiam s| is
from

puts

an

acad em ic,

into context

social

the

way

and

cultural

cultures

p erspective.

have

exploited

Africa,

and we, the Black A fricans, have fallen right along with that.
C hristianity

and

Islam

are

exam ples

[of exploiters]."

The departm ent chair said that it is important to bear in mind
that

A frocentric scholars are

not the first to be concerned about

the

"Du

how

A frican -A m erican

com m unity.

A frican-A m erican

History is relevant to the lives o f Black people].

w ould

say,

that

he

than

others.

'w hat

attacks

should

the

we

A frican

"I would ask

do

Bois

n o w ?1"

struggle

in

the question,

did

this

stu ff (identified

F urtherm ore, A bernathy
A m erica

som ew hat

what are the

He

said

differently

most im portant

issues that would im prove the quality o f life?

[Next] What have you

g ain ed

influences]

from

this

cu ltu re

| E u ro p ean -A m eric an

that

you're

7 5

willing to keep, what have

you gained that you're willing to get

rid

o f? "
S u m m ary :
exhibited
view ing

The chair's

his know ledge o f
people

k n o w led g eab le
p rev ent

discussion

o f A frican
ab o u t

b eliev ers

how

from

the

o f C hancellor

W illiam s

contribution o f a cultural

descent.

In

relig io u s

d eriving

particular,

sy stem atics

a

b ro ad er

he

context in

appeared

co uld

p o ten tially

p ersp ectiv e.

For that reason, I was somewhat baffled by his com m ent that
W .E.B.

Du Bois had already studied how scholarship could serve the

interests o f Black people. Although Du Bois's image as a
sch olar/activist

stands

tall

in

A frican -A m erican

Studies,

by

no

means

should his work be viewed as the last word.
The chair's "this stuff" has been done already posture, and, of
course, the fact that he said that he did not read the principles, left
me

w ondering

know ledge

to

in

w ould f i n d

what

exten t

A frican-A m erican

of

is

ch an g in g

History.

availed
It

h im self o f current

would

seem

that

subject
tim es

to any

field o f study,

disciplinary

refinem ent

revision,

to con tinu ou s

and

and

a

po tentially

But

more

p ro g ram m atic
a p p eared

p o sitiv e

im portantly,

to

h ypothesis
o b serv atio n s

in clusion
buttress

in

light

circum stances.

Regardless, the chair's background in African-A m erican
was

a scholar

the time to review this inform ation. D espite the fact that

there are highpoints critical
know ledge

A bernathy

co ntext

for

A frican -cen tered

the

fact

that

A frican-A m erican

in

the

u n iv ersity 's

A frican -cen tered

was

my

interview

of

his

teaching.

with

academ ic

instruction.

Robeson,

and

The

Studies

instruction.
H istory

had

structure,
test

of

this

7 6

I n s t r u c t o r ’s

B a c k g ro u n d

If there was any doubt that Renaissance packed a big-city flavor,
it was

extinguished

Robeson's office.
p o ol-sized

once

I approached

Outside,

reservoir.

T he

the

building

that

housed

a fountain

gushed w ater in a swimming

sidew alks

were

replete

with

m u lti-colo red

chalk messages calling for the end o f world hunger, AIDS, and other
afflictions. As I entered the office tower, the fumes o f hot soup, hot
dogs,
at

hot chocolate,

the

g round-level

to w alk past

and

oth er

snacks,

delicatessen.

w ithout ordering

beckoned

Som ehow,

anything.

Robeson's

gentlem an,
years on
then

who
the

entering

typing

graduate

data

assistant,

b ecam e

force,
a

rejuvenated

m aster's

while

disen c h an ted

at

w aiting

with

"7" after

law

for

him.

courage
stepping

This

en fo rcem en t

com pleting

Renaissance.

into a com puter in the office,

the

faculty

1 struck up a conversation

him self by

program

m ustered

I pressed

in the elevator. W hen I reached the office,
with

I

students and

18

a bachelor's,

As he

Robeson

a fter

returned

to

appeared.

"Hey, Whit," Robeson greeted, as his formidable frame cut by me
in a brown leather coat. "What's up? You need anything?” I told him
that

I was there

to interview

him.

G enerally,

Robeson

used the early

afternoon to

lift weights o r eat

lunch. The 5' by 7’ office seemed to

shrink

the ch a lle n g e

acco m m o dating

sized

with
men.

M eanwhile, the traffic

that outside

it. T he

traded

with

quips

usually stopped.
you

b etter

of

interm ittent

the

professor.

three

abo ve-averag e

inside the o ffice was
flow o f students
W hen

he

matched by

who passed

retaliated,

the

signifying

A couple o f times the instructor's coda was,

tu rn

in

my

paper

next

w e e k !!"

by

"and

M ore often than not,

7 7
the

student

w ould

stop

laughing

long enough

to

straighten

out

his/her face and say in a sober tone, "alright, Dr. Robeson." The
verbal

sparring

seemed
later

more

that

o ccu rred

betw een

like a cultural

w itness

exchange

this m otivational

Robeson

and

his

than condem nation.

jou sting during

his

students
I

would

lectures.

Before our discussion, I noted that there was not just human
traffic in the office, but material congestion as well. Papers lined the
top o f the file cabinets near the door, and also the desk; another
indicator o f how the m ilieu o f this urban campus, was a world apart
from

the

leisurely pace at Halcyon.

On the door were revolutionary

quotes by Haki M adhubuti and Frederick Douglass, as well as a
picture o f Robeson. The photograph
displayed

the professor

with

the Wall Street Journal.

was taken

a visitor

in the

to his class--a

1970's and
reporter

from

Robeson, who was sporting a large Afro and

wearing a white shirt and tie, had a skeptical look on his face. There
were also pictures o f Robeson and his mother.

One showed them

together. Two others were o f each o f them teaching a class.
After the 50-year-old professor eased his husky former defensive
linem an's frame into the chair,

the session began.

Like Moses,

Robeson received a Ph.D. in History from a M ichigan university. His
study

was on

the U nderground

Railroad in

M ichigan.

With regard to forces that influenced his personal and
p rofessio n al

develo pm ent,

Robeson

would

prob ab ly

adage that a child's first teacher is his mother.
the greatest

impact on

teaching for 30+ years.

how

Robeson

teaches

agree

the

"My m other |has had

h isto ry|.

She was in business education.

talk to Black kids on how to survive."

with

She’s been
She can still

7 8

Another family mem ber that drew Robeson into teaching was his
aunt.

He added that she has a strong

respect

to A frican-A m erican

men.

com m unity college in Florida.
for

the

brothers,

|being

to

did

dashikis, naturals,

not

with

"She's the Vice President o f a

the

"m ad” and not know ing why

"wore

understand

the

mission, particularly with

Both o f us have the same social issues

understand

an exam ple o f this was in

social

b u ll

they're

you're m ad|."

the 60's and 70's

but

still

harbored

un d erly in g

causes

trapped

Robeson

when

said

that

A frican-A m ericans

resen tm en t
of

into

their

because

they

disench an tm en t

society."
Robeson said that he did not have any courses in African-

Am erican

History

as

an

undergraduate

student.

"I

tim e in the library trying to becom e conscious."
during

his

undergraduate

days

that

spent

most o f my

However, it was

Robeson decided

to pursue

a

career in the field. "A decision was made in 1967 when I had my
first Black teacher at an all-B lack school |as an undergraduate], a
rarity.

I asked

him

a

question

about

A frican-A m erican

history,

and

he said the only way I could Find it [the answer], is me doing it
m y se lf

[learn in g

about

A frican -A m erican

h isto ry ]."

As a teacher, Robeson conceived o f him self as a preserver of
A frican -A m erican
in stitu tio n al

cultu re.

heritage

w as

T he

"survival"

of

A frican -A m erican s'

also

necessary

for

se lf-d eterm in atio n ,

he

said. Thus, the maintenance o f the African story was one o f the
greatest academ ic and social

missions that he faced.

He saw him self

as "a griot [African storyteller] with a Ph.D." The acceptance o f this
role

m eant

en cou rag in g

to get advanced

degrees.

"cultural
Thus,

co n tin uity ,"

Robeson

and

attem pted

"p u sh in g ” students
to operate

in

the

79
tradition o f
the

Du Bois, C arter G. W oodson, and

im portance

the

of

cred en tialed

A fric a n -A m e ric a n

Blacks

others, who em phasized

sharing

their

know ledge

with

c o m m u n ity .

"The academic process has a social value and a political value.
Because

we're

talking

econom ic

and

political

about making
position

that

education is liberation education.
you

should realize

the

story

relevant

brothers

to the

are captured

in,

the

If you take a class in Black Studies,

that there are

social

and

political

reasons behind

the w hole course o f education, or m iseducation. Why is it that they
e x c lu d e

b ro th e rs ? "

Robeson said that it is essential, "to show that this is a different
p ersp ectiv e,
should
like

specifically

question

an

why

an A frican -A m erican

A frican -A m erican

p ersp ectiv e, and

S tudies

on

most

they

cam p uses

is

a p p e n d a g e .”
Robeson's involvem ent with

ju n io r and senior high school

university publications and having

students attend his classes so they

can

get a "feel" for what college life was like were exam ples o f how he
answ ered

the

A m erican

students

A m ericans
atten d ed

call

from
th ese

p ub lications

from

acad em ically /so cially
secondary

rural

secondary

schools

classes.

O th er

and

access

be

urban

A frican-A m erican
public

to

rad io

and

experience.

schools,
in

co m m itm en ts

television
"If a

concerned.
and

European-

E krich's

surrounding

in clu d ed

co m m u n ity

specials centered

brother

A frican-

can't

read,

area

on the
then

use

stations."

In addition, the professor helped to write an historical m arker
that describes Blacks’ m igration
plan tatio ns

of

the

A m erican

to M ichigan

South.

T his

and other areas

Sm ithsonian

M useum

from

the

8 0

(W ashington
video

D.C.)

that

he

exhibit

contains

a m u seum -to-m us eum

traveling

produced.

Association with professional bodies is important to scholars of
the

African-American

exp er ience ,

as

with

others,

because

of

"the

idea o f knowing there is an organization out there that is doing what
I'm

doing."

Organizations

Association

for the

that

Study

Black Historical

that

undertaken

has

participated

of African-American

the Michigan
he

Robeson

to

Sites Company.
pr omote

in

included

the

Life and History,

and

A further social

A frica n-Amer ican

mission

"survival"

was

the lectures that he gave to young men in a local detention facility.
Sum m ary:

As

an Africa n-A m er ica n Historian,

specialized

in

promoting

traditions

comm unity

in

its struggle

to

that

survive.

have
The

Robeson

aided

the

influence

Black

that educators

such as his mother and aunt had on him spoke to this. His research
on

the

Also,

Underground

he

promoted

he rita ge

as

Railroad
the

essential

c o rro borated

survival
for

of

such

a

perspective.

the African-Amer ican

cultural

self-det er m in at io n.

The above was based on Robeson's belief that " c u ltu re

d e te r m in e s

b e h a v i o r , ” as he would say in one lecture. The instructor said that
successful

intercultural

r elations

"definitions":

the

more that ethnic

cultures

and

the

more that

can

interpreted

more

be

that

interethnic

deter mining

behavior

by

different

of

d ependen t

groups

understand
people in

was

discussed

during

how

exhibited

Th e

a class

how

"education"

and

about each

other's

slurs, for

example,

different

military program

multiculturalism

upon

know

peace can be promoted.

film that described a U.S.
video tape

they

are

circumstances,

the

concept o f culture
session

where

a

was shown. This
A m er ica ns

of

European,

8 1

African,

and

teaching,
that

Asian

Robeson

addres sed

descent

viewed

formulated

this

stra tegies

to

discrimination
cultural

re const ruct

differently.

thrust
the

into

a

In

his

statement

A fri can-A m erican

com m unity.

I observed that 29, or 85 percent, o f the 34 students were
African- Am ericans,
the

5,

or

15

percent,

were

E uropea n-A m er ic an s

in

two classes.
Robeson's definition o f himself as an "African griot with a Ph.D."

was

not

mistaken.

classical

The professor drew

African cultural

systematics.

freely on

the inspiration o f

As he would exhibit in a

lecture centered on "This Far by Faith," a film, a chain o f succession
ties the

15th and

preachers

on

professor

16th century

southern

Yoruban

plantations

saw hi m se lf as

merely

and

griots to the conjure
to

m od ern-day

the next phase

in

ministers.

The

this procession.

His attire varied from African print shirts and a kofu, to sweaters
and

dress

these

slacks.

Leather jac ke ts

en s em b le s.

dressed

casually

His
in

were

p r e d o m in a n tl y

sweaters,

consistent

com pan ions

A f ric a n - A m e r ic a n

long-sleeve

sports

shirts,

to

stu de nts
and jea ns

and

khaki pants that came in an array o f colors. In no way did this
setting

resemble

the

monotony

of

flannel

shirts and jackets

at

Halcyon.
If the students' clothes were expressive, so were they. In keeping
with

the

ex te m p o r an eo u s

interjected
methods

to

whe ne ver
pr omote

the
a

flow
spirit

of

Robeson's

prevailed.

par ticipatory

instruction,

Robeson

learning

used

students
a

env iron ment:

variety
1)

The

of

8 2
course linked the ideologies o f the past and present
African-American

co mmunity,

Jackson;

T he

lectures

students

the

2)

individual
The

instructo r's

i.e.,

were

Delany,

interspersed

profes sor

p resentation

Martin

would

was

with

identify

leaders

Malcolm

X,

questions

directed

by

d r a m a tic -- h e

in the

name;

was

Jesse

and,

an im a te d

to

3)
durin g

each class session (e.g., singing verses of "Amazing Grace" to illustrate
how

improvisation

was

used

by

Af rican- Am ericans

in

the

Black

Church).
Robeson's Introductory
other

courses

in

the

African-American

Af rican- Am erican

History classes,

History

Program,

like

were

held

on the fourth floor. The two sections I observed met across the hall
from each other.
it was larger,

I focused most o f my attention on the second, since

with nearly

30 students.

Space was tight; which

seemed

to create a sense o f oneness, o f "being in it together." The setting was
ideal

for Robeson,

h isto r y /o n e
Student
Thus,

part

since his lectures appeared to be one part
motivational

par ticipation
I ex amined

interactive

the

was

spee ch /and

high

in

one

Robeson's

cou rse s’ requirements

part

Sunday

Introductory

morning.

classes.

for connections

to

this

pedagogy.

A ssessm ent
The syllabus identified the analyses o f the impact o f Africans on
America and

America on

Africans as central

thrusts o f Robeson's

classes.

"We will deal with the Black presence as an active participant

in

settlement

the

syllabus

stated.

assignm en ts

and

The

included

develo pment
them es
two

were

written

of

modern

"survival
critiques

American

and
on

society,"

developm ent."

topics

ranging

The
from

the

8 3

Mandela’s election in South Africa to the O.J.

Simpson trial.

were also required

A final

to write a research

paper.

was based on Karenga's text Introduction
Other texts

for the

Perspectives

o f Popular

Conversations

from

to

Black

Elsa's on

Culture

examination

Black

Studies

Harry

B.

Introductory course were
(1990);

Buddy

Students

(1993).

Shaw's
H annah’s

the Park (1994); and Majors and Bilson's

Cool Pose: the Dilemma o f Black Manhood in America (1995). The
professor's

focus

re quire m en ts
pe dagogy

of

which

on

critiques

and

co m bined

Robeson’s lecture
American

African-American

on

The

and

cultural

self-determination,

a cco m p lish

research

style

how

culture

it

and

papers,

substance.

nationalism

became

clear

the

course's

dem anded
While
could

how

a

observing

foster

he

African-

intended

to

this.
Seven

Principles

of

an

African-centered

Education

There were no inconsistencies observed between Robeson’s
teaching and the seven principles.
nationalism,

Prior to a discussion o f Black

the professor called out the

they entered the room.

He publicized

several

T he

came

recent
under

sessions.

the

to look at them.
joked.

scrutiny

pair bore

o f the

names o f two students as

the fact

that they had missed

half-nervous

entire class;

smiles

students

as

turned

they
around

"We almost didn't know who you were,” Robeson

The class laughed.

identifying her classmates

One student chided
in such a manner.

the professor for
"See that’s bold,

Robeson," a female sitting in the front said half-seriously.

Dr.

"No it's

not," he replied. "If you had been absent, I would have done the
same

thing."

8 4

The tone changed as Robeson pivoted to the blackboard. On it, he
wrote: "BLACK NAT IONALISM: The attempt by Black people to
determ ine

their

own

destinies,

the class--the word

free

from

then

faced

read

the definition that he had written.

outside

was about

have nationalism,
poses

a

threat

it's no problem.

to

'mainstream'

to be delivered.

Next,

into the front pockets o f his khaki pants.

he shoved

"When

But when

America.

intervention."

He

Robeson

his hands

Asians and others

we have nationalism

|Im itating

a non

it

African-

American] There y'all go with that Malcolm X stuff." Robeson's right
hand rose as if he was about to strike a blow. "If you don’t define
your own destiny, SOMEO NE ELSE WILL," he said emphatically, while
dropping the

hand in several hard motions as if he had cut

s o m e t h i ng.
Robeson added that an Afrocentric perspective is needed if
A f ric a n - A m e r i c a n s
means,

"If a

people

to

becom e

plane crashes,

were killed?"
paraphrasing

are

Racial

s elf -deter minin g.

the question

becomes,

how

Afrocentr ic

many Blacks

solidarity is also important, he said,

Martin Delany.

wherever

more

they

Pan-Africanism,

are,"

broadens

this

or the

"unity

of

African

vision.

The professor then shared a professional experience. First, he
op ened his eyes wide as if he was dumb founded.
students

that

when

doing

"universal

found

out

that

he

first

research."
the

Robeson's voice was

started

He quickly

teaching,
changed

definition was restricted
beginning to rise,

Robeson

told the

he was excited about
his mind
to European

and he became

when

he

research.
more animated

again. The discussion was going to the next level, a zone where only
he could take it. Everyone in the class was w i t h

him, as evidenced

8 5

by the opened mouths and the 60 eyes that were affixed on
presenter.
barreled

Robeson
toward

cl utching

our

the

was a train that was picking up steam, as he

his

destination.

We

were

as

passengers,

tightly

seats.

The History professor spun from in front o f the class, and headed
to

the

blackboard.

nationalism

is

Robeson

wrote

"Cultural

making art relevant

to

"Books by Terri McMillan and Toni

nationalism."

the people,"

"Cultural

he exhorted.

Morrison are examples. Th e only

problem with some o f their work is, they take one or two bad
experiences with
thing,"

men and generalize.

he said, directing

Some o f you do the same

his attention

to the female

students.

All eyes

followed him as he shifted from the center o f the room to the wall.
He faced the wall as if looking into a mirror during a moment of
intense

self-examination.

"Instead

blame it on the brothers."

of

saying

TM

female

at

that

statement

pro bably

meant

instructor said

as a challenge and not

"Yeah.

some good ones out there."

There's

U P , 1 you

One female student turned to a friend,

smiled, and said, "No, he d i d n ! t." Th e
Robeson's

MESSED

students1 mock

they

an insult.

took

what

disbelief
the

Robeson responded,

The cultural colloquy energized the class so much that a few
students yelled out "PREACH, PREACH!!" "I'm not a preacher," he
quickly

retorted,

important
relevant

point.

fighting

"Cultural

them

that

he was

nationalism

is

to the struggle o f the people,"

For example,
"Respect"

reminding

was
for.

Robeson
related
Robeson

said that
to the

in the

respect

con clud ed

by

trying

presenting

to
art

make an
that

is

he added, restating his thesis.
1960's,

Aretha Franklin's song

that African-A mericans
providing

a

personal

were

illustration

8 6

o f the concept. "If I'm a painter that means I'm not going to paint a
tree," he said, looking at the class as if they were crazy. "I'm going to
paint a picture of my grandmother standing at the bus stop with a
stern look on her face in a white uniform, AND SHE AIN'T NO
NURSE!!" The "white uniform" could have referred to a job as a
dom estic.
Sum m ary:
respond

to

Robeson

promoted

the concerns

of

the

"cultural

continuity"

African-American

as a means

community.

to

True

to

his perceived role as a "griot," he accomplished this by presenting his
thesis in story form. The
Amer icans

was

said

forward flow o f culture for African-

to be contingent

o f the "struggles o f the people."
this

method

enslavement
Rural

was carried

forth

forward

the ones

Heritage

Between

s c h o la rly

writings.

Sch olarly

Research

a.

Rural

Photo

like

Black Heritage

Album

and

Robeson's

in

research.
described

Chicago and

(Three

Detroit

artists

who

were

mindful

scholarship detailed how
"Cultural
in

retentions"

from

Robeson’s book T h e

focused

the

professor's

works)

Between

Random

upon

Chicago and

Thoug hts

Thesis: African-American

(University

migration

Detroit

1850-1929:

Press,

A

1985)

to Southwest Michigan during

the above period came about as a result o f the desire to move away
from the antebellum and postbellum
yearning
led

to move t o w a r d

to the creation

that aided

Blacks

greater job

o f educational,
in their

South, as well as o f the

struggle

opportunities.

political,

Th e

and economic

for survival.

migration
institutions

8 7

Summary: In this book, the writer discusses the challenges that
faced

Blacks who migrated to the Southwest portion o f Michigan.

par am ou nt concern

was

the ability to earn

a decent

living.

A

Despite

the insistence by some Whites in the area that Blacks were "idle,
roguish,
lowest

or indolent,"
paying

lau nderin g,
through
would

and

and

debunk

least

rewarding

domestic

financial
earn

Blacks immediately

gain

work.

and

s ter eo ty p es

professions

These

thrift,

the respect and

settled

such

as

catering,

Afri can-A m eric ans
by

hoped

buying

property,

they

trust o f their White

neighbors,

and

regarding

and

in to some o f the

th e ir

that

u n w o r th in e ss .

The Quakers were one group known to provide employment and
oppor tunities to own land for
ad dition,
pro vide

A fri can-A m ericans
for

themselves.

Blacks who settled into the region.

were

Th e

Black

institution because it socialized
realities of the North.
c o m m u n i ty

as

doing

w hat ev er

Church

they

co uld

In

to

was an important

Blacks who moved to the area to the

Education was necessary to the uplift o f the

well.

African-Americans were also politically active. Demonstrations in
Cass

County

while

that

slavery

N eg ro

Baseball

protested

was still

the

celebration

in existence,

League games and

of

Independence

were examples.

Day,

In addition,

Idlewild, a resort, offered social

outlets for Blacks. The book closes with a picture taken at the turn of
the century o f five

Black children

sitting

clothes.

Under the photograph,

survive,

grow and further develop will

Black Experience in the area."

the caption

together
reads,

in their

Sunday

"The struggle

to

always be a part o f their

8 8

A nalysis

Based

educational,
80-year
point

and

period

on

the

economic
that

to classical

the

Se v e n

options

book

responses

P r i n c i p l e s : The political, social,

that

covers

Blacks
are

exercised

instructive

to discrimination

and

during

because

social

the

they

exclusion.

Because the Black Codes and the Jim Crow laws that followed did
much

to impair the

Americans,

they

possibly could

social

had

to

and economic

ensu re that

to progress on

advancement o f African-

they

were

doing

everything

they

their own.

Idlewild tied social and economic interests in a critical way by
pointing

to a means

businesses,

while

whereby

fulfilling

Blacks could

the need

for

support

their own

enter tainment

and

diversion.

The Negro Baseball League did the same. The Church was a key
because
and

it

provided

social

not only

graces necessary

Understanding

all

spiritual

substance,

for Black survival

of the above was

critical

in

but

the

moral

Southwest

if the

fiber

Michigan.

African-American

children in the photo at the end o f the book were to realise any
am bi tions

of

such a vision,
b.

political
they

and

have

eco nomic

self-determination;

for

without

perished.

"Notes on an Epic o f Heroism —Some Thoughts on the Underground

Railroad

Operation

in

M ichigan"

(A fr ican -Amer ican

History

Museum,

1988)
Thesis: During the period o f North American Enslavement, the
desire o f Africans to be free led to the creation o f the Underground
Railroad,

an

institution

E u r o p e a n - A m e r ic a n

"operated"

abolitionists

by
alike.

A fri can-A m ericans

and

89

Summary: Africans in the Americas were not content with their
status as chattel
way

to escape

author.

Tools

Slaves also

property.

Many risked life and limb as they sought a

such a dehumanizing
and

real

"feigned"

prope rty

illnesses,

were

and ran away.

insubordination

open

was

run

by

Quakers,

African-Americans,
institution
industry,

received

revolts.

anot her

its

name

the aim was to

destroyed

on

to the

plantations.
poisoned

those

But the ultimate form of
Th e

other humanists,

was

according

set fire to property,

who enslaved them,
was

existence,

Und er ground
the

option.

because,

"first"

Robeson
like

make connecting

the

Railroad,

abolitionists,
says

that

emerging

stops and

which
and

this

covert

railroad

smooth

transfers.
The transport system in human cargo accounted for nearly onehalf of the slaves who made it to the North, Robeson notes. In the
beginning,
operation

it

was most

alone.

some of whom

Later

likely
they

this position,

however, since

aw ar e

the

of

A nalysis

help

from

slaves

"radical"

ran

this

Quakers,

"were so conscientious that they refused to use goods

slave labor."

Thus,

African-American

received

produced by

covenant.

that

Conservative
"stealing"

Quakers

B ased

A frica n- Amer ican

on

railroad
the

resistance

literature

that characterizes

A braham

Lincoln's

in

S ev en

to

E m anc ip a ti on

because

as

agree

with

"slave catchers

Michigan."
P r i n c i p l e s : The study o f

ens lave men t

Blacks

not

slaves was a violation o f their

slaves had to be careful
underground

did

is just ified

a passive

Pro clamatio n

force
in

the

by

the

awaiting
antebellum

South. The author lists a variety o f actions taken by Africans that
document

their

aversion

to

someone

"owning"

them.

The

were

90
Underground Railroad, the subject of this essay,

is one of the most

poignant.
Deconstruction might have occurred by focusing an inordinate
amount o f the discussion
struggle

for

widely

freedom.

documented,

an

primacy

would

constr ucted

Th e ir
The

documents,
availability

lively

debate

in

am on g

that assisted

their enlistment

African c e n t e r
their

freedom

upon

how

testimonies,
and

groups

Although

Americans
be

on

authenticity
historians.

struggle.

diaries
of

in

in their

this occupation

is

would give African-

Africans

and

Africans

these

Thus,

exp er ienc ed
would

analysis

the

provide

records

N ev er thel es s,

the

Railroad.
the

generally

clues.
sparks

Afro ce ntric ity

a

req uire s

that a story be told from the perspective o f the African (or AfricanAmerican),
c.

especially

since it was their freedom

that

was at stake.

"Michigan Journal" (1988, a film the professor produced with Alex

H aley)
Thesis: African-American History must be tied to its African
origins if its to be viewed in its proper context.
Summary: Haley begins the video by saying, "When you talk
abo ut

Black history,

when

you

speak o f

African-Americans,

you

need

to look at Africa." He mentions David Lewis's The Race to Fashoda as
a book that shows how

14 European

nations divided up the continent

o f Africa into territories, and the effect that this had on Africans in
the

Diaspora.
Robeson adds, "When I think of Africa, 1 think o f Egypt. The

whole world refuses to give Egypt the credit that its due, and when
they do,

they make the Egyptians look like Norwegians."

When

he

9 1
thinks o f Egyptians what comes to mind is,
builders

of

pyramids,

projects."

The

A m er ic as

b e f o re

and now

they're

living

then

discusses

the

professor

Europeans

"we're talking about
in

the

gover nment

African

presence

in

the

arrived.

Haley connects the Black church in America with the griots of
West

Africa, and shows

were necessary

for the

how both,
survival

during different

o f Africans

and

periods of time,

Africans in

America.

What is

important about the Black church is, "the

worship.

Blacks were so repressed in

was one

o f the few places that you could let go." The Underground

Railroad and the resort in

Idlewild Michigan

Black ingenuity and creativity
dis cr im ination,
Analysis
can
in

ac co rding
Based

on

to

in the

history

is

the

valid

of

ways that the church

are other examples of

face o f oppression and

Robeson.
Seven

be made that the restoration
ancient

so many

Black fullness

to

P r i n c i p l e s : A strong

of the true role that

under sta nding

argument

Africans played

cont em por ar y

Diasporan

Africans. Furthermore, it is not a stretch to say that there is a
cultural

link between

the griots o f West Africa,

the conjure

preachers

o f North America, and religious leaders in the Black Church today.

As

Haley says in the film, the church is significant for "not just religion,
but the
can

total well-being o f the community and its

culture." Here,

be seen where religion can assist in the definition,

development o f the interests o f Africans in America,
necessary

for

it

defense, and

which

are all

s e lf - d e t e r m i n a t i o n .

In addition, again, the Underground Railroad and Idlewild are
exem plars
part

of

social,

political,

o f African-Americans.

and

Haley

eco nomic
and

self-determination

Robeson

did not

make

on
the

the

9 2
connection

between

co nd itio ns

of

the

political

A m e r ic a n s

ancient

Enslavement,
and

America,

according

accounts

upheld

those

how

African

these

pr ed icam en t

Underground

institutions that aided

inform

classical

responses

variegated

that

events

confronts

to

the

inform

African-

how ev er .

The

scholarship

and

eco no mic

today,

Sum m ary:

The

Egypt,

and

the

Blacks in their struggle

to

the

Railroad

Robeson's

image

implied

seeking

research.

o f an

that

these

of

In addition,

classical

were

in North

these

cultural

responses

se lf-determin atio n

Student

Church

to survive

Africa n-A mer ican

that

models

Black

historical
heritage.

could

today.

Surveys

All 35 students in Robeson's two classes that were present when
the

survey

was

a d m in is t e r e d

Not surprisingly, for Question
and

culture

during
were

of

this

listed

A frica

course,"

r e sp o n d e d

( to ta l= a p p r o x im a te ly

1, " P l e a s e

was

linked

discuss
to

"cultural retentions,"

most often

how

the

you

learned

and, " H o w
and

was

such as

music and art

(50%=17).

A m erican
Questions
about
that,

about

the

people
2a.

the
nearly

that
(or

and 2b.,

situation

A frican-A m ericans

course

m isconceptions

history

A frican-A m ericans

Students provided an array o f responses for " W h a t
have

40).

that

helpful

you
the

may

have

"brothers

Robeson

this

clearing
had

up
of

A frican-A m erican

respectively.

18 percent, o r six,

in

in

sought

are captured

'tru th s'

in."

said that one "truth"

class?,"
stereotypes

African-

experience)?,"
to teach
Consistent

students
with

that they learned

9 3
ab out

A fri ca n- Am er ica ns

is

the

reason

why

they

co mport

themselves

in the manner that they do.
Through studying this course I was able to have a better
understanding o f why a lot o f African-American [sic] react as
they do. A lot o f it has to do with things that occurred
in the past.
At times, I never truly understood the reasons for one's
actions, and why A f rican - A m er ican s wear masks.
The course helped others (15%=5) to discern African-Americans'
participation
learned
N orth

how

in

the

nation's

resilient

A m erican

armed

conflicts.

A fri can-A m ericans

were

Some

students

during

the

(15%=5)

period

of

E n s lavem ent.

I have learned that African-A mericans are strong and
intelligent individuals. This class has made me aware o f
important events in history that blacks were a part of. in which
textbooks keep hidden. This class really brought to my
attention the hardships and struggle that black Am ericans
faced du rin g slavery.
The myth that Blacks are inferior (2b.) was listed most often
(1596=5).
Society tries to stereotype Blacks as being inferior, but that's
not the case. The different things that Blacks have dealt with
an d overcome makes them very intelligent and brave.
This course has done a lot for me. It helped clear up this black
studies is not about black supremacy, but
black culture, pride
and real spirit.
Moreover, the course helped heal a long-standing sore spot for
one

student.
I learned that African-Americans fought for a long time to
avoid being slaves. It was helpful because
I always felt anger.

94
Always wondering why didn't they fight. There were tons of
them. I know now that they fought as much as they could.
Students answered questions 3a. and 3b. on the social missions
that

the course promoted,

statement.
survey

if they

were a singular

interrogative

As a result, they will be reported as such.

was

concerned

with

the

A frican-A m erican

th i s

course"

respond

as

to

(3a.),
them ?"

responses

to,

com m unity

and,

"IIow

"Discuss

that

were

were you

Again, the

the

needs

of

m entioned

in

encouraged

to

(3b.).

Perhaps, Robeson’s instruction inspired students to become
"griots"

in their own

unity/co m m unity
the

time

(21),

were encouraged

service
as

the

neighborhoods.
was

mentioned

needs/activities

to engage

A combination
most

that

often,

students

of
62
said

percent
that

of

they

in.

People in the African-American community need to be more
involved in their community spiritually economically and
politically. More people need to give back once they've
accomplished
s o m e th in g .
We need to come together and support one another and not
always look out for just ourselves. By being in this class it
makes me want to learn more about Af rican-Americans and
join more black awareness groups.

to

Education was a pressing concern as well (32%=11).
O ne major need for the African-American comm unity that was
continuously mentioned was the importance o f education in our
community. With knowledge we can all prosper. We were
encouraged to continue our education and not give up, despite
w h a t hap p en s .
We were encouraged to keep our focus on learning as much as
we could through our own research as well as courses in Black
Studies.

9 5
The importance o f Blacks patronizing Black businesses was
another

consistent

theme

(24% -8).

It was discussed that African- Americans need to support their
own community businesses and that this could be done by
taking their business to African -A merican owned businesses
even though it may
cost more to do so.
Businesses inside the A frica n- Amer ican co m m u n ity have been
heavily discussed. We, as Af rican- Am ericans complain that
Chald eans and Asians own businesses. A fri can-A m eric ans need
to take charge of their own neighborhoods and accommodate
the needs o f the com munity in a legitimate manner |w itho ut
selling drugs, murdering, etc.|.
One student said that what is needed to accomplish the above, is
an

African-centered

outlook

on

life.

The African-American community needs to adopt an Afrocentric perspective instead o f a eurocentric perspective. Also,
more blacks need to give back to where they came from
instead o f succeeding and taking the money to suburbia, they
need to buy from their own, support their own, and educate
their own.
Sum m ary:
enough
them

about

from

Students
the

said

culture

stereotyping

that

of

Robeson's

course

taught

Af rican- Am ericans that it

Black

people.

In other

them

dissuaded

words,

the

instruction

focused on how different did not have to mean "inferior."
Appar ently,
"brothers
students
that

the

studies,

the

are captured
to "give
instructor
including

Sum m ary
has

students

of

d id

in."

something

Case

the

Robeson was also
back"

influenced
obtaining

understand

Two:

successful

to their communities.

them
an

situation

to

co nsider

advanced
Despite

had with Renaissance's president,

the

that

the

in inspiring
Some

continuing

said

their

degree.
disagreements

he appeared

that

Robeson

to be in a context

9 6

which
were
and

supported
that

also

g rou p

Afrocentric

Robeson
the

with

taught

num ber
an

instruction.

in

and

an

of

resulted

of

from

cultural

an

A f rican - A m er ican
p ro cess
T he

this dynamic;
to

pr om ote

on

e x p er ien ce

necessary

instructor's

content.

em ph as is

for

rapport

values

History

Program,

students--a

An

style facilitated the
interactive

several

in-depth

contrast

to

prep ar in g

students

for

with

that

factors

African-Amer ican

in

the cultural

strongest

publication.

Robeson's dramatic instructional
dissemination

two

Af rican- Am erican

quality

ind ep en den t

The

the

model
fostered

students
was

teaching
themes

the

related

another

layer

conn ec tedne ss

to

but helped

and

ach ie v e m e n t.
The instructor's thrust was also seen in his scholarship and the
s tu dents ’ com men tary .
stu dy ing

A f rican - A m er ican s'

would remain alight
aided

Both

in their

c o rro borated

the

institutional

heritage,

for the next generation,

struggle

to

survive.

the

ex aminations.

not just ideological,

student

to

fact-dissem in ation

objective

added

model

notion
a

that

through

cultural

torch

who in turn would be

9 7

III. Case

Three:

Professor

Toure

"Brown v. the Board o f Education d id n o t c h a n g e th e s tr e e ts
P rofessor Toure to ld the class. "All o f these reactionary fo rc e s saw to
it th a t it didn't happen. They ] Blacks] would have to accept it or go to
a d iffe re n t tactic. ”
Ed uc atio n a l

C ontex t

Because the community culture, school structure and culture, and
school sector data in Case Three were identical to those in Case Two,
they
and

will

not

be

repeated

Departmental context

here.

Instead,

for Dr. Toure

the

focus

Professional

Community

the discussion.

The issues that confronted Toure as an African-American
teacher

in

Renaissance's

American

to those faced by Robeson,
was

an

asso ciate

with

professor,

tenure review were critical.
student
were
has

evaluations,

lower
a

than

simple

te aching

which

those

History

were

some notable exceptions.

T o u r e ’s

dep ar tm en tal

and

similar

Because he

university

He said that a bone o f contention was his
his

department

o f other professors

explanation:

Dep ar tm en t

History

as

A f r ic a n - A m e r ic a n

an

chair.
in

Dr.

the

African-American,

History,

his

Decenter,

department.
especially

p re d o m in a n tly

said
Toure
one

majority

students do not see him in the same light as they would their
Eur op ean -A merican
mentioned
department

professors.

this to Decenter,
are also

lower

In

fact,

and Toure

said

that

the evaluations o f the women
than

those o f the white

he has
in the

males.

Toure said that women, African-Americans, and First Americans
can

gen er ally

p a r tic u la r ly
faculty

expect

lo w e r

eva l u a tio n s

E u r o p e a n - A m e r ic a n

review

com mittee

put

males.

the issue

than
When
o f low

E u r opean-A m eric ans,
the

d e p a r tm e n t's

student

evaluations

to

a vote, it was 14-1
dissenting

vote

in his favor each time, Toure added. The

was Dece nter ’s.

When Decenter

issue, he said that Toure may have a point.
take

A fri can-A m erican

h is to r y

have

like to hear about the a t o m i c
different,

conservative."
teaching
history.

The

depa rtm en t

a course
"A lot

where

he

the war.

Our

chair

asked

about this

"A lot o f students that

o r ie n ta tio n s

bomb,

they tend to get restive.

was

themselves.

The y

If they hear anything

students tend to be more

said

questioned

he

noticed

certain

this

aspects

while

of

American

o f it is the representation o f the faculty's minorities.

I

would guess that there would be a resistance to a strong Black
presence o f a professor on
wonder

if

the

dep a r tm e n t e m b r a c e d

perspective.

I exa mined

sup port

Toure's

for

A cadem ic

this campus." This comment

the

unit

before

A f rican - cen ter ed
considering

Decenter's

instruction.

Unit

Professor Toure's

Introductory

"1866-Present,"

was the

at

for five years,

Renaissance

Histo ry

an

made me

Dep ar tm en t.

African-American

subject o f Case Three.

History course,

Toure,

who

teaches in the school's

A f rican - A m er ican

History

has been

American

cour ses

have

been

taught in this unit as long as they have been in the university's
Africa n-Am er ican

History

P r o g ra m —20

years.

In

fact,

Robeson

was

one o f the first to teach Black History classes listed in the American
History

Department,

shortly

after joining

the

faculty

American History. Toure also taught courses on
and

"The Diaspora and

the Caribbean."

"The

in

African-

Black Press,"

9 9
Despite the fact that History was also taught in the AfricanAmerican

History

Program,

appear to be the
the

department

reality

from

In terview

the

History

Department

for Toure. During

Decenter's

African

with

American

ideal context

chair,

an

an

disregard

perspective

D epartm ent

for

the interview

viewing

confirmed

did

this

not

with

African

social

belief.

Chair

The American History Department at Renaissance is in an
adjoining building

to the lecture hall

on the fourth floor.
talking

that Robeson

and Toure teach

in

I waited a few minutes for Decenter to finish

to a graduate

student,

before

interviewing

him.

As

I walked

into his office, a blue Persian rug on the floor caught my attention. A
reed-like

docum ent

from the wall.

khakis,

a

appeared

Various books on

culture were also
The

which

to be

in an

Arabic and

Arabic

African

buttonless

history and

black

long-sleeve

a European-American,
shirt,

and

suede

Decenter's area o f expertise is North African and
about

centered approach

hung

in the office.

middle-aged administrator,

spoke openly

script

his perspective
to history.

with

regard

dress

Islamic
to an

Occasionally, he used his

wore beige
shoes.

Studies.

Africanhand to make

a point, but seldom did his voice increase in volume. His tone was
critical

but

dispassionate;

expressed

in elucidating

authority

who

than

had

little

the

unqualified

his position
personal

made

interest

confid en ce
him
in

that

was

appear as an

being

anything

other

"objectiv e."
The department chair did not think that the Seven Principles

were

particularly

useful.

T he

notion

that an

He

African-centered

100
orientation
for him.

is rooted

in

classical

Egyptian

civilization

was

problematic

"I've seen a lot o f them around the country [documents on

African-centered curricula).

I have a great deal

o f difficulty on

the

focus on Egypt. It's not that Egypt is a part of Western or a part of
African [civilization!. But its focus is to look like Egyptian civilization,
is not a part of anyone's experience. It fEgypt| attracts a lot of
attention

because o f its architecture.” Instead o f focusing

countries in
appreciate
notion

the

Eastern

portion

a greater em phasis

that

o f the continent,

on

there is a connection

West

on

Decenter would

African civilizations.

between

Egypt,

the

Europe,

"The
and the

West has collapsed. The war over whose going to be able to
expropriate

Egypt is a red herring.

more o f an emphasis on
Africa

which

created

historical

most

West Africa and the West

o f the

My real concern
background and
African

is why

recognition

democracies,

African Coast. Why

there isn't
of

especially

the instruction in

Swahili? I see this in a lot o f college programs.
"Most of the historical writing is not well known in West Africa,
probably because it is in French." Thus, "my view if I were putting
together a curriculum

would be that it would have to have a strong

Islamic

worried

content.

toward) of
the

Sahara

I'm

about

the

ambivalen t

impact

Islam. There is much Islamic influence in Africa
than

most

Africans

[attitude
South o f

realize."

Furthermore, "I tend to see African history in an Islamic context
more than other folks do. Th e next
already
Christian

happened
religion

step is Islamic

in Britain and France.
in Britain

That

and France."

is the

Studies—it's
largest

non-

10 1
As he shook his head one last time. Decenter, again, expressed his
displeasure

with

the

Seven

Principles.

"The

Afrocentric

package

that

I see most frequently, I have a lot of reservations about. 1 have a lot
o f reservations about
Sum m ary:
Renaissa nce's
understand

how

Though

refused

Civilizations are

Toure's courses

American

or

Western

History
to

were

only

Department,

ac know led ge

the

taught

one co mponent

Decenter
validity

as well."

either

of

did

of
not

Afrocentricity.

Decenter instead advocated the imposition of an Islamacentric
perspective on

African

social

Schools provide an explicit
A fri c a n - c e n te r e d

context.

(Principle

it states:

Five),

Islam civilized
civilized p rio r
Islam ic culture
Schools, 1994,

and cultural

realities.

The

Detroit

Public

example o f why this is problematic in an
Und er

acts

of

co m m i ss io n /o m is si o n

West Africa. The truth: W est A frica was highly
to the
introduction o f the Islam ic culture. The
was introduced in 640 C.E. (Detroit Public
p. 10)

As a result, an Islamacentric thrust is incompatible with
A f ro centricity

when

it

displac es

A f ri can- center edness

Africans to be viewed through the lens o f
institution

(Ben- Jochannan,

M adhubuti,

1988,

1971;

and

forces

an Asian religious

Asante,

1987;

Diop,

1974;

1977).

The main idea behind Afrocentricity is to place African people
within their own
history.

Although

framework, and to see them as agents and actors in
T o u r e 's

I n tr o d u c to r y

A f r ic a n - A m e r ic a n

History

course did not have a timeline that allowed for the infusion o f
African course content in any
description.

significant way,

his course fit this

102
Decenter's perspective was one lens for looking at the educational
context,

Tour e's

was

another.
Instructor's

Background

Only two offices were farther than Tour e’s from the History
Department, which
coincidence,
was

but

matched

was in the next hallway.
the

by

spatial

the

distance

philosophical

This

between
distance

may have been a

Decenter
between

and

Toure

them.

On Toure's door there was a pamphlet promoting a speech by
Harold Cruse at a Michigan
Malcolm X

university.

( 1965). Eyes on the Prize

Inside, Th e

A utobiogra phy

(1987'!. Promises

to

of

Keep (a copy

o f which was given to me by Moses), and Cruse's The Crisis o f the
N e gro
small

I n te ll ec tu a l

(1967), joined other social justice selections on the

bo okshelf that hung

from the sidewall.

height and build, and has a moustache.
hair is perched

Toure is o f average

An occasional lock of gray

atop the head o f this instructor, who is in his

There was no

steady stream of students passing by his door as

was the case near Robeson's office. This was the American
Department; all
was

seated,

was quiet, and every door was closed.

rarely

measured, each
embellishment.

40's.

changed

register as

with a purpose,
He came

across

he

spoke.

His

History

Toure,
words

appeared

none wasted, and few for the
as

poised

and

professional,

who

sake of

calm,

but

com passionate.
On the surface, Toure's relaxed tone o f voice, peaceful manner,
and

disarming

disposition,

could easily

he was oblivious to his immediate
conclusion

would be a

mistake,

give

you

surroundings.

however.

From

the

impression

Coming to this
his occasionally

that

10 3
sweeping

eye

processing
contact

movements,

external

I

stimuli.

inferred
For

Toure

instance,

as I read certain questions,

to r e a d

that

it

when
seemed

was

he

constantly

made

that

direct

eye

he was attempting

the reader o f the question as well as the item itself; to

ensure

that

he understood,

which

it was being asked.

not just the question, but the spirit

in

For most o f the discussion, Toure kept his hands folded on the
desk.

They were unfurled only to emphasize a certain point.

reserved
speech

dem ea no r

was

and animated

in

sharp

contrast

communicatio ns

style.

a sportscoat, dress shirt, and dress pants.
would accompany these items.

to

Robeson's

On

this

His

spirited

occasion,

he

wore

More often than not, a tie

A couple of times, he wore a dashiki.

Toure decided to become a professor o f African-American History
because

he

on

decision

his

is "politically inclined."

An

experience that had an

to study African-American

History

was

impact

the death o f

the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Toure said that it moved him to
social consciousness, and a focus on changing the state o f AfricanAmericans in this country.
Af rican- Am erican

History

"I decided
would

give

that I wanted to write,
me

the

best

and

background

for

that. Actually, I have a hard science background. My first job out o f
college was

in Engineering."

Although he disagreed with King's tactics, "I gave a speech and
organized a
picked

up by

protest after his
Christian

Memorial Service.

publications

and

The

speech

newspapers

on

was
a national

scale." That incident "made me realize the depth o f racism in this
country."
more

The

scholars that

"socially conscious,"

he was
were also

introduced
influential.

to

while

becoming

As a graduate

104

student,
Niara

"I ended

up meeting

Mary

Sudarkasa,

John

Lockland."

increased and he

said,

"That

Frances

Berry,

To ur e paused,

in teraction

Harold

before

Cruse,

his

volume

sealed e v e ry th in g

for

me
The professor chose an Afrocentric topic for his dissertation, by
showing
print

Africa n-Am er ican s

com m un ications

newspap ers

from

as carrying

industry.

1827-1927:

T he

agency

research

From

Mission

as
was

to

publishers in the
entitled,

"Black

C ommer cialism."

A key academic mission for Toure was addressing distortions in
American

history

because

they "have

caused

pain

on

a large segment

o f society. Correcting that can only help for Blacks a n d
o f the reason that this

condition exists is

disrespectful

that

the

reserves, i.e.,

disres pected

|T h e

reso urces

d o n ’t

supposed to have|." Toure's response:
inform

the

Americans.

system

about problems

"You try to stand

that "history

tools,
equal

W hites ."

archives
the

has been

have

been

c om m it m ent

they

Part
so

are

"I see part o f my job as to
that

it causes

for African-

for something," he added.

Toure's social mission was involvement in organizations that have
an "activist charge." The Association o f Social and Behavioral
and the Black History
writing

of

Networ k serve

A frica n- Amer ican

History

to

promote

from

a

the

scholarly

Science

research

and

perspective.

"What we're faced with as a culture is a society that's ignored
African-American History and culture, so we TRY TO SET TH AT
STRAIGHT." Toure was also active on the Education committee o f the
local Million Man March Coalition. As for the relevance o f professors
in

the academy

community:

participating

in activities

that concern

the

Black

"Most o f us have traveled all over the world, and

10 5

listened

to the greatest thinkers,

and

have tried hard

research skills." Moreover, academicians have,

to hone our

"TOOLS TH AT ARE NOT

WIDELY HELD IN THE COMMUNITY. We are Du Bois’s talented tenth
percent."
Scholars that have had a major impact on Toure's research and
method
B o is.

include

H arold

Cruse,

C arter

Cruse's Crisis o f the Negro

were especially
acc ou nt

led

thinking.

salient.

me

And

[P h il a d e lp h ia

to

an

Woodson,

and W .E.B .

Intellectual, and his Plural

"Cruse's critical
un derstanding

1 think Du

G.

But

Du

Equal

way o f thinking o f historical
of

indep en den t

Bois’s life exemplifies

cultural-based

the scholar/activist

N e g r o study, editing o f the C r i s i s magazinel.

He brought

his broad-based skill to making a difference. He was willing to step
outside and

expand

the r u b r i c of scholarship. In order to do it, Du

Bois understood what he meant to his people, and what his gifts
meant to his people."
Like Moses, Toure linked African-American self-determination to
Africa n- Am er ican

self-definition.

important for the community
an element in our society

He

said

that

it

was

particularly

to define who its leaders are.

"There is

that comes from love, experience,

that we

need to keep there and not allow the system to define out o f our
community."
American

On an

individual

level,

this

meant

that

African-

men did not have to be politically or economically

powerful to be positive influences in the lives o f young
American

African-

males.

A point that Toure wanted his students to understand was that
the United

States

Africa n-Am er ican s

is characterized by
are

particularly

unequal

access to power,

disadva ntaged

by

this.

"I

and

try

to

106

point

to the need o f sharing

wealth.
How

This

will

many

D etroit?

I)u

The

allow

for

Roises

are

cure

For

power,
the

decision

making,

development

trapped

cancer

on

may

o f untapped

12th

be

resources, and
resources.

a n d E u c lid

w it h

those

in

brothers."

The professor summed up his objectives in teaching his 1866 to
the present class by stating,
from slavery with nothing

"I have shown

a movement o f people

but shoes on their feet and clothes on

their backs, to people making a run for the highest office in the land."
Despite

the flaws o f the academy,

because

"they don't tell you what to teach."

Sum m ary:
sciences.

Initially,

The Civil

"politically active."
graduate

training

Toure's

Rights
This,

academic

training

was

his

in

the

hard

to become
to pursue

university.

Since he was

the professor said that he attempted to

distortions o f history
In

him

be accomplished

in turn, encouraged Toure

in history at a Michigan

Blacks and Whites.

can

Movement inspired

not "told what to teach,"
correct

the above

that

have caused

African-American

pain

and

suffering

History course

for

he

intended to do this by displaying the "movement o f a people"

from

1866

to

become

more

s elf -d etermin ing

the

leadership

present.

and

male

The
by

Africa n-A mer ican
self-defining

mentorship,

the

Tou re

comm unity
standards

could
for

com m unit y

noted.

With respect to his students, Toure said that it was important for
them

to

understand

the need

to

"share"

power,

resources

and

wealth.

In addition, affiliation with a local chapter o f the Million Man March
Coalition

represented a social

classroom
persp ec tive

observations
in

mind.

mission

ex hibited

how

with an
To ure

"activist cha rg e. ” The
taught

with

this

107

Classroo m

observations

Although the majority o f the 15 students in Toure’s 1866 to the
Present

course

Americans),

were

his

p r e dom in a ntly

Af ric an -A mer ican s

students

for all

(9,

classes

E u r o p ean - A m er ic an ,

he

and

6

European-

combined

said.

were

T o u r e ’s

classes

were

held in a space that rivalled the size o f the lecture room Moses
taught in.

However, the small

number o f students

was a

mismatch

for this large area. Typically, students sat a row or two from the
front, as if they were giving
Despite having only
four

groups.

women.

Near

the

The class's

right

middle center o f the

the

left

no

European-American

sweatshirts,

wall

Several

the

with

15 students, the class was segregated into
were

several

European-American women

pair sat in the front.

wall

the professor "space."

an

athletic

Two

the

African-American

African-American

sweaters,

sat in

middle.

A

recent immigrants from Europe sat in

room.

males

African-American

in

female

this class.

and

Th e

blue je ans

males

student.

sat near

There

were

students

wore

tennis

shoes.

and

The

colors o f these clothes tended to be a mundane blend o f blue, gray,
and

white--few

wore

bright

colors.

Occasionally,

a

female

student

would wear a dress suit.
No fashion statement was made. Absent were the weighty fabrics
worn

by

Halcyon

students,

Robeson's cla ss—this older
things. They looked
that

they

had

or the colorful
group clearly

combinations

had

their

styled

mind on

in

other

to be in their mid-20's to nearly 40. Some said

children,

separated or divorced.

some
The

were

married,

demographics

in

others

said

this class

they

were

seemed to pose

108

a unique
the

situation.

classes

students

were

that

The

probably

even

was there

students were not wet

with

humbling

all

to remind them

in

that

behind the ears,
they

reminded

o f their worldly

knowledge

how much they still

had to

yet

these

the academy
learn.

Like Moses, Toure moved from one side of the front o f the room
to the other while lecturing. However, Toure did so at a slower, more
deliberate pace o f five or
It was as
point.

if he was watching where he was going with

a particular

Meanwhile, his eyes scanned from side to side as well. This

seemed
he

six steps in one direction before reversing.

to enable Toure

was

to pick

up how

the

students received

what

transm itting.

Generally, the class attended quietly during the lectures. Like
many

Introductory courses,

material
for

to permit

student

much

responses,

the

discussion.
ho wever,

sometimes challenged him.
To ure's

theme

oppor tun ities

was
often

support

their

welfare

require that

family

that

it

For

the

the

to cover

mostly

policies

difficult
instance,

too much

When he did open up the
female

During a lecture on
social

made

families.

and

for

students

"The Black Family,"

restricted

employm en t

African-American

entitlem en t

father leave the

floor

programs

household

men

to

such

as

in order

for the

to be able to eat, the instructor said.
During this

stere otyped
support

at

as

lecture, Toure mentioned that despite being

irre sp onsib le,

a higher rate

African-American

women,

support

rate

some

instructor had

payment

African-American

than
one

allowed
men.

Afri ca n-A m er ica n

men

Eu ro pea n-A mer ican
citing an example
by a court,
After their

pay

men.

child
Several

o f a paltry

ques tioned

comments,

the

Toure

child

sincerity
said,

of

"Oh,

109
I’ve

never heard o f that."

the

profe sso r

that

she and

to the

that

welf are

her husband

United

A recent

States.

migrant

enco urag ed
had been

However,

from

dep endency.

on

this

family

lecture

structure

by posing
in

the

She

welfare when

through

with

mentioned

they

"hard work,"

to break the vise grip that it had on them,
closed

Europe agreed

first came

they were able

she added. The instructor

the extended

family

A fri can-A m erican

as an

alternative

com m unity.

Thus, Toure's students were quick to abandon his thesis of
institutional
from

racism.

personal

statement,

The y

experience.

none

appeared

based
But
to

their

reasoning

while each
grasp

the

on

made

analogic

data

a powerful

professor's

critique

of

social

inequity, and its link

to unequal access to power in the United

In particular, Toure's

discussion o f Malcolm

courageous
against

leadership

racial

and

helped

social

to

ignite

States.

X exhibited how bold

A f ric an-A m eric ans'

injustice during the Civil

Rights

and

fight
Movement.

Assessment
Toure's syllabus identified "turning points" that "changed or
cemented"

the

plight

of

Africa-American

people

since

1866 as

the

course's focus. Films such as "Birth o f a Nation" and "Eyes on the
Prize"
were

were
three

shown
quizzes

to

serve

with

this

purpose.

true/false

and

The

short

course
an sw er

and a term paper. Texts for the class were From
(1994) by John Hope
Henry;
Civil

Promises
Rights

contemporary

to

Franklin; Jesse

Jackson

(1989)

African-American

by

Aldon

(1996)

History

Morris.
co u r se

essay

Slavery

Keep (1991) by Donald Nieman;

Movement

requirements

to

items,
Freedom

by Charles
and Origins o f

the

T o u r e’s Introductory
r e p re s e n te d

his

1 10

desire to teach
achieved

this

the best o f the activist
aim

by

disseminating

a

tradition.
high-level

had to take good notes o f his lectures.
observed

along

with

the

students'

Toure's lecture on Malcolm
Th e

Seven

Because

Toure

o f content,

students

Both phenomena were

engag em en t

with

the

topic

during

X.

Principles

of

an

A frica n-c en tere d

Education

Toure addressed the concepts represented by Principles Three,
Five,

Six,

an d

and

Seven

(Cleansing,

Commission/Omission,

Reconstruction/Self-D eterm ination,

teaching

episodes.

clas sro om
Two,

However,

lectures

where

African

and Four (Time and

Place,

respectively),

content

information

Deconstruction,

was

relevant

Diaspora,

not

to

dur in g
infused

Principles

and Maafa)

in
One,

were discussed.

The time period that Toure's course was organized around (1866Present)

was an

reference.

For

ended in

1865,

insignificant,

inhibiting
instance,

because the

one could

at

factor to a stronger African

best,

expect

Maafa

of

African

that its inclusion

in such a curricular

frame of
ens lave men t

would probably

be

format.

Toure's treatment o f Principles One, Two, and Four, depended on
classroom

discourse

that

was topically

example,

for Principle

point on

the timeline when

the

advances

touchstones
such

that
that

a theme.

One,

Diasporan
give

Toure

relevant

stated

that

to the tenets.
enslavement

Africans were down.
Africans

structure

and

"have

made

coherency

to

Further,
since,"
how

For

was a
he said that
are

he

addresses

His practices were consistent with this view.

Whether this use of Time and Place is what the framers of the
Seven

Principles

(Detroit Public Schools,

1994)

intended,

may

be

111
another

matter.

In any

case,

perhaps

clarification

guides the translation o f the precepts
they

be

expanded

to

embra ce

is needed

into practice.

history

on

what

How far could

instruction

in

a

contemporary

context?
Toure's
posed

no such

"everyday

The

missing

in

of

heights

Malcolm

for

in

the

the

the

self-determination
use of

Black community

lives of

Blacks
in

African-American

The professor advocated the

who exist

potential

ex trao rdin ar y
possible.

challenges.

people"

"father layer"
men.

prescriptions

from

many

youths,

to provide
particularly

ordinary circumstances

community

was

posed

X was cited as an example.

as

the
young

to reach

desirable

and

Toure devoted a lecture

to the discussion of the life of Malcolm X. As usual, the professor had
the class's

full

disseminated

attention;

required

that

that this was a special
about

students

volume o f information
took

Or,

good

notes.

One

matter were

well-known,

could students have been curious as to

their professor would

could

sense

topic, however. There was an air o f expectancy

the lecture, as if the subject

a mystery.

event,

the high

take on

the mere words

such a controversial

"Malcolm

and

yet

what angle

figure?

In any

X" seemed to make everyone sit up

in their seat and pay special attention to what Toure had to say.
The instructor began with Malcolm's birth in 1925. He then
mentioned
Marcus

that Malcolm's

Garvey's

United

father,
Negro

Earl

Little,

Improvement

was a

member of

Association.

"He

was

raised in the tradition o f s t r u g g l e , " Toure said. "Soon his family
p a i d the c o s t of s t r u g g l e , "
"paid,"

"cost,"

circumstances.

and

"struggle."

A turning

he noted, placing special inflection on
Earl

Little later died under

point in Malcolm's early

mysterious

life was being told

1 12

by one of his teachers that, because he was a "Negro," he should give
up his dream o f becoming an attorney in favor o f pursuing a vocation
such

as

carpentry.

"Increasingly,

he

A

disillusioned

developed

an

Malcolm

attitude

professor said, his voice rising

then

became

toward

a

the

delinquent.

system,"

the

falling.

After he was convicted o f larceny, Malcolm served a prison
sentence.

It was there that he discovered the Nation

Following parole, Malcolm
Nation,

Toure

Islam,

and

said.

"becomes one o f the rising stars" o f the

Malcolm

developed

its

of Islam.

X created temples, attracted

publication,

Muhammad

members

Speaks .

to

Despite his

work, he was labelled as a "hate monger" by TV reporter Mike
Wallace, the professor said.
define activity

"A classic example o f how the media can

for the world," he added,

in a disappointed tone of

voice.
Toure noted that Malcolm X's differences were not only with the
media.

He and

disagreements

his mentor,

as

well.

Elijah

Perhaps

Muhammad,

the

greatest

had

was

major
that

Malcolm

wanted to work with groups

other than Muslims to secure

equality

noted,

want

for

Blacks.

Muslims

"protesters

involved

to join

insistence that

As To ure
in

the

Muslims

Civil

Muslims
should

sociopolitical agenda, and his
"chickens

came

home

Malcolm X did not
said.

to

roost"

however,

Muhammad

Rights.

Muhamm ad

instead."

Despite

not be

involved

Kennedy

stop thinking in nationalistic

did

not

wanted

Muhammad's

in a broader

sanctioning o f Malcolm
when

social

was

X for saying the
assassinated,

terms, the professor

While Muhammad was taking the Nation in a more "conservative"
direction,

Malcolm

wanted

the

brutality and other critical
comm unity.

A

defining

in Los Angeles, and

organization

social

moment

to

address

issues affecting
came

when

police

the Black

seven

Muslims

were

16 people were arrested for assaulting a police

officer in the incident. Malcolm, who sent bail to the Muslims,
this as an
around

instance where

the abuse that

officials,

the

Blacks

couldn't"

Toure

emphasized

how

Muslims could build
faced at

the instructor said.

Movement to split.

shot

national

saw

unity

the hands o f law enforcement

"That’s what caused

the

Black

Muslim

Some o f us wanted to do something about it, but

added,

quo ting

violence

as a communications

was

Malcolm.
used

measure,

Malcolm

in the

United

continuously
States and globally

the objective o f which

was

to strike

fear in the hearts o f those who might rise up against oppression, the
sc ho lar

said.
Ironically, Malcolm would die a violent death. The professor said

that

it was

federal

uncertain

government.

who
After

"called"
a

the

moment

shooting,

o f silence,

Muhammad,

or the

the professor

next

spoke slowly, and chose his words carefully, as if he was talking
about a dear friend.
inspiration
again.
th e

"He

spo ke

he

ach ieved

the

g h et to
to

was

a teacher

he was certainly a leader."

potential

g o in g

"Malcolm

of

sim ple
the

dire ct ly
of

m a ss e s
fro m

America.

H arvard .

He

truths,

He

and
of

what
didn't

wasn't

an

His voice began to rise
he

wa s

an

e x a m p le

African-Am ericans
he

re ceived

get

a n oin te d

to

as

where

like

a
he

B oo ker

of

because
pro d uct
was
T.

of

by

He

was

1I4
seen

as

being

the

able

brother
to

speak

S um m ary:
possibility

addition,

to

door.

Yet...he

rose

to th e

the

A frica n-Amer ican

com m it m en t

Malcolm

saw

h e ig h t

of

kings."

Malcolm X was presented as a model o f

for

unwavering

next

c om m unity

human

because

his

to freedom

and justice

through

prisms o f religion to formulate

the

for all

of

Blacks.

In
a

critique of oppression in all o f its variegated forms: social, political,
and

economic.

Beyond

that,

lecture was that Malcolm's
M oveme nt

helped

to

what

was

not

mentioned during

mere presence in the Civil

elevate

the

dialogue

and

keep

Toure's

Rights
other

leaders

"honest."
Malcolm X's stature has grown even in death—which became clear
in

the students'

noted,

apparent

reverence for

this

topic. Moreover, as Toure

his ascendance was not the product o f growing up in

privileged

circumstances.

was a reminder
significant

Th is

point

o f the potential

contributions

thesis o f social agitation

to

the

was an

essential

one,

o f all African-Americans to

reconstruction

was continued

of

the

in Toure's

because

it

make

co mmunity.

This

scholarly research

as well.
Scholarly

Research

(Three

a. "A Critique o f the
the Black Press," (The

works)

Influence o f

the Socioeconomic Environment

on

Black Scholar. Vol. 22, No. 4, 1994)

Thesis: Black newspapers and magazines, which began being
published in the
comm ercialis m
in

militancy

in
and

1820’s, moved
the 20th
freedom

from a focus on social

century.

Th e

o f expression.

result:

missions to

a detectable decline

1 15
Summary: In this article, Toure notes that "the Black Press, from
its beginning, took on the most sacred o f missions: the liberation of
the slave and the redemption

of Africa, and

thus,

set the standard

publications o f the future." The pioneers of the Black
simply

seeking

After the

Civil

and not ju st
would

"free

be

speech

War,

however,

survive.

replaced

in a democratic
Black

by

the economics

because it expanded

publications,

however,

to

making

the author.

o f wealth."

the Press's

a profit

Th e

Press were
the article adds.

new spapers could earn

"It would not be long before

was a key,

according

society"

economic

profits,

survival

Northern

economics
emigration

marketing base.

came

with

for

For

these

a downside,

tra nsformation

marked

a

shift

in philosophy from the radicalism o f the abolition period to a stance
of

m oder ation

and

ac c o m m o d a ti o n .

Nowhere was this trend more evident than in the chain o f events
that led publisher T. Thomas Fortune to sell The
Black newspapers o f the era,
Was hington,

who

ventures,

was

with

start-up

the

a

The effects
1906

publicly
factor
costs,

the omnipresent

professed

in

the

and

no

provided

"race

financial

equation.

Age. As with other

interest

Washington

co ntinued

leader"

Booker T.

in

supplied

financial

incident,

where

a Black battalion

Fortune

backing.

o f this arrangement became visible in the wake

Brownsville

such

o f the

was accused of

running amuck in the Texas town and killing one White and injuring
two

others.

without
the

honor,

soldiers

objected

President

to

to

despite
the

T he o d o re Roosevelt
evidence

shooting,

Roosevelt's

dism issed

o f provocation

the author

handling o f the

says.
incident

the

entire

and nothing
Fortune

unit

to link

vehemently

in several editorials.

1 16
Washington,
such

as

the

President

mar gin ali ze
investors

whose real interest in protecting powerful Whites

the

was

expertly concealed,

publisher.

who

were

W as hing ton's

buying out

ca mpaign

Fortune's

"planting"

stories

of

F or tune’s mental

operatives

repo rt

on

the

publisher's

moved

shares

to

included:
in the

instability;
activities,

quickly

and

once

financing

paper;
having

the

his

paper

moved

to Chicago. These tactics were used by Washington to, at first, change
the

paper's editorial

paper.

W as hington

direction,

and

"systematically

then

force

castrated

many o f his contemporaries," Toure says.
years

between

period,
and

co mmer cialism

more

papers

Washington's death

restraints

can

be

A n a ly s is
centered

be ca me

on

free

on

the

in

more

and

Fortune

in

from

the

the

eyes

The bottom line:

1915
and

Fortune

and

the end

more

uncensored

the

o f the

entrenched,

expression

"In

of

in

and

more

black

seen."

Ba sed

Seven

P r in c ip le s

of

an

African -

E ducation

Toure's essay poses the classic dilemma that confronts not just the
Black

Press,

responsive
turning

but

to

all

the

a profit

is usually tied

African-American

needs

o f the

(economic

businesses:

commun ity

im perative)?

to failure at the

how can

they

(moral imperative),

Unfortunately,

success

be
while
at

one

other. Moreover, it must be asked

what is meant by a "Black Press," especially if the locus o f control of
these

operations

clear is that the
com es

resides outside

Black co mmunity?

financing o f African-American

p r e dom in a ntl y

necessarily

o f the

translate

from
into

other
service

publications, even

A fri can-A m eric ans,
to

What

Afri can -A m erican

does

not

people.

is
if it

1 17
A study o f the cases presented here seems to suggest that two
events are necessary if the "Black Press" is to reach selfdeter m in ati on,
indep en de nt

particularly

voice

in

with

the

respect

to

main taining

an

A frica n- Amer ican

com m un ity:

1)

any business must be fiscally sound
before
give

purpose;

without

becomes

African- American

strings

that

to

Th e

suggest

C.J.

author

that

the

notes,

Walker,

lest

Black

Walker

must
their

media.

was a

however,

while

profit must not come

backers

to their gifts,

strangulates

magnate Madame

newspapers.

evidence

2)

attaching

a noose

cosmetics
Black

and,

to operate,

Although

be

willing

to

support

For example,

major benefactor o f
that

politically

there

was

no

conservative,

tried

to force others to adopt such a posture.
b.

"An

African-American

Perspective on

the

Beyond," in Beyond the Red. White, and Blue:
In tr oducti o n

to

A mer ican

Studies

Reagan-Bush

Years and

A Student's

(Kendall-Hunt:

Dubuque,

IA,

1992)

Thesis: The "father-layer" in the African-American community
has been derailed by,
the community;
characterized
Americans.

and

by
An

"father-layer"

among other things,
also

social

by

the

structures

"opening

the

"flooding" o f drugs into

Reagan/Bush

years,

and

inimical

policies

up" o f society

which

were

to

African-

is necessary before the

r e tu r n s .

Summary: The extended family that raised Toure in his
metropolitan
significant
his
who

Detroit area neighborhood as a kid is posed as a
factor

immediate

in

family,

the

a u t h o r ’s growth

neighbors

lived nearby ensured

that

and

development.

such

as a

Public

Toure

"kept

his

Besides

Works employee

head on

straight."

1 18
This

was

done

by

gave

the author a sense

"father"

figures are

judicial

system

potentially

to

enco ur ag em en t

o f "worth." Today,

"de-balled"

that

violent

con tribu ted

consistent

views

and

this

by schools,

dynamic.

A

Inter ethnic

result o f

the kind o f widespread

Americans

in the wake o f these

supervision

that

however, potential
police, television,

African-American

irresponsible.

and

men

series

as,

at

and a

once,

o f recessions

tension

disgruntlement
developments,

is

generally

felt

by

the

African-

Toure adds.

He says

that a redistribution o f wealth is the only cure for this affliction.
A n a l y sis
centered

Based

on

th e

Seven

P r in cip le s

of

an

African-

Education

Tw o essential themes reverberate through this essay. First, if
Afri can-A m eric ans,

es pec ially

they

must

from

those who could potentially

singles

out

denounce

the

males, are

middle-class

alongside peers who may
nonetheless just
thing

that

larger

society's

love and concern,

becom e

attempts

African-A merican

men

to

not have as much social

requires

self-det er m in ed ,
to detach

shape and mold them.

as capable o f being

this job

to

positive

is a demonstrated

take

them

The
their

author
place

standing, but are

influences.

The

co mm itment

only
borne

of

the autho r notes.

The second theme that the article embraces, the "opening up" o f
society,

is

more

problematic.

if this condition were to
grant

and deny

cultural,

The

proper

audience

for this

argument,

change, are those who have the authority
social,

and political

substances;

those

to

who

may have "closed" the society in the first place. They are not likely to
be reading such a treatise. In fact, the work o f building a "Great
Society"

may not be a project that our nation's power brokers will

1 19
sign up for anyway. Thus, at least initially, the work may have to go
on

without

c.

them.

"From Coloreds to African-Americans: A History o f the Struggle for

Educational

Equity at the

Pluralistic

Multicultural

(U niversity

c o n f eren c e

University and an

Univer sity
paper ,

of

the

Agenda for the
T w enty -f irs t

Century"

1991)

Thesis: If this Michigan institution is to be truly multicultural, it
must

acknowledge

Afrocentric

African-Amer icans

that

it

scholars

feels

must

and

students,

comfortable

and

with,

not just

or those

the

it

can pick to do its "bidding." Greater inclusion will not result unless
A f ric a n - A m e r ic a n
play

s tuden ts ,

activist s,

instruc to rs ,

and

a d m i n is tr a to r s

the lead role.
Summary: Toure describes the "trajectory" o f events consequent

to the

university's initial enr ollment

present.

Central

and

students down

to the

to this analysis are the processes that led to an

African-American
year

o f Black

student action

com m em ora ti ve

that

group in

assesses

the

1970.

The

progress

paper is a 20-

made

before,

then,

since.
By 1928, the school had its first protest by African-Americans.

Another

protest

in the late-1960's, led

to increased

financial

aid

to

African-Americans and

Asians and to the creation

o f Black history

courses,

among

things.

Afric an -A mer ican

students

graduated

other

between

1975

"unidim ensi onal

m o n ocu lt ura l

test

grade

scores and

opportunity

for

point

Record
and

numbers

of

1982.

return

valuat ion
averages,

Afric an -A mer ican s

in

A

system,"

narrowed
the

that

the

1980's,

to a
em p h a s iz e d

window

To ur e

of

says.

120
During the period
scholars

such as

am o unt

of

Shelby

attention.

A merican

students

that followed, conservative African-American
Steele and

Th is
and

Thomas

deve lopm en t

had

Sowell

received

implications

an

for

undue

African-

staff.

The erosion in gains made by African-Americans led to another
major protest
what
of

was

the

minority

the

lead

students

in

the

late-1980's.

connection

students.

in
and

between

They

researching

This time,

asked

these

faculty

await

Based

on

the

curricu lum

why

the

issues?

the

faculty

to

and

the

university

Today,

answers

wanted

was

to know
retention
not

taking

African-A merican

these

questions,

the

author

says.
A n a l y sis
centered

the

Seven

P r in c ip l e s

of

an

African-

E ducation

Toure's discussion o f the specific conditions necessary for AfricanAmericans
general

in the academy

requ ir em en ts

instructive
other
for

for

students,

student

fosters

a

Another

struggle

truly

need ed

several
the

to be

an d

diverse

for

reasons.

author's

self-determining,
the
For

faculty

The

and

m ulticu ltu ra l

analysis
type

as the

university,

African-A mericans,

historical

protest.

as well

serves

Latinos,

as

a

o f en vironment

administration

is

also

only

conser vative

Black

scholars'

ideas

are

and

guidebook
that
addressed.

focal point is the Deconstruction that occurs when,

instance,

are

for

advanced.

Finally, the multicultural university is presented as not only
desirable,
always

but

attainable.

participated

at

E u r o p e a n - A m e r ic a n s

some

level

in attempting

and

other s

to push

have
the

academy

in this direction. However, as the author notes, this scenario will not

12 1

be

played

parties

out

are

unless

front

Sum m ary:

A f ri can-A m ericans

and

Th e

and

other

vitally

interested

center.

au thor's

"activist

charge"

was

tautly

interwoven

into each of the essays in this section. The Black Press was criticized
for the elevation
Am er ican s.
extended

A f r ic a n - A m e r i c a n s

family

potentially

by

multicultural

institutions

Amer ican

Toure's class,
corroborated

vulnerable

media,

Despite

the

by

the

students

who

A f rican - A m er ican

Europ ea n-A mer ican s)
surveys

were

in

co u rse,"
told

me

o r ig in s

was
that

that
of

was

the

others

action

impact
family,

the

who can

be

for a more

presen ted

small

said that

in

on

third
to

the African-

an d

number

the

was applied

postsec on da ry
of

limited.

linked

social justice

students

in

Surveys

For

responses

example,
how

to

there

the

questions

1866-Present

history

A frican-A m ericans during

A f ric a n - A m e r ic a n s .

class did

on

the

were so few

no modal answer could be recorded.
the

a significant

15 students (9 African-Americans, 6

discuss
to

is

co m munity.

T o u r e ’s class,

answers for No. 1, " P l e a s e
A frica

and

rec onst ruct

the professor's focus on "social action" appeared to be

Because there were only

of

to

The recipe

a significant

Student

student

males

message o f social

have

institutions.

service to African-

e n co u r ag ed

university

c o m m u n ity - - th e

educational

of

that

were

the system.

Therefore, Toure's

three

need

to protect

"de-balled"

Afrocentric,
article.

o f profit over purposeful

not address

and
this

Moreover,
the

culture

Toure

African

12 2
In addition, for 2b.,
up

stereotypes

and

of

A frican-A m erican

"How

was

m isconceptions
people

(or

e x p e r i e n c e ) ? , " and 3b., "IIow
to

them?"

(concerns o f the

inadequate

nu m ber

the course

of

items

that
the

were

helpful

you

may

clearing

have

had

A frican-A m erican

you

encouraged

Black community),
to

in

to

respond

there were an

generalize.

Therefore, 2a. and 3a. are the only questions that can be
discussed here. For 2a.,
A frican-A m ericans
hardships
the

that

people,

"W hat

in

this

'tru th s ' have
class?"

Africa n-A m er ic an s
were

what they

have

you learn ed

about

six (40%) said that the
end ured,

and

remembered most.

the

strength

One student said

The reality o f how hard African-Americans
in my conscious mind clearer than ever.

had

to

of

that,

struggle was

Another added,
I have learned that African -A mericans are very powerful
people, we will fight for our rights and never give up until we
see results.
When asked to, " D i s c u s s
com m unity

that

listed

opportunities,

equal

were

the

m entioned
and

five

needs
in

of
this

(33%)

the

A frican-A m erican

course"

others

(3a.), six

mentioned

education.
The following students said that African-Americans need,
jobs, equal opportunities, justice, the things that
Americans were supposed to get.
...equal oppor tunities
express ion, etc.

for jobs,

education,

politics,

most

self-

12 3
Sum m ary:

Th e

missions promoted
from.

Toure

were

that people o f African

sociopolitical

that

by

regarding
too

the

academic

few to

make

and

social

strong

inferences

What was clear was that there was some discussion o f the

struggle
that

responses

justice

African- Americans

by Moses's students.

descent

would

be

face. This

have

needed

faced

in America,

to resolve

was similar

to

similar to the pursuit o f equality through

the problems

the answers

In fact, an emphasis on social

and

given

justice is very

the legal

system.

The only

difference is that one happens on the street, and the other in the
courtroom.

Again,

students

perceived

w eren't

enough

and

cannot

his

"activist

Case

For instance,

to be

Departmental

Context,

and

quest

lens

committee),

for tenure.

supportive

of

how Toure's

because

there

Toure's educational

Decenter

positive

the

simply

could

factors.

multiculturalism.

The

the

School

However,

Community,

pose significant

said that

context was a

Culture, and

Professional

to view African content

centered

regarding

the Community

appeared

review

said

charge,"

Three:

Culture,

faculty

be

data.

S u m m a r y of
mixed bag.

more

Structure

the
(i.e.,

obstacles

the

to

his

school's president was

chair's

insistence

on

an

not

Islamic

may also be detrimental to an African-

approach.

The professor kept his promise of maintaining the academic
mission
from

of

displaying

slavery

consistent

to

with

scholar/activism

a

running

"movement
for president.

of"

African-A merican
Toure's

his self-concept of teaching
started by

represented by advancing

W.E.B.
leaders

Du

Bois.

emphasis

people
was also

in the tradition o f
The

such as Malcolm

"movement"

was

X as models o f

124
self- determ inati on
level

of

content

for

the

disseminated

topics probably accounted
timeframe

of

presentation
the

Toure's
of

beginning

A frica n- Amer ican

the
date

and

course

was

an

Americans

as

agents

in

high-

course

prohibitive to a stronger

connection

was 1866.

of

en gagement

Th e

for the serious tone of the class. The

African

description

student

co m mun ity.

Afrocentric

He

to

African-Americans,

nevertheless

offering

in their own

by

since

met the general

promoting

African-

history.

The professor’s social mission was furthered by his service to the
Million Man
Toure's

March Coalition.

research--he

institutions

such

schools could
American

as

was able
the

media,

Activism as a theme also influenced
to

use
the

this paradigm
Black

be shaped in the interests and

community.

family,

to discuss
and

images of

how

postsecondary
the

African-

125
IV. Case Four:

Professor

Manetho

A student had ju st provided the class with an eyew itness account
o f the
M illion
Man March. As he w ould say several tim es during the
sem ester, M anetho rem inded
the class, "I do want us to m ake the
h isto ry that we address as accurate as p o ssib le. "
Ed ucat io nal

C ontext

Similar to Renaissance. Dakota University is a short drive from the
interstate

highway.

com pan ies

and

A

technological

automotive

sports and entertainment
immediately
and

off

postal

service

sometimes

front

has only been

suppliers

store.

men and

direction on the
university.

a

recently

constructed

the last
many

sandwich

few decades.

for the

A new
shop,

blue-suited

station

Major

strip mall

cleaners,

buildings

that
this area

The
is a sign

that

technical.

and black Cadillacs and Continentals with
women

main road. After several

A police

to campus.

o f these businesses

taken a turn

Shiny late-model blue
white-shirted

way

plastics

stretches o f land are a reminder that

focus o f
has

the

includes

contains

The

developed in

development

leads

that

facilities are also close by.

interstate

open

science/engineering
the

the

corri dor

for the

small

zipped
lights,

by me

in

each

I faced the

community

near the campus

was on the right. Further up the road on the left there was a
McDonald's.

I headed in the direction of the latter.

Despite my
my

presence did

gray haired man
jack et

being the only African-American in the restaurant,
not

seem

in a plaid

to raise any eyebrows.

shirt with a pink stripe and a sports

was in one corner eating

gentleman

A middle-aged,

while reading

the newspaper.

who looked to be in his 30's snatched

A

his takeout order

126
and dashed out as I entered. He had on a white dress shirt and tie
and an

Izod jacket.

After jumping into his black 3-series BMW coupe

he was off to the races.
After picking up my food, I took a seat next to two young women
who looked to be in their late teens or early 20's. One was a
Europ ea n-A mer ican ,

the

female was wearing a
high

spirits,

discussion

other

was an

Dakota University

as they laughed and

about

Asian

a cour se

they

American. The

sweater.

The

two were

joked their way through

were

Asian
in

a

taking.

Because o f the images that I had of this burgeoning business
community, and the people in

it, it

came as no surprise

one o f the wealthiest enclaves in the United
D ep ar tm en t

of

Public

States

that 1 was in

(County

Services).

The people that I saw before going on campus, looked a lot like
those in the surrounding area.
Department,

told

me that,

Dr. Milton, the Chair of

"We're a reflection

the History

o f the community."

Dakota University is in a city with more than 7,000 residents, o f
which

fewer

than

100,

or

1 percent,

are

African-Americans.

Nearly

90 percent o f the students at Dakota were local. "This is not a
residential

campus,"

co rro bora ted
three

this

by

surrounding

half were new.
com m unity

he

added.

saying

counties.

The

that

Assistant

Dakota's

H a lf o f

the

Director

students
students

of

came
were

Admissions
from

the

transfers,

and

Some o f the school's main competitors were the local

colleges

since

they

have

cheaper

tuition,

she added.

official also named the other schools in the study as rivals for
Dakota's student pool.

Dakota

is a public institution.

The

]27
In his "research" on the student body Milton found that most
students were probably

not as

young as the

next to me in the McDonald's.
institution

was

a

two

females who

sat

The "average" student at this state

Eu ro pea n-A mer ican

female

between

the

ages

of

25

and 28. Indeed, one young

lady that I talked to said that she went to

Dakota because

baby after graduating

she had a

She was offered a scholarship to
institution,
school

unlike

high

school.

attend a Big Ten University. But this

would not

hold

her

admission

for another

year.
Of

only

Dakota,

from

the full-time enrollment of more than 13,000 students in 1994,

800, or 6 percent

provide any
bring

in

ca m pus

African-Americans.

specific strategies Milton

African-American

as

sparse

were

well

as off,

students

said,

Although

"we should

from outside the

the African-American

he
do

did
more to

area."

population

not

On

appeared

at best. The most that I would see in one area would be in

M a n e t h o 's

class.

Whether the paucity o f African-American students was a factor
or

not,

a number o f articles

to Dakota's racial
page

of

attem pt

the

student

to bridge

students to
would

dynamic.

the

in

the student

newspaper

One item that appeared on

publication
cam pus 's

was
racial

were devoted
the editorial

an Afric an -A mer ican
divide.

The

teacher

professor's
asked

sign up for a retreat that he and a fellow faculty

be

sponsoring.

and we are

trying

member

"There is so much tension in the community

to ad vocate

pro-activity,

not reactivity,"

he said.

These "tensions" were probably not eased by the vacuum o f
pow er

that

president.

resulted from
Th e

the resignation

former president

of

Dakota's

spoke o f being

last

permanent

"forced out"

before

128
resigning at the beginning

of

1995.

Amid accusations o f violations of

the Open Meetings Act by an area paper, the search for a
replacement has been
should
and

proceed.

the

A

former

halted

serious

until

a court rules on

ethics

President's

violation

inability

to

by

disapproving

Board o f Trustees,

the school

a humanities

firmly

turned out to be the the last straw for an

how

handle

the

professor,

incident,

embittered faculty and a

according

to the local

daily.

Apparently, events that occurred several years ago during the
tenure o f the

school's

last

permanent

impact

on cam pus conditions today.

issues

raised

several

have

pro fesso rs

greater diversity
m i d - 1994

when

administrator,
"Executive
that

their
of

Black

came

faculty

one o f only

made promises

"concerns"

African-American

have

the
left

ad min istra to r
the

administrator

accepted

a

was

reached

a prominent

and

and

The

the

staff,
Since

the

attraction

in

time,

an

The

in an
the

President
kept.

The

documented
and

and

graduation

retention

to a report

given

the renowned

above report

professor

position

retention,

according
that

that

in

professor

President.

reminded

and graphs

to
with

hired that were not

"attraction,

who made

university.

the core

co ncer ned

with the

school,

charts

the

students,"

faculty

the

upon being

Dakota’s Board o f Trustees.
and

at

with bar

regarding

African American

met

major

accor ding

point

led by

a

a couple o f Af rican-Americans

position

eq uipped

Dakota

A boiling

school's administrators,

was that

addressed,

at

group,

have had

reason

adequately

adm inistr ators

Managerial"

he had

gr oup

and

been

The

at the university.
a

and one o f the

not

President,

to the

retired

recently.

urban

university

of
to

professor
president

The
with

a

1 29
larger

enr ollment,

and

and

a

larger

population

of

staff

administrators.
S u m m a r y : Because

of

the

scarcity

of

African-Americans

inside and outside o f Dakota, campus racial
exod us

of

key

A frica n-Amer ican faculty

school's context
centered

and

did not appear to

pedagogy.

president,

may

consistent

from the top.
surprised
the

to

meant

leadership.
like

find

that

there

school

could
else,

American

was

the

be supportive of anAfrican-

the

This

both

and the

and administrators,

the vacancy

that

anything

"tensions,"

left
was

have

works

by

not receiving

been
best

the outgoing

problematic
when

it

Because o f Dakota's institutional context,

school's

A ca dem ic

In addition,

have

multiculturalism,

in

African-American

no

clear
because

has

support

I was not

African-American

History

major

History Department.

Unit

The African-American History courses that Manetho taught at
Dakota

University

These

offer ings

"Topics
and
case

in

are

housed

included

the

African-American

"History o f American
was concerned

American

People."

in

with

the

school's

"History
History,"

of

History

African-Amer ican

"History

Manetho

Women,"

o f American

Cities." The introductory
was the 200-level

Department.

Families,"

course that

this

"History o f the African-

has been at Dakota since

the

1970's.

Although Dakota's History Department did not offer a major in
African-American

History,

American

History

Programs.

Th e

critical

reading,

students

through

the

could pur sue a

university's

History

D ep ar tm en t

careful

judgm ent

Center

em ph as izes

and

precise

B.A.

in African-

for

International

"broad
writing,"

knowledge,
according

to

13 0
Dakota's

1995-1996

prepare

students

jo u rn a lis m ,
Interview

for

and
with

Undergraduate
care er s

e lem entary
the

in

Catalog.
business,

and

unit

seeks

gover nm en t

secondary

D epartm ent

The

service,

education.

Chair

Dakota's History Department is in one of the newer
campus.

Its

large

glass

panes,

to

chr ome

fixtures,

and

buildings on

contemporary

lines, make it look like a science building or a College o f Engineering.
The

department

walls,
that

is on

the

third

give the unit a cool-feel
form a gauntlet around

floor. Light-colored carpet,

similar to its corporate counterparts

the campus;

enough to make

you somnabulant.

stepped

elevator.

o ff

the

doors and

the cozy-looking

I started

decor is

yawning as soon as

I

Milton's office had European art sculptures, American History
Association

magazines,

and books on

office

dress,

chair

and

the

Magazines were perfectly
Moreover,
an

books

formed

seemed

Medieval

England.

meticulous

about

piled on a round
straight

immaculately-stacked

Based on

his

appearances.

table in the room's center.

lines, as they

stood at

attention on

shelf.

The chair, who looked to be in his 50's, appeared to be conscious
o f his own image as well. His graying hair and beard, and crisp white
shirt and
mistaken
along

the

yellow

tie meant that

he probably could

have been

for an engineer or project manager at one of the firms
local

superhighway.

The desk,

Milton's resting elbows,

the index fingers that met with the rest of his hands at the
administrator's

lips,

form ed

a

p y r a m id —from

the

top

of

which

and

13 1
emanated

the responses

to my questions.

His

brow

was

furrowed,

as

if to indicate a level o f sincerity in doing so.
Milton's specialty is Medieval History. He received his Ph.D. from
"I was trained in the O ld School when I was at

an English university.
Stanford

[where he received

his master’s!. The 60's

is when

things

cut loose, got going, when we had differences o f opinion." It was at
this

time

added.
or

that

"there

an

interest

"But not much." Milton

no context

own

was

field,

about

for

viewing

it is extremely

1400, the impact

addition,

"there

are

in

African-American

history,"

he

said that in his discipline there is little
an African-centered orientation.

minimal.

Since

my own

"Given

my

field terminates

on the New World is virtually nil." In

avenues

with

sequences

to

Africa and

Europe

from economic terms. Africa supports a great deal o f the gold to
Medieval

Europe.

So it's always been

a factor

[particularly

Zim babw e!."
While in Britain, Milton began to notice the difference in how
Indians,
Whites.

Africans,

and

"It stymied

Pakistanis

me.

You

were

treated,

when

compar ed

to

think o f the English as straight-thinking

people. That did affect my thinking, and that's why I chose not to
become a British citizen. That racism did affect my thinking.
ghettoizing
into

of

Pakistanis,

your neighborhood,

making

sure

they

weren't

allowed

[The|
to

move

i f you were White."

Milton said that although his immersion in Medieval History has
pr ecluded

the

contribution
sees,

study

o f other

areas,

to the department.

he

did

"He's dedicated

in a sense, as a mission." Furthermore,

people to develop their potential

appreciate
to his

Manetho's
work,

which

he

"If we're truly educating

in this society,

they have to know

13 2
the

strengths

and weaknesses

going to play out in.
know

why

there

in

this

society that

Particularly for

is racial

their

careers

are

a White student, they have to

discrimination

and

problems

today.

In

history, we say 'if you don't know the past, how can you plan for a
future?'

Any

instructor

really

doing

W hite

students.

that

students
For

an

ignores

it

injustice,

[African- American

whet her

Afric an -A mer ican

A frica n-Am er ican

students,

it

American historyl is good too, with a c o m p e t e n t
explore

the experience,

than

the 70's and

in

instance)

the

Civil

their own

past.

80’s. They're

Rights

I think

talking

Movement

history),

[learning

is

or
African-

i n s t r u c t o r , to
it’s more important

about the issues—[for

achieved some

things, and

not

others."
At this point, the lines in Milton's forehead grew even more
pronounced.

The

facial

crevice

that

formed

hinted that

preparing to address an issue o f grave concern.
discuss

the

W hite

interacted.
We

can

where

quickly
are

A frocentric

an

what

pro fesso r
Summary:

scholarship,
validating
chair

dism iss
coming

W hite

from.

meant

by

past,

im portant

a n d how

to

th e y

extrem ism

because

we

there

a danger

in

too

had

no

But

"too Afrocentric"

But this statement did cause
in

his

departm ent

might

Because o f Milton's

Dakota's History
context

spoke

Black

A frican-A m ericanhistory

Milton

History course.
one

the

was

The only problem I have is extremism on both sides.

th e y

idea

past,

"It's

he

for

respectfully

o f an

African-American

me to question how only

view o f African-centered

African-centered
the

course." I

accomplish this.

Department

about

is

know

did

not appear to be a

teaching.

need

On

for having

one

level,

someone

the

cover

13 3
the content.

In this

particularly

regard,

because

of

the

he expressed
professor's

his approval

"dedication"

o f Manetho,

to

his

work.

But elsewhere, for instance, the chair's mentioning that he
endo rse d

African -cc ntcr cd nes s

"competent,"
deficit

Milton

perspective.

"competent";

appeared
He

nevertheless,

legitimacy

suspect

should

in others.

long

to be

as

the

I

wondered

Hence,

in

he

paradigm

ev er

from

a

considered

scholars, or

some

for Manetho

the

was

he meant by

if

for European

be assumed

instructo r

approaching

did not qualify what

"competency" to be an issue
that

as

fields,

to teach

if he meant

while,

in an

remaining

African-centered

manner, he would have to do so without expecting the sanction o f the
departm ent

ch air.
Instructor's

I interviewed

Background

Manetho in a large office across the hall from the

History department.

We also

met in a classroom on the

the lecture hall

complete

our discussion on another

to

first floor o f
occasion,

time did not permit us to finish our first dialogue. In the
sat at a long solid-oak

since

office, we

table with maps o f the world on each side. I

was on the opposite side o f the table with my back to the door.
Across from me sat Manetho, a scholar in his 50's, whose booming
6' 2" frame is topped o f f with a gray beard and moustache, and
eyeglasses.
dress

As would generally be the case, he wore a dashiki

pants.

sometimes

In other instances,

had on

a sportscoat,

with a tie, and dress shoes and dress pants.

communica tion s
certain

Manetho

points,

style

was

occasional

to employ
hand

a

gestures,

warm
full

smile
and

and

His

to emphasize

qualified

responses,

J34
and

the repetition of key phrases to reinforce his comments;

regard,

Manetho

something.

sometimes

The

professor,

sounded
who

as

has

been

for more

than a quarter o f a century,

education

in History at a Michigan

professors

in

the

if

he was

teaching

university,

announcing
history

completed

in this

at

Dakota

his graduate

as did the

other

study.

Manetho became interested in a career in African-American
History

at

the

the scholars
him.

school

that

he

attended

as

an undergraduate, where

that he met, would prove to have a dramatic

"I was aware o f African-American

Black university!.

history when

impact on

I went

I found out that my major professor, T.S.

to

|a

Currier,

turned out to be the teacher who helped John Hope Franklin with his
From

Slavery

meeting.

to

Freedom . Franklin came to campus

for a trustees'

We would see him, hear him speak, often

impressio ns

on

those things left

me."

During the future historian's junior year, a residence hall on
campus

was

named after W.E.B. Du

wider as he
dedication.

explained this
I remembered

event. "In
seeing

Bois.

Manetho's eyes

opened

1959, Du Bois came

for the

him. I rem embered

the

occasion.

I

guess all o f those things, in a general way, affected me. I decided to
go to graduate school in history. At some point, I became a little bit
more

acquainted

de par tm ent

with

specialized

African-American
in

history,

but

no one in

the

it."

Later, this interest was carried over into the realm o f professional
pursuit.

"I

interested
during

the

guess, when I
in

went to my teaching jobs,

African-A merican

Black Cultural

history at

(a

I

Big Ten

Revolution." Manetho

moved

became more
university!
his hands

to

the left:

"On one side, 'Negroes' started calling themselves 'Black,' and

tried to show more interest in their history.

I was

first).

Language...1became

I

was

interested

in American

as time

campuses

went

Thought

on.

for people teaching

and

not in history fat

By 1969, students were
Black history.

here and specialize in the field

tearing

I was

|pausc|

more

up

asked to come

so I did."

John Hope Franklin's influence was not just limited to providing a
spark

for Manetho

to pursue a career in history,

but

said that Franklin also affected his academic mission.
largely

through

the books that

textbooks for 26 years, since
still

the

best

book

for

I've

read.

1969.

I've been

"He's done so
using his

It’s [From Slavery

African-American

history."

the professor

to

Freedom I

Although

people

talk about books that are coming out that are supposed to
the historian threw
has

also

been

his hands up and

"influenced by

what

he

has been

idea,

every allegation.

docum en tation
accuracy

overall

doing. He's been

|A

on

his

"he's still there."

professional

cautious

about

|Franklin] wants to see

pause

the

said,

before

b a s ic

Manetho

manner

and

accepting every

the evidence,

smiling) I can

f a c t s as

be better,

appreciate

as much

possible."

Manetho said that with the academic charge given him by
Franklin,
during

it was

the Civil

translation

another historian, Vincent

into a

has

had

whom

he

met

Rights Movement in the South, who influenced its
social

has been influential
Vincent

Harding,

mission. "The

other

important person

I think

in my teaching is Vincent Harding. For one,

the greatest

influence

in encouraging

me

and other

scholars to use our knowledge for the benefit o f the community,
knowledge

must

not

be

for

students

and university

types alone."

for

13 6
One way that the instructor accomplished this was his
involvement

with

which he is

the Fred

Hart

a co-founder).

African- American

descent

Society

(of

This unit tries to encourage persons

of

to

Williams

do

research

Genealogical

on

their

families,

Manetho

said.
"I like to be aware o f what the latest topics are that we'll be
discussing

in the

be aware o f

national,

professional

organizations,

some o f the latest research trends, and

and,

I'd

like to

I'd like to

bring

the knowledge to my class, and adopt what I know to the Genealogy
Society as a historical

society,

because the majority

co me

are

historians."

to

the meetings

not

o f people that

Other organizations that Manetho belonged to included:
A m erican

His to rica l

Or ganization
aspects

of

American

American

Association
(Study

of

of

for

A s sociati o n
(American

History

and

related

History)

the

Study

A frica n-Amer ican

Manetho

History

of
and

African-American
related

Life

and

History

topics)

is a former president o f the Michigan

Black

History

N etw ork.
The

professor said: "Iwould, in general, say that the

academic/social
view.

challenge

The academic point

is

trying

greatest

to present an a c c u r a t e

o f view is to view the subject

any point o f view. Make the study o f it as equally valid.

point

as equal to
There are

problems with the fact that people who are too old to take a class
like this don't see it as equal to any other form o f history."
The concern for presenting an accurate account o f the AfricanAmerican

ex per ienc e

also

impacted

the pr ofessor's

of

prescription

for

13 7
self -d eterm in ation .
light in solutions

M anetho said,

for the future" |smiling,

"We analyze information
documentation o f
illustrate
been

what

chosen

"History

cour ses

nor mally

very

as if resigned to the fact).

o f the past and come up with the

the problems o f the past.

went

are

wrong

that would

or

how

other

have been

Our studies o f the
alternatives

more beneficial.

could

past
have

But it takes time

for the evidence to be compiled, to be offered as more than opinion,
but as an actuality."
discovered
Garvey

that

his

realized

as

"Back

that

receive all o f us."
Af ricanness

For example,

after Garvey's death,

to Africa

we couldn't
Instead,

positive,"

people

was somewhat

fictitious because

move,

countries couldn't

all

African

Garvey wanted people to "perceive o f their

the

instructor

added.

"Likewise,

encour age

people to do all they could to make Africa free o f European
colonialism.

Persons

from

one part o f the world

should

create a

presence for persons in other parts o f the world to work
of

for a quality

tr e a tm e n t. "
Sum m ary:

As an

undergraduate

was heavily influenced by
Hope Franklin.

Franklin,

in particular,

possible."

As a teaching

perceived

o f A frica n-Am er ican

determination,

ac cur ate
because

Manetho

said

that

he

scholars such as W.E.B. Du Bois and John

profes sor’s appreciation of as much

Fu rth erm ore,

student,

"accuracy on

task, this meant that
History

in fo rm ation
of

was significant

its

was

potential

on

a

in the

the basic

students
tangent

facts as

should
with

necessary

for

to inform

future

have

others.

selfaction.

Besides Franklin, Manetho's contact with Vincent Harding focused
him on bringing this knowledge "to the people." As a social mission,
this was addressed by

his

work

with a genealogy

society.

Through

13 8
the

society,

tracing
to

laypersons could

their family tree.

empower

context

"the

was

"accuracy"

on

Just as the genealogy

people"

the milieu

get

with

where

accurate

this

their ancestry,

society was a medium

information,

objective

by

the

classroom

was accomplished

with

students.
C la s s r o o m

QfrsgrvaJipns

Based on my observations, 28, or 70 percent, of the students in
his

Introd uctor y

Americans,

the

A fric a n - A m e r ic a n
other

12,

or

30

History
percent,

course
were

were

African-

European-Americans.

The dress of the students was similar to that o f those at
Renaissance,

with the

exception

that

the patterns

did

be as spectacular, and the colors were not as bright.

not

appear to

A few females

who sat in the front wore dresses to class. The males were attired in
blue jeans,

and sports jackets

were usually
American
black

the range

Eu ro pean -A mericans

class,

o f colors.

Brown,

blue,

and black

A small group o f European-

students who sat in the right rear corner o f the class

leather vests,

everyone

and sweaters.

else's.

which

and jac ke ts
in

the

with their blue jeans.

class

had clothes

E u r o p e a n - A m e r ic a n s

gave me

the

were

impression

that

that

they

Other

were

disp er sed

wore

similar

to

th ro u g h o u t

the

felt comfortable.

Usually, the first reaction when a group, White or Black, is in an
uncomfortable
American

setting,

is that

males were scattered

they tend to

sit together.

The

African-

in the back o f the room.

Despite the fact that the students did not distinguish themselves
through

their dress,

cohesiveness.

one

Each class

thing
was

that

did

stand out

like a reunion,

was their apparent

particularly

with

the

13 9
females in

the class, who visited with each

and

stories.

shared

how happy

Sometimes,

their

other,

voices

they were to see each other.

they

case

of

the

African-A mericans,

may have used

com m un ity,
isolation

which

on

the class to

might

have

carried,

From this,

students probably did not have many classes
the

the

as

course

lost

cracked jokes
depending

I

a group.

Especially
them

was to write

discuss on the board.

He did this

together;

semblance of

through

their

relative

an outline o f what he prepared to
as soon as he

entered the room.

Those who

visited too long at the beginning o f class did so at

own

the class covered

be attending
agenda.

in

this campus.

Manetho's style

peril;

on

inferred that the

brought

reconstruct a

been

and

too much information

to the professor's notes,

One young

lady

each class's opening,

which

was particularly

were

amusing.

for

their

students not

similar

to

to an

Without

fail, at

she would abruptly cut o f f her dialogue with a

female friend to copy what was being written.

"Oh, shoot, girl, there

he goes again. I'll talk to you later!!!"
Questions at the end o f each class were generally the extent o f the
student

co mm ents.

however,
Man

when

March.

M anetho

he

The

had
student

a

varied

this

student

speak

said that

no

structure
about
matter

during

attending
where

one
the

Black

session,
Million

students

came from, Yale, the University o f North Carolina, or other
universities, many said that "it was hard to be Black at a White
school."

Later, the student concluded,

"We have to make it better for

ourselves."
After the presentation, the voice o f one female student cracked as
she discussed

what

she perceived

to be the

media's overfocus

on

140

Jesse Jackson's role in the Million Man March. The young lady, who
was

perhaps

nervous because

in a multicultural
be

stuck

with

leaders

deep breaths,
silence.

setting,

and

the

dealing

wondered aloud,

appointed
nervous

Manetho entered

organizations,

she was

from

"Why

leaders,"

the issue o f race

do Blacks have to

outside?"

shuffling o f feet

the breech.

naturally are

the

with

"People
he said,

Gulped

throats,

filled the ensuing

who are

head

of

matter of factly.

"In one

sense, it's the power, o f course, that the organization has; in the
other, it's the power to get people outside the organization
up,"

he added,

referring

to Minister Louis

Farrakhan.

to show

Then,

shifting

the focus, the volume o f his voice rose, as if to make an important
point.

"The purpose is greater than who called it. I was impressed by

what

you

said

more

people

[looking

stepping

over

at the

forward,

presenter)

adopting

"That's a long-term c om m itm ent

that

children

they addressed:

|f o r

exam ple|.

I think what all o f us need to do

is think about what we can do to improve conditions o f Black people
as much as we can." The

professor smiled,

Georgia legislator Julian Bond.
who

wanted

to

solve

the

before quoting

former

"Bond said that he 'met a lot o f people

world's problems

|e n d

poverty,

stop war,

etc. | Then you ask them to help someone to read |on an individual
level |, they don’t want to do that. THEY WANT TO SOLVE THE
WORLD'S PROBLEMS!!!' [he added, laughing again|."
In quoting Bond, Manetho provided an incisive illustration o f how
useless
concept
began
the

words
in

are

without

teaching

the

action.

The

profes sor

A frica n- Amer ican

practiced

experience.

The

this
course

with the origins o f humankind in East Africa and ended with

discussion

of

co ntem porary

leaders

of

the

African -A merican

14 I
community.

The

millions

of

years

students attend class regularly
c o n f irm ed

as

I

that

and

investigated

the

were

covered

take good

cour se

required

that

notes. This was also

requirements.

A ssessm ent
Manetho assessed student achievement by giving three
examinations
the

including

instructor's

the

standards.

prof es so r's

ex pec tations

a tte n d a n c e

req uire m en ts,

Manetho
work.

final.

One part
for

experie nce

a

has

-has a few

statement
shown

Era:

o f the

they

focused

expec tat ions

might have had

that

who need clear

explicit

syllabus

Th e

o f expectations

me

was

students' re sp onsibility

any

African

Origins

through

the

the

or

my

non-students-

The required

Freedom by John Hope

and Alfred Moss (1994); Afri can-A m ericans

From

the

notify

because

gr ou p-- st uden ts

to

on

included
to

is necessary

Slavery

regarding

in completing

statements in advance."

readings for the class were From
Franklin

syllabus

students.

and

of any problem

"Such

T he

American

in

the

Revolution

Colonial
(1990)

by Donald Wright; and Black

Leadership in America: From

Was hington

(1990) by John White. A coursepack

class

handouts

students
During

Jesse

Jackson

com pleted

to be responsible
his

Diasporan
should

to

discussion o f
African

think

about

this

Manetho's

course

for a

massive

amount

Marcus

Garvey's

program

co m m unity,
these

list.

data.

the

professor

of

Booker

T.
and

challenged
information.

to reconstruct

modelled

how

the

students

14 2
Th e

Seven

Principles

of

an

African-center ed

Education

Manetho's classroom teaching was consistent with the seven
principles.
move

The

most

significant

A f rican - A m er ican

G arvey’s pan-Africanism.
achieved

several

he brought

paradigm

p eo p le

to

During

his

aims which

posed

during

s elf -dete rm inatio n,
session

were typical

on

the

course

was

Garvey,

o f the kind

to

M ar cu s

Manetho

o f insight that

to the examination o f a thesis.

First, he argued for the model. Second, the professor pointed out
forces

external

M anetho

Garvey's

identified

pernicious.

The

several

m ovement
internal

was

to present

possible.

Th e

instructor

as

his

through

the

available

that

were

destructive.

inconsistencies

intent

portrayal
way

to

students

with

acco m plished

historical

which

Finally,

were

as accurate
this

by

also
a

working

evidence.

Manetho had prefaced his discussion o f Garvey during the
preceding class. He cited J.H. Blake's text, In te gra l
Political.

N a ti o n a li s m :

Economic, and Social as evidence o f how progressive

Garvey's model was. The professor said that some, like Booker T.
Washington,
in Africa or

were

economic

learning

nationalists;

African

history,

"What Garvey did was to pull all

who

were cultural

spoke o f

living

nationalists.

o f these together in one

Garvey was the first major leader
form

others,

But,

format.

to put it together in an i n t e g r a l

according to Blake," Manetho said, making sure that he

co r rectly

a ttrib u te d

the

co m m ent.

During the next class session, Garvey was the first item on the
board (the agenda)
Liberia."
cus tom

for that day.

As per usual,
was

also

The heading

the profes sor was

observed:

M an etho

was,

"Garvey and

wearing a dashiki.

altern ated

betw een

Another

standing

14 3

near the room's left

wall, and sometimes leaning on it; but he

expected the truth to stand on its own.
"Garvey had a broad program in terms o f ambitions and desires,"
he called out, announcing that he was ready to start. As if a bell had
rung,

the class quieted

"encouraged
politically,
proce ss es

Manetho

added

Blacks to become

as equal

as possible,

and

socially."

and

community
believed

down.

trading

to build

would

Vertical

within

Af ric an ism--the
pro mo ted
but

he

unity

social,
put

designed

Diasporan

Africa n-A m er ica n

into

achieve

were

this

manufacturing

two goals

"equality."

that Garvey

Manetho's voice rose

"Garvey not only had ideas about pan-

persons

economic,

them

to

of

economically,

of

up its strength

as he made the next point.

Garvey

integration

the

help Blacks gain

that

and

of

political

practice.
his

African

descent--and

forms

He

put

objectives,"

not

only

o f pan-Africanism,

together

Manetho

a

program

repeated

for

em phasis.
Garvey bought ships to operationalize his plan to facilitate trade
within

the

African

around

meeting

Diaspora,

the

instructor

noted.

The

plan

revolved

with officials in Liberia to plot methods to rid

o f European colonialism.

"Garveyites"

were sent in

1923 to settle land

and build a headquarters as well as a gover nment in Liberia.
group

returned in

them,

"took

to enter,

1924.

T he

Liberians

their equipment,

their equipment

was

they

that

|the

seized,

were

supposed

Garveyites]

and

they

Africa

were

were

The

to
not

settle
allowed

forced to return

home," the professor said, the volume o f his voice dropping. Of
course,

speculation

followed as to why

Liberia

shifted positions

on

144

permitting

the

Garvey group

dissected

each o f the main

Apparently,
who

had

Manetho

said that
letter
an

upheaval

with

instructor

refuted

that

was

government,

this argument

stated

that

The professor

on

two

Liberians

factor

carefully by the U.S.
the

was

government.
G arveyit es

influenced the
grounds. First,

he

government, sent

a

America controlled

opened-~possibly

said. Another

labeled

noted.

theses.

the Liberian

o f lower-class

letter

Ho over

Manetho

Elie Garcia, an official in the Liberian

toGarvey

"This

settle,

some in Garvey's camp thought that W.E.B. Du Bois,

a position

decision.

to

by

could

change

the

| Liberian]

that

the

Liberia, and
the

status

quo.

government,"

Garveyites

were

the

watched

The scholar mentioned that J.

"dangerous

only

Edgar

people."

Further evidence included the fact that the U.S. government was
allied with

France

colonies in West
talking

about

and

Britain, the two

Africa. "France and

getting

rid o f European

countries that
Britain

had the most

didn't want anyone

colonialism," Manetho

added.

"The U.S. was aware of that." He said that France and Britain
probably
settling

pressured
in

the

U.S.

into

blocking

the

Garveyites

from

Liberia.

Manetho then moved to the center o f the room, before his voice
rose again.

"All o f the above would have been

much greater than

what Du Bois might have said," returning to his original point.
Moreover,
been

found.

h av e

"the letters
JMore
been

from

Garcia and

Hoover

[the

evidence] have

The letters.............from Garcia and Hoover

slowly]
found," he

repeated.

The professor added that several mistakes that Garvey made,
con tribu ted

to

his

woes.

These

included

the

misappropriation

of

14 5

funds,
of

namely

African

Garvey

the

stock

Diasporan

was

in

his

trade

convicted

of

steamship line,

hinged

upon.

mishandling

Despite

the

lawyer,

paused,

Garvey

should

represent

them."

"Even

lawyers

and
get

said

others

that
to

Despite these problems,

Garvey's

"flimsy

money.

this was that he was his own
grinned,

which

evidence"

A contributor

Manetho said.
have

this

w as n’t

com muted

known

better.

"One strength o f Garvey's organization

institutionalized,

his sentence, and

to

The professor

was that it inspired people, and got them to follow him.
since

dream

sent

when
him

the

from

U.S.

However,

gove rn men t

Atlanta

to New Orleans,

and put him on a boat and sent him out o f the country, t h e r e
no

one

to

carry

on!!!"

T he

was not effective after that.
noting

that Garvey

exemplary

of a

method

a weighty

scholarly

confo un ding

accuracy.

First,

exam ining.
external

to the

analysis.

that

the

leader's

Finally,

the

students to grasp:

that

the

movement

1940.

on

Gar vey 's

p a n-A fr ic anis m

used

the pr ofessor

seldom

evidence,

model

in

he consistently

question;

in an

was

instructor

attem pt

why

to

Garvey's

presented.

movement

able to continue. This last

why

the

engaged

failed

with

to work

secure clarity

and

approach

worth

Conditions

were a critical

argued

when

was

was

internal

and

part o f this
movement

stage was particularly crucial

was

not

for the

it is important for future leaders o f the African-

A m erican

c om m unity

unless

is

it

lecture

Manetho ju sti f ied

Next,

con clu ded

He ended this portion o f his lecture by

died in London

S u m m a r y : Manetho 's

through

professor

Mas

to

kn ow

institutionalized.

that

ch ar is m at ic

leader ship

dissipates,

146

The professor's effort to strike a balance between positive and
negative

data in assessing

key

figures

such

as Garvey

was

sensible.

To do otherwise would have ignored that they were human.
some

mistakes

Manetho

inevitable.

legitimized

process took
Scholarly
a.

were

of

glossing

the discourse on reconstruction

Research

over

(Th re e

such,

miscues,

them as part o f the arena o f inquiry.

This

to a higher level.

works)

"The Black Population

Office

Instead

As

in Michigan: Growth,

Distribution and Public

1800-1983” (in T he Peoples o f Michigan. Volume Two, E t h n i c

Groups

in

Michigan.

Ethnos

Press,

1983)

Thesis: As with Whites, greater job opportunities and social
mobility

were

Michigan

in

on

key factors for Blacks who decided to migrate to
the

19th

and

20th

centuries.

Despite racial

restrictions

Black residence, as well as Black social and political opportunities,

gains were made.
proportionate
Michigan

For instance, in some areas, Blacks had a

share

can

o f officeholders.

foster

further

The

continued

progress and inform

study o f

future

Blacks

in

action.

Summary: The first large-scale Black migration to Michigan
occurred

from

So utheastern
and

the 1840's
and

Southwe ste rn

the anti-slavery

object to

to the

sentiments

1880's, and
counties.

was concentrated

The

of Quakers,

many

Blacks living next to them, were key

Blacks resided in 33 o f Michigan's 41 counties.
population

increased

population ju m ped
Manetho.

The

by
by

100

971

percent

percent,

between
during

two most significant periods

Und er gro und

this

o f whom

factors.

did

period,

not

1850's,

the state's

1900-1930;

o f Black

Railroad

By the

Overall,

in the

the

Black

according to

migration

in the

14 7

20th

century

were between

1915

and 1930,

and between 1940

and

19 6 0 .
In both 1915 and 1940, a
the United States eventually
expansion o f basic industry
States, attracting thousands
industrial cities, (p. 41)

world war started in Europe which
joined. Both wars caused the
and a labor shortage in the United
o f blacks and whites to Northern

It was at this time that the Black population became decidedly
urban,

the author

says.
to

Despite

"relative"

officeholders

began

increase.

Constitution

limited

officeholding

A m en dm en t

changed

that,

inequality

Before 1870,
to White

however,

and

the Michigan
males.

Black

1890's.

three

where Blacks comprised

nation

The 15th

men

the state legislature in the
states in the

By

Black

were elected

to

1980, Michigan was one o f only
10% o f the

state

legislature.
Blacks that have headed the State Board o f Education, school
districts,

and

governing

signs o f progress.
Michigan

cities

boar ds

of

the

state's

universities,

are

further

So are the Black mayors who were elected to head

during

the

1960's and

1970's,

Manetho adds.

Yet problems remain and each generation will have to
overcome as many barriers as possible in its lifetime. The
present generation needs a more complete and accurate history
o f blacks in Michigan, as a basis for present understanding and
future action, (p. 50)
A n a ly s is
centered

Based

on

the

Seven

P r in cip le s

of

an

African-

Education

The article assists the reader in understanding the factors that led
Blacks

to Michigan,

and that

were

responsible

for

whatever

social,

14 8
political,

and economic

gains

analysis o f these variables
development

of

that

Blacks

is crucial

A f rican - A m er ican s

made.

Manetho asserts

to the continued growth
in

that

and

Michigan.

The author makes a valid point on both accounts. In addition, a
nearly

200-year

tradition

struggle

necessary

On a symbolic level, this ascent to positions o f power,

however,

for

the question

the people's

may be asked:

leaders to deliver resources
A frican-A m erican

that

board

Blacks

mayors.

fruit

gover ning

for

school

some

presidents,

was

b ecom e

represents

board

of

labor.

On

members,

to

and

another level,

what is the ability o f these

increase the

life chances o f the

com m unity?

A quantity o f leadership (numbers as head of school boards) does
not

necessarily

mean

a quality

o f leadership

(numbers

of

policies

that have a direct and positive impact on the Black community). Of
course, a proportionate share o f elected officials on any body is a
good start. The next step is action.
In education, that may mean targeting a higher graduation rate
for

Africa n-A mer ican

nu m be r

of

African-American

may be a goal.
potential
should

students.

Economically,

for increasing
re ce ive

serio us

In

firms

politics,
to do

hiring

a

contracting

representative
work

with

cities

any programs and policies that have the

the r e a l

income

of

African- Am ericans,

consid eration.

None o f the above is novel. The point is that, even when
quantifying,
provided

by

as

the author

does

African-American

here,
leaders,

the quality
should

gauge o f their relevance to the community.

also

o f leadership
be assessed

as

a

And this, along with the

149
historical

outlook

prospectus
b.

for

that

Manetho

advocates,

could

provide

a

s e lf - d e t e r m i n a t i o n .

"Bernadine Newsom Denning" (in Jessie Carney Smith, Editor,

Notable

Black

American

Women. Gale Research,

1992)

Thesis: A Detroit native becomes "notable" as a "lifelong educator
and

administrator"

in the public
society,

in

com m itted

schools, and

to

im proving

increasing racial

the

quality

of

education

and gender equality

in

general.

Summary: As a young girl growing up in Detroit's Brewster
projects,

Bernadine was told by her mother to look for the larger

cosmic purpose in life since, "the Lord has a master plan for all of us,"
according
Denning

to the author.
graduated

the Detroit
and

Th e

from

fulfillment o f this objective began

Eastern

Public Schools

Michigan

University

and

after

returned

to

wheie she had been educated, as a teacher

administrator.
After graduating with a doctorate from Wayne State University,

she

took aposition as the director o f the Urban

the

University o f Michigan.

Education

Program at

Upon returning to the Detroit Public

Schools as their director o f Title IV, Civil Rights Office, she received
the

attention o f President Jimmy

the

director

Carter,

who

in 1977,

tabbed her as

o f the Office o f Revenue Sharing for the U.S. Department

o f the Treasury. The office distributed nine billion dollars a year o f
the

federal

taxes collected

to cities, counties and states. This

also involved in civil rights,

since it could withhold

g o v e r n m e n ts

racial

that

practiced

disc rim inati on.

unit was

funds from

15 0
In 1979, after her stint with the federal government, Denning
returned to the Detroit
director

Public

Schools;

o f School-Community

assistant

superintendent,

this time as an executive

Relations.

befo re

Later,

retiring

from

in

1984,

the

she served as

school

system

in

1985.
Denning continued to provide service to the district by forming
DMP,

an

firm in

interracial
1989.

Michigan

educational

leadership

and

training

consulting

Moreover, her civic activities included a position on the

Supreme Court’s Gender

chair o f the Black

United

Bias Task

Fund, and

Force, serving as vice­

holding a board

membership

with Homes for Black Children.
A n a ly sis
centered

Based

on

th e

Seven

P r in cip les

of

an

African-

E ducation

Manetho's biographical account of Denning's life o f public service,
supplies

readers

with

a chronicle

that

exemplifies

the

importance

of

a strong social mission. Not content to write herself off because she
was not a member o f the landed gentry,

Denning

equipped

with

Denning's
laid out

something

story

knew that

more

important:

a purpose

is really about

executing

the

and

leadership

where

it was

life.

"master plan"

for her as a child. That plan consisted of:

instruction

in

needed

she was
Thus,
that

was

1) providing

most:

in an

urban

setting; 2) contributing to a freer and more just society by heading a
federal
3)

continued

through
that

gover nm en t

arenas,

service

consulting

targeted

agen cy

the

pressing

to

with

the

civil

greater

rights

education

ed ucators;

homeless
for

with

and

4)

other

gen de r

of

enforc em en t

African-A merican

co m m unity
vulnerable

and

capabilities;

racial

service

youth
activities

populations;
equality.

5)

in all

15 1

Denning’s story is not only a personal statement of selfdetermination.
of

his

but

subject

directly

also

matter.

impact

the

a

model.

Manetho

Through
poses

the

selection

involvement

African-A m erican

co m m u n ity

in
as

and

treatment

matters

that

desirable

and

attainable.
c.

"Charleszetta Lina Campbell Waddles" (in Darlene Clark Hine et al,

Editors, Black Women
P u b li s h in g ,

in

America:

An

Encyclopedia. Carlson

1993)

Thesis: Motivated by her own childhood growing up in poverty.
W ad dles

and

members

of a

"prayer

group"

found

the

Perpetual

Mission for Saving Souls o f All Nations in Detroit. This mission
provides food, shelter, clothing for all races and creeds.

By the

1970's,

countries.

it had grown

to include branches in

10 African

Summary: Born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1912, Charleszetta
Waddles grew up in a family where only three of the seven children
lived to adulthood.
school in

Because o f her mother’s "frail

health,"

she left

the eighth grade to support the family. She was a maid,

a

sorter in a rag factory, a restaurant cook, a day worker, and a
dishwasher,

among

other

things,

according

to

Manetho.

Like her mother, Waddles needed government assistance to help
raise her

children.

have

opportunity

the

moved to Detroit,
bring

her

fame.

1957,

Waddles,

Although
to

where
After

along

she read to educate herself,

continue

her

her venerated

beco min g
with

her

an

education. Later,
life o f public

ordained

pr ayer

band,

she did not
Waddles

service

minister
organized

in

would

September

the

Perpetual

Missing for Saving Souls o f All Nations Inc. Despite the fact that the

15 2
mission is available to all,
percent

of

she estimated that in

1980 Blacks were 75

those receiving help.

The mission is best known for providing immediate relief to
the needy with a minimum o f red tape and qualification
barriers. Those in need o f food, clothing, furniture, and small
amounts o f money can usually get help quickly, (p. 1201)
Without relying on government assistance, the mission has
survived

through donations o f

various

times

it has

medical

services,

and

for

money, and

included job

application

form al

materials.

placement for

transportation.

guided by a p r a c t i c a l
a concern

time,

"Mother

the

theology,"

unemployed,

Waddles 's

o f Christian

work

principles

Manetho notes.

At

is

rather

than

"In her lifetime,

she has aided thousands and set an example for all."
A n a ly sis
centered

Ba sed

on

the

Seven

Pr in cip le s

of

an

African-

E ducation

Through the depiction o f Waddles, Manetho has probably
presented
be

the

acting

most

with

co mpelling

the

interests

characterization

of

the

o f what

African-American

heart.

Despite the fact that Waddles does not

identify

agent

for

indeed

Af rica n- Amer ican s

c om m unity,

since

require

necessities

the

a

solely,

they

d i s p r o p o r tio n a te
that

her

are

num ber

mission

of

it

means to

community

at

herself as an
her

covenant

A f rican-A m ericans

provides.

Moreover, Waddles’s lifestory shatters virtually every excuse that
one can

give for not being responsive

disenfranchised.
privilege,

Waddles

did

nor any o f the other

associated with greatness.

not

to the needs o f the

grow

social

up

with

power, prestige, or

advantages

that are normally

But she was blessed with the desire to d o

15 3
God's

will,

and,

go od

enough.

apparently,

as Manetho

shows,

that

is sometimes

Her action response to the question of self-determination is a
lifting-as -w e- cl im b
practice.

Thus,

philosophy
her

which

exa m ple

encourages

their human as well as material
collective;

the

"prayer band"

African-A merican

com m unity,

r ef er en ce s

a

religion

of

African- Americans

life

to

use

resources for the good of the

must
as

be

well

stretched
as

to include

others

the entire

interested

in

their

plight.
Finally, from a moral standpoint, Waddles's service to humanity is
the greatest personal

statement that one can

make:

"I gave

food to

the hungry, clothes to the naked, water to the thirsty and a boat to
those

without

Sum m ary:
Michigan

one."
In Manetho's

between

first essay,

1800-1983,

the

the

autho r

Black population

stated

that

the

in

co ntinued

study o f Blacks in Michigan could inform future action. In the
biographies
two
made

of

women

Bernadine

who grew

a significant

Amer ican

Denning

up

In

Mother

in challenging

contribution

co m mun ity.

and

each

to

the

Waddles,

economic

betterment

instance,

he

discussed

circumstances,

of

who

the African-

A f rican - A m er ican s

were

shown as capable of working to improve the conditions o f the people.
Manetho’s framework for reconstruction was an assessment o f
individuals
and

ensure

community.

who

overcam e

social

and

In other

various

obstacles

political justice
words,

retelling o f their stories.

what

was

By realizing

for

to
the

advanced

educate,

feed,

clothe,

African-American
was

an

accurate

this goal, Manetho provided

15 4
wisdom and
leader s'

inspiration

to those who might one day follow in these

footsteps.
Student

S u r v ey s

There were 35 respondents (total 40, 35=88%) in Manetho's
Intro du cto ry
Americans
Question
A frica

Afri ca n-A m er ic an
(71%),

and

1, " P l e a s e
was

linked

10

19, or 54 percent, cited
brought

to

were

discuss
to

History

course,

25

were

Europea n-A mer ican s

ho w

the

history

A frican-A m ericans

African-

(29%).

For

and

culture

during

this

course,"

"survivals” in the culture that Africans

America.

The ability o f African-Americans to persevere through
times” was mentioned most often as an answer for 2a.,
truths

of

have

yo u

learned

about

This quality of African-Americans appeared on

per cent,

of

the

"W hat

A frican-A m ericans

class?"

"tough

in

this

8, or 29

questionnaires.

We have survived through a lot o f tough situations and still
keep going and achieving despite the odds.
A f rican - A m er ican s even in slavery and oppre ss ion contr ib uted
greatly to the betterment of the U.S. through art, education,
sciences, leadership ect. (s i c ). Without these contributions
Am erica would have progressed much slower.
Myths regarding Abraham Lincoln and Christopher Columbus,
were listed as examples o f how

high

schools

miseducated

12, or 34 percent, of the responses to 2b.: " H o w
helpful

in

clearing

A frican-A m erican
ex p erien ce)?"

up

stereotypes

people

(or

the

that

you

was
may

the

students on
course

have

A frican-A m erican

had

of

]55

I never heard of how Lincoln only s u g g e s t e d that slaves be
freed versus the fact I was taught that Lincoln was totally
against it | slavery).
I've learned "truths" about Afri can-A m ericans'
accomplishments in the world. I know that Africans were here
first, not Christopher Columbus. I've learned o f African rulers
and their voyages. |Mali and Songhay empires and their
voyag es in the thirteenth century].
One misconception that I had was about schooling because in
all other history classes I never heard that there were reading
slaves and slaves in school.
"Education" was the answer provided most frequently (10=29%)
for 3a., " D i s c u s s
com m unity

the

that

noted on five, or

needs

of

werem en tio n ed

the
in

A frican-A m erican
this

course."

Unity was

11 percent, o f the surveys.

Education -Professor mentioned the people in the classroom
are lucky to be here and said we should think o f all the people
we know that cannot/do not go to school and where they are
now.
Prof. Manetho made it clear
success in our culture have
creates opportunity.
One response stood

that the ones who have been a
been educated and education

out from the rest.

The needs are the common needs seen in
need 40 acres and a mule.

everyday life, we

"Community service" appeared most often, 7 times, or 20 percent,
when

students

respond

to

were
them ?"

asked,

"How

were

you

encouraged

to

( 3 b .) :

My interpretation o f how to respond to these needs is to stay
actively involved in the Africa n- Am er ican com m unity such as

15 6
helping the elderly, tutoring or
more about their history, etc.

helping

younger

children

learn

When you learn about how far we have come, but realized that
we still have a long way to go, it makes you want to do more in
your c o m m u n i t y .
Three students said "voting" is how they would respond.
Prof. Manetho strongly encouraged us to take advantage o f our
voting rights--which I never have in the past, but definitely
intend to now.
Summary:
rethink

their

Lincoln,
critical

In the

surveys,

perceptions

of

in light o f new
evaluation

of

accuracy on
succeeded

Chr istopher

information

American

intent o f the instructor,
the basic

students

who

Co lum bus

and

leaders

was

a

particularly

said that he appreciated

students

Abraham

that the course presented.

facts as possible."

in encouraging

recognized that they had to

Evidently,

The

explicit

"as

much

Manetho

to develop a taste for accuracy

as

well.
Furthermore, given the professor's focus on valid data, it would
logically
in

the

follow

African-American

appeared
to

that students

plausible

improving

case,

as

they

learned

the

professor

dynam ics

in

de p artm ental

co mmunity,

that

as

education would

these
be

with

discussed
others.

"tutoring"
Thus,

achieved

his

of

Four:

C as e

Manetho's
context,

the student

academic

perceived

and

did.
as

This

people

a

response

too was

and

the

sharing

surveys indicated

social

to

milieu,
em b race

what

that

missions.

including the
an

need

It also

Despite the fact that few o f the

educational
a p p ear ed

young

as a critical

students

the conditions o f African-Americans.

students

Sum m ary

would view education

A f rican-centered

15 7

orientation,

this was

how

he taught.

In this case,

Afrocentric

approach

was

dedicated,

first

pursuit

an

of

experience.
he

accurate

Such

proposed

ex am ining

a focus

Marcus

forces

contributive

to

internal

its

for

each

covered
lecture.

o f historical

was

Garvey

In

of

in

a model
external
research,

"inform

students

Students'

responses

was operative.

to

Manetho's

the

teaching,

self-determination,

Garvey's

models

and product o f their involvement in the class.

high-level

that

where
while
as

possibility

consider

validated

Education

movement

o f human

ca refully

also

to

African-American

of

to

foremost,

future action." The

challenged

accuracy

the

evident

as

and

demise.

were posed which could
content

assessment

and

the professor's

the
a

of
agenda

paradigm

was seen as a process

CHAPTER IV

SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

This
ac adem ic
History

was

and

social

professors

Principles
1993;,

study

missions

a

were also

Seven:
both

of

construct

describing

Education

to

assess

with

explaining

African -center ed

the

in this project.

discussed

and

Toward this end,

African-centered

practices of the faculty
works

with

in Michigan.

o f an

provided

concerned

the

African -A merican

The

Seven

(Detroit

Public

statements

and

Schools,
teaching

Examples of their scholarly

the principles

R e c o n str u c tio n /S e lf -D e te rm in a tio n

in

was

a

mind.

Principle

pr ominen t

feature

of

parts o f the analysis.
Interviews with the professors and their department or program

chairs,

admissions

officials,

and

data

from

the

Michigan

Department

o f Education's Office o f Equity were used to describe the contexts of
Afrocentric
emphasis

instruction

was placed on

disabling/enabling
university

(McLaughlin,

catalogs

to

isolating

this

and

factors

teaching

student

Talbert,

and

and

which

pedagogy.
local

Bascia,

1990).

The

would be

Archival

newspapers,

data

such

were

also

as

i n cl u d e d .
An additional dimension o f the study is "the model multicultural
curriculum."
pr actices,
responses

It is an outcome

instructors'
are

all

and

necessary

o f this research

adm inist rato rs '
for

its

15 8

because

in terviews,

formulation.

teaching
and

student

15 9

The summary and discussion of the critical dimensions o f these
cases center on:
potential
the

for

1) factors in the educational
enh ancin g

congru en ce

or

between

the

inhibiting African-centered

instruction;

seven

professors'

principles

statements

and

practices,

which

professors,

and

students'

perspectives

missions o f the Afrocentric
perspectives

and

program s'

implications

"reaches

out

practices,

and

includes

courses;
as well

for

touches"

contexts, and their

a
all

and

their

of

the

the

scholarly
academic

works;
and

2)

3)

social

and, 4) the professors'
as

the

students’ views on

the

"model" multicultural cur riculum,
forms

of

human

which

understanding.

Finally, the study's implications for further research on Africanc en ter ed

instruction

is

Summary
Ed ucat io nal

pres en ted.
and

Discussion o f the

Four Cases

C ontext

In toto, the four contexts o f this study produced little in the way
o f overt effects which could be clearly connected to a particular
Afrocentric
statements

that

as opposed
Th e

approach.

to

background

a

be

example,

result

to another,

professors'

appeared

as

For

of

and

influenced

by

and experiences.

related explanations for what
tell you what to teach."

one

a certain

pedagogy

the

writer

could

dep ar tm en tal

other

of

factors,

There did

not

was taught.

As

the

was observed.

subject

including
seem

few

missio n/philoso phy

type o f instruction

treatment

make

matter
educational

to be context-

Toure

said, "They

don't

Despite this, it became obvious that certain

1 60

e n v i r o n m e n ts

supported

under stan ding

focuses

A Community
appeared

to

be

Afroce ntric
the

most

African-Americans,

like

people

they

with

summary

Context

the

whom

Renaissance’s campus

teaching
and

with

anyone

else,

than

discussion

an

supportive

more

of

others.
context.

A frica n-Amer ican

of

an

have

share a cultural

presence

African-center ed

a need

feel

approach.

to be around

identity.

there was a different

On and near
than

at Halcyon.

me, that meant that I could be a part as opposed to apart;
versus

isolation

around

Renaissance and being

Halcyon.

was

Perhaps

Again,

the

the

public

American

populations

Americans

students

universities
are

specifically

departments,

guarantee

subjected
felt

and cultural

addition,

(i.e.,

between

the

"fitting

to curious

into"

integration

the

stares,

For

as

area
I was at

same.

Renaissance's urban context gave African-American

students a social

co m p o n e n ts

difference

That

the

programs,

be

in

it

with

an

com m unities
most

devoted

Afrocentricity;
will

backdrop

to

likely
the

means

with

to

center.

significant

have

O f course,
that

courses

In

African-

structural

A f ric a n - A m e r ic a n

and centers).
only

African

ex pe rie nce,

this does not
on

African-

taught.

There are two prominent reasons why public universities in
urban

areas have a greater p o t e n t i a l

instruction:

for the schools'

institutions
have

in

courses

Afrocentric

em br ac e

Afrocentric

1) The mission of public institutions is to educate all; and,

2) Urban communities
market

to

may demand it, especially
clientele

these S c h o o l
on

(Hare,

S ectors/Policy

African-Americans,

instructors

be com es

1972;

a

then,
function

the
of

if they are a major

Karenga,

1993).

S y s t e m s will
presence

or

Because
usually

absence

organizational

of

politics.

16 1
The

market, or the availability of such professors,

role.

It was less likely that

Dakota,

with

2.3

pop ulat ions,
American
local

percent,

experience.

newspapers,

eno ug h

time

with

not

Af rican-American

demand

instruction

based on articles

the campus

were

1 percent,

would

In fact,

dealing

c o m m u n it ie s

the community contexts at Halcyon and

and

re sp ec tive ly,

may also play a

and

local

co m m unitie s

and

the

African

in the schools' and

A f rica n- Am er ican s,

multicultural

on

had a

period.

neither

hard

The

were

the

student

bodies.
The variegated E d u c a t i o n a l
P rofessional
ideally

Communities,

suited

for

the
that

ad m inistr ator s

M ichigan

from

produced

healthy

consistent co m m en t

V alues

System s:
none

developm en t

I have

heard

and

that

of

in

appeared

to be

Afrocentricity.

talking

across

Societal

the

A

to professors

country

was

and

that

virtually anything is possible if it has the support o f a school's
president.

At

Renaissance,

both

To ur e

and

Robeson

have

themselves in one type o f conflict or another with
president's office.
supportive
b e lie f

that

of

would

have

told

mu lticulturalism,

President

antagonistically.
collegiality

Decenter

Benz

The

resulted

prevented

his

them

and

viewed

professors
from

me

that

President

Toure
their

said that

and

relying

Benz

Robeson

on

each

was

not

ex pr essed

the

association

dislike

desire to keep them
from

the school's

professional
Benz's

found

o f their

divided,
other

for

which
support.

Robeson and Toure's disputes with organizational leaders have
had differential effects. As a full professor,
be as concerned

with

negative atm osph er e

Robeson did not have to

sanctions and reprimands.

could

have a deleterious

For Toure,

impact

on

his

the
career;

it

1 62

might contribute to his
Toure's
him.

comments

derailment

indicated

that

from
he

the tenure

monitored

track.

Benz's

Robeson's experience at Renaissance was helpful

O f course,

perceptions
to Toure

of

in this

regard.
Like Robeson, longevity insulated Manetho from the wiles o f a
de partm ent

chair

who

might

have

Afrocentric" a History course.
probably
Again,

been

threatened

by

The fact that he hardly

"too
spoke o f Milton

meant that he did not have to be too concerned

this was in contrast

depended,

in part,

on

to Toure,

knowing

with him.

whose survival at Renaissance

what

Decenter was doing.

Manetho has been at Dakota for more than a quarter o f a century.
The

swinging-door

faculty

and

diversity,

nature

of

the

tenure

of

administrators

at

the

school

who were

raised

q u e s ti o n s

multiculturalism,
Amer ican

however.

faculty

M an etho

was

and

ab out

the

isolated

professional and otherwise.

university's

at

from

the

Black

supportive o f
c o m m it m e n t

school

collegiality

meant
and

During my visits to Dakota,

not see another Black in the History department,
an o th e r

African-Amer ican

to

The lack o f a critical core o f African-

adm in is trat ors

relatively

key

professor

an y w h e r e

on

that

support,
not only did I

I did not see

campus.

Moses's situation at Halcyon was similar to Toure's in that he had
taught

there

for five years.

or ganizational
In

any

status,

event,
gives

discipline,

leaders
just
stability

tenure does

The

pub licl y

as

major difference
es pouse d

institutional

and
no

for

that

for his

Halcyon's
instruction.

acknowledgement, such as

legitimacy
less

support

was

to

the

Afrocentric

African-centered
professors.

program

16 3
A significant African-American
tracks

for

teaching

African-A merican

made for positive S c h o o l
teaching

in

cor related

this

with

Although

it

students'

publication

was

significant.

was only
power

not

other

in

their

university

funding,

indep en de nt

event

signified

a

the group

Afrocentricity.

at

Renais sance

o f self-determination
At

teaching

schools

r e p re s e n te d

had

well

this

numbers.

A fric a n - A m e r ic a n

enr ollment at Halcyon
these

that

Renaissance,

1,500 African-American

students at the school enjoyed enough o f a presence to justify
for

was

African-American

had power.

While only 6 percent, the more than

tracks

that

A f ro cen tr ic

presence

to

new spap er
level

factors

for

student

co nduci ve

multiple

two

C ultures

variables

o f an

possible because

was

and

were

African-A merican

re ce ive

This

presence and

History,

Structures

study. An

several

did

student

and

smaller
un der

History.

The

two

Afric an-A m erican

Dakota was also 6 percent,

but because

overall

6 percent

1,000

student

populations,

A f r i c a n - A m e r ic a n

students.

The loss o f faculty and administrators at Dakota who were
advocates
negative

for Black

students, as well

features of that

high-profile racial
surrounding

university.

incidents.

community,

the

as

cam pus racial

Halcyon

faculty

stood out to the extent that people kept
friend

was."

these

schools

quantity
quality

of
of

Again,

the

relatively

had implications
Africa n- Am er ican

staff and

smaller

were

instruction.

had

as in the

so sparse,

wondering

who

that

1

"Moses's

nu m ber o f students at

for curricula.
students

were

also had its share of

Moreover, at Halcyon,
Black

tensions,

As
the

Renaissance proved,
capacity

to

demand

a
a

164

The two conditions that seemed to promote African-centered
teaching at the S u b j e c t

Area/Department

ad m i n ist r a t iv e

of

k n o w le d g e

pr o g ra m m a ti c
member ship

in

advantage.
it

inclusion
an

The

legitimacy.

of

ma n y

A fri c a n - c e n te r e d

Though

major

not

a

confe rre d

stability--two

by

status

on

the

generally

and

Studies.

Robeson's

Program

was

this

"degree-granting

features

African-centered

History

granted

the most, were

c o n te n t,

African-A m erican

A frica n-Amer ican

coordinate

institutionalization
level

of

level

academic

an
unit

gave

department,"

program, and

wanting

in

indicated

the contexts

a
of

i n s tr u c to rs .

Although Abernathy apparently did not "have the time" to review
the

Seven

Robeson
no
the

Principles,
needed.

support
fact

or

the

institutionalized,
space.

Again,

where

that

Because

in

program
tenure

there

structure

may

gave

was

neutralizes a
be

History

really

all

context where

indifferent

African-American

not only

support.

that
there

History

is

In addition,

Program was

the unit ownership o f content,

African-American

was free to leave
sometimes

the

had

its own

floor,

but of
Robeson

his door open, and converse with students outside,

a stentorian

manner.

With

space,

comes

freedom.

In the absence o f systemic incorporation, a chair who is
knowledgeable o f the content
multicultural
attended

his

perspective

is helpful.

was an asset

presentation on

the Negro

At

Halcyon, Curie's

for Moses.

Th e

fact that

she

Baseball

League

might

have

meant that she wanted to make her support
evade

the question

Halcyon,
Am erican

however:
History?

posed
Why
Moses

by

the political

known.

science professor at

was there no academic
sidestepped

the

This did not

unit for African-

question

wh enever

1

16 5
asked him about it. From his delicate handling of my inquiry,
inferred that this was an issue that

might

I

"rock the boat."

At Dakota, neither the lack of programmatic inclusion, nor
depar tm en tal

support,

centered content.

stopped

Milton's

M ane tho

from

delive rin g

fear o f "too Afrocentric of an African-

American History course,"

was somewhat of an enigma.

to wonder how such a configuration

would look.

academic

History

unit

for

African-

African-American

at

One was left

There was no
Dakota,

and

there

were no plans for one. There is only one university in the United
States that offers a Ph.D.

in African-American

is not yet three decades old.
North

American

Harvard

postsec onda ry

before

the

m id-17th

to wrap itself around,
taught

in

colleges

In contrast,

over, and

and

Eurocentricity has been

institutions
century.

History. The field itself

A

through

since

the

founding

Eurocentric

strand

in

of
continues

nearly every course that

is

universities.

With these known facts, how does one arrive at "too Afrocentric
an

African -A merican

extremism
o f the

the

is a curricular

Afrocentric

conducive

History

to

university,

idea.

fiction

Manetho's

place

profes sor

at

In

reality,

that ju stifies

Obviously,

multiculturalism.

African-American

course?"

Afrocentric

the continued

Milton's orientation

However,
was

no

Dakota,

after

more

doubt

secure.

reflected

on

exclusion

was not

than

25

One

how

years

at

former

hostile

the

climate was when he was there. He shook his head and said that he
did not know how Manetho has been able to survive.
Summary:
dynam ics
s upport

Although

influenced

what

A f ri c a n - c e n te r e d

there
was

was

little

taught,

ins truction.

evidence

certain
An

that

factors

contextual
appeared

African-American

to

pr esen ce

166
within

and

Suppo rt

without

for

the

par tic u la rly
he lpful.
and

the

university

instructo r

from

ot her

factors.

Universities

areas

had

The

Seven

of

as

Principles

was

university

knowledgeable

public

one

of

and

feature.

co mmunity,

profe sso rs,

also

seemed

A f ric a n - c e n te r e d

Africa n-A m er ica n

that were

advantages

the

A fri can-A m erican

A d m in is tr a to rs

institution alizatio n

from

comm un ity

History,

those

co nten t,

were

that were

other
in

urban

well.

of

an

African-centered

Education

The practices o f the four professors in this study appeared to
conf orm

to the principles.

implementation
im mutable

of

But

the

the principles

concepts

and more

divergence

helped
as

me

human

in

the

instructors'

see them

less as

judg m en ts. At the

beginning

o f the study, the principles had a life o f their own. During teaching
episodes,

I saw

that

the

principles

had

whatever

life

the

instructors

gave them. The tenets were devised in a social context, and their
practice was a social construction as well.
As the study progressed, it became more obvious that honoring
the s p i r i t

o f the

instructors,

contexts,

consensus

on

how

principles

was

and students,
they

were

depth
by

all

In addition,
outside

o f the

mattered.

it was

applied.

Africans as agents in their history
efforts.

what

impossible to

However,

was a

Across differing

the

presentation

context,

of

feature o f all the instructors'

to teach as if Af rican-Americans
American

gain

had no historical

was also considered

incorrect

instructors.
This study was teacher centered.

African-centered

paradigm

was

not

However, implementation o f the

independent

of

the

level

that

the

167

courses

were

committed
content.

taught.

the

The

four professors

be responsible

of

and

to covering

a

to this

Robeson

focused

on

was

Perhaps with

cour ses

massive

research

amount

in formation

even

covered

of

on

and

cover ing

students

were

fewer

for students to
was fostered.

student assessment,

i.e.,

their

was

content dissemination

when

of

whose

less material

Manetho's classes,

to a pedagogy

participation,

Introductory-level

for, a higher level o f class participation

Toure,

high-volum e
linked

course

in more depth.

In Moses,

the

notable exception

multidisc iplinary
topics but

Overall,

invited

examinations,
and less
to

do

the

student

so.

There was a high degree o f integrity between what the professors
stated

with

comm unity

regards
and

to

what

the

reconstruction

they

taught. This

of

was

the

African-American

something o f a

surprise,

since the professors had not heard o f the principles prior to my
giving

them a copy.

However,

taught;

for the most part,

they were familiar with

how they

what they said, they did.

From interviews, teaching episodes, and the review o f their
scholarly

works,

1) strong,
made

3)

were

even

to

make

three

motifs emerged;

the process

and,

profe sso rs

able

clearly etched

between

message);

I was

and

within

diverse,

(i.e.,

Afrocentric

per so na lly

observations:

2) connections could

the product,
the

general

and

medium

paradigm,

be

and
the

pr ofessionally.

Although all the professors in the study said at some point during
their

courses

political

and

that,

Blacks

economic

different area.
imply

that

needed land,

em pow er men t,

educational opportunities,

each

placed s t r e s s on a

When one focused on equity, for example,

cultural

nationalism

would

not

and

be

beneficial

this did not
for African-

1 68

Americans.
that

they

Instead,
were

c om m unity
discussion

Robeson

their

as

was

his

the

by

was

gravity.

Delany

artists

as

style

to

of

the

Th at

merely

meant

African -A merican

und erstanding

directs

my

also

o f the cultural heritage of

on

to reconstruction.
cultural

temporal

and

Instead,

create

of

Morrison,

references
films

argued

and

were

for

cultural

Aretha Franklin,
who

during classes.

this

that

instructor

Af rica n-Amer ican s

to carry

art

theme

Cultural

sexploitation

works o f social

in their work,

helped

spatial

the

This

nationalism.

Gangbanger and

McMillan, Toni

exam ples

"struggle of the people"
dramatic

as

category.

He used Terri

Martin

concerns

essential

people.

this

African- American

professors

"survival"

em ph as is

defined

from

the

angles.

be ing

struggle o f Black

eliminated

of

content.

spoke o f the

supported

foci

the

different

A fri ca n-Am er ic an s

nationalism

different

approaching

from
of

the

and

referenced
The

the

professor's

message.

Instead o f lecturing, Robeson's interactive mode was more like a
conversation in which he was willing to take "center stage"

in order

to get his point across. In fact, one young lady said that she liked his
morning class because it "inspired
point he made during one

her." This was consistent with a

session.

Robeson

"fall to teach," that is, enter the profession
anything else. Others, like himself,
words,

teaching

was like a

said that some people
because they can’t do

were "called to teach." In other

mission.

The cultural theme found its way into Robeson's research as well.
The

Underground Railroad,

Southwest

Michigan,

models

Africa n- Amer ican

of

were

the Black Church, and
ind ependent

Black

independence.

Idlewild, a resort in

in stitutions

Thus,

for

that

Robeson,

were
the

169

stress

was

on

to reference
and

painters, writers,

singers,

A f ric a n - A m e r ic a n

determination

in

instructor

another

saw
At

he

African-Amer ican

various

definitions.

he discussed

occasions,

had helped

light.

addressed

self-defining,

n um erou s

times

When

men tioned

successful

the

semester,

spoke o f

the

need

it in a family/community context.

up. They were part of his extended
have been

self-

during

Toure

how

older

him to keep his "head on straight"

institutions

leaders,

communi t y.

Robeson's colleague, T o u r e ,

to be

religious

"the struggle of the people" in works that would renew

re v iv e the

each

actors, and

in

A frica n- Amer ican
when he

On
men

was growing

family. The media and other
"defining out"

some o f these men

as mentors because of their lack of social status, he said. This is
u n f o rt u n a t e

bec au se

many

young

A f ri can-A m erican

someone to provide guidance; the community
it can

lead them safely into adulthood,

will

males

need

be at a loss unless

he noted.

Toure's presentation mode matched his message. His serious tone
co mmunicated
lightly.

to the

students

that

he did

not

take

these

issues

Several times, for instance, his eyes grew wider as he

explained

that

"economics

appeared

to

his approach, even if they did not always agree with him.

In

addition,

which

some

of

included criticism

his

is real."

prescr iptions

of the

federal

The

for

students

self-determination,

government,

could

have

respect

been

"over

their heads." The class generally looked at their instructor as if they
were

hanging

his carefully

o f f his
crafted

every

word.

statements and

Perhaps

they

slow pacing,

were
which

hypnotized
made

it

by
seem

as though he was taking them through the lecture, point by point, so
they

wouldn't

miss

anything.

1 70

The discussion on Malcolm X was typical o f Toure’s instruction: a
message with a social activist theme; a classic example of a leader
who was the people's choice; a model of human possibility who
represented

the

"potential

of

the

masses

of

African-Americans."

With

the class sitting as though frozen in time, it was almost as if they
were in awe of the subject
Black

Press,

university
research.

matter. Toure's social critiques o f the

the Reagan-Bush

extended
Another

and research was

the

administrations,

historian's

persis tent

m otif

his focus on

Afri ca n-A m er ica n

need to control
com par in g
in the

the

different

agen das

South.

presenting

He

also

represented

Moses's

evidence

into

his

teaching,

discussed the "courts" as being key
em phas iz ed

the definition o f self-determination.

postbellum

was

social justice

Toure's statements,

s elf -de term ination.

his courtroom-style of teaching.
he

of

for

major

change occurring in "the street."

Instead of "the street," M o s e s
to

concerns

and the

legal

by

analysis

This

Blacks

the

was done by
and

Whites

was compatible

He paced through

with

his arguments as if

before a jury.

Though the students did not always "buy" his case, they did
appear

to respect his legal

at tentiveness

and

alert

expertise,

responses.

as evidenced by

Perhaps

they

their

tho ugh t

the

damages

that he sought were "too high." After all, in addition to asserting that
Blacks
also

needed to control

discussed

land,

reparations.

Despite

have time to respond to this
Black colleges,

reparations

their education, and political power,
the

fact

that

item, if they were

would

probably

be

students did

he

not

not in support o f

"struck down"

as

well.

The theme o f equity continued in the professor's research, where
he

posed

self-definition

an d

independent

Black

institutions

such

as

17 1
the

Negro

Baseball

"Plessy" essay

League

might

as

have

models

made a greater

expressed Morris's plight from
been
was

presented

of

self-determination.

contribution if it had

his own perspective, that is,

Afrocentrically.

The

The

mitigating

factor

in

if it had
this

article

that it discussed the impact o f race restrictive covenants on

A frican-A m ericans.
M a n e th o 's

"appreciation of

translated into teaching history
inform
well.

future
The

Moreover,

clearly

sometimes
another

His

means

so that the

lessons of the

of

instruction

was to present the

he repeated

understood

the

accuracy as possible"

method

professor’s style

hyperbole.
class

action.

as much

what

him se lf on

he

thought

addressed accuracy

facts,

important.

information sounded

like

it

was

of

get

the

facts

helping

students

as

without

key points,

was

past could

so that
In

the

addition,

being announced,

yet

straight.

The Marcus Garvey lecture was an excellent demonstration of the
prof es so r's

par ad ig m

in

practice.

Manetho

base

for presenting Garvey as a model,

says

that

Blacks.

leader

Then,

mission.
might

the

the

he presented

Various

have

had

had

forces
on

the

most

including

integrated

facts relevant

were examined
project's

pro vid e d

to

the

evide ntiary

Blake's book which

nationalist

agenda

for

Garvey's Liberian

to probe

disintegration.

the
These

impact
were

that

they

analyzed

in light of things that Garvey should have done as well. The result
was:

1) an example o f an attempt to practice nationalism; 2) a lesson

on a Diasporan
and,

4)

African

leader;

3) assessment o f the mistakes

made;

the professor modelling the process and product o f critical

thinking skills for his class.

1 72

Bottom-up success stories pushed Manetho’s motif of accuracy
into

the realm o f research,

service

to

the

the gains that
adde d

as the historian

African -A merican

Sum m ary:

that

Thus,

could
the

need for

sociopolitically

em p o w er ed ,

collection

interpretation

and

presented

instructors.
was
the

In

presented.
positions

dive rsity

of

Academic

and

were

legally

Tho ug h

each

by

future

economic

analysis

to the 1980's,

of

also

action."
from

the

per sp ec ti ve s

astute,

o f data

identical
the

Social

"inform

models of

these

four

thrusts

Blacks to be socioculturally and

addition,

taken

An

19th century

r ecom m endations

pointed to the

models

community.

Blacks made from the

information

provided

com pe tent in

co ncerning

to

their

the concerns

medium

and

instructor
others,

and

noted

probably

responses

by

situation.

message

would

their

rep re sen ted

the

the

the

by

The

the

unified what
ag ree

reflected

with

the

Afroce ntric paradigm.

Missions

Although the academic and social missions o f the professors in
this study took the form o f four streams, the sum total of their
approaches was one river.

For instance,

least one l o c a l

and

vulnerable

initiative,

population

A f r i c a n - A m e r ic a n
missions,
Blacks
they

reminded

during

were.

(i.e.,

Moreover,

the

in

detention

students).

Booker T.

Reconstruction,

to

was committed

service provided

youths

e le m e n ta r y
me o f

the

each

down"

appeared

targeted

pr ofe sso rs'

social

admonition

their
as

a

facilities, urban

Washington's

"cast

instructors

The

to at

buckets

to

wherever

if they did

not

want to be like the people whom Manetho spoke to his class about,
who

were

always

talking

about

solving

the

world's

problems,

but

173
when

offered

poli te ly

an

op portunity

to teach

someone

to read,

would

decline.

The four historians expressed a concern for buttressing
legitimacy

of

A frica n- Amer ican

History

In each class included

in the survey,

Americans

in North

students.

have
Th e

the

themes

As

was

were

students'

of

the

through

social

the

influenced

formal

missions

by

w orkshops

"academic

but

giants"

were

strongly

and

researches.

standpoint.

seminars

This

and

to

pedagogy

occurred

e x t r a c u rr ic u la r

not

activities

where

the

instructors

met

while

students.

they

on

correlated

content

education.

through

whom

academ ic

"hard times" that African-

the professors'

their own

and

an

left a strong impression

methods

cases,

c o u r se w o r k ,

included

enco unter ed

in

the

America

professors'

mentioned

heavily

which

faced

from

the

Finally, each professor in the study spoke o f a desire to operate in
the scholar/activist mode o f the late W.E.B. Du Bois. Despite the fact
that

they

might

he represented
his image

have

disagreed

(for instance,

with

the

Robeson

was preserved. The

particulars

said

that

four instructors,

he

o f some
was

in one

things

"arrogant"),

way

or another,

conceived o f themselves as walking in his light.
Evidently, the impact o f R o b e s o n ' s
teacher,
on

and

college

his cultural

academic

an d

administrator,

orientation
social

mother and aunt (a K-12

respectively),

had

to

the

African -A merican

missions

that

Robeson

a

strong

impact

experience.

envisioned

The

required

the

"maintenance" o f the African story. He saw himself as a "griot
(African
promoting
advanced

storyteller)
"cultural
degrees.

with a Ph.D." These goals
continuity"
The

and

promotion

encourag ing

o f cultural

were manifested
students

nationalism

to

get

was

a

by

1 74

critical

theme

em pha sis

on

that

wound

"cultural

p ar tic ip a to r y

through

his

classroom

c o n ti n u it y ” translated

c lassr o om

environment

lectures.

into

that

the

the

The

highly-

i n str u c to r

en co u rag ed .

Robeson's students cited Why African Americans act as they do,
and

African-Amer ican

frequently

listed

myth

debunked

w er e

in fe ri o r.

involvem ent

"truths" that
most

often,

in

they

the

nation's

learned during

according

to the

wars,
the

as

the

course.

surveys,

most

The

was that

Blacks

With respect to social missions, the nexus o f unity/community
service and

education,

Afric an -A m er ican s.
Blacks

needed

to

was

A

typical

the

survival,

in

This included

audiences

that

target

for

were

Robeson's

not

was

a critical

History

pr ofes so r

concern

in this regard.

a

need

student
in

was

that

their community.

retentions" play in aiding

social

programs

of

concern

of

produced

for

Robeson's.
it was also

radio

and

the use o f public access stations to reach
highly

message

ap proached

greatest

in lecture and research,

on

literate.

his

dual

from a legal

Perhaps

"survival,"

men he lectured in a local correctional
M oses

from

role that "cultural

com m unity educ atio n

television.

the

o f businesses

Just as this thesis was maintained
evide nt

as

co mment

"take charge"

The teaching of
African-American

mentioned

however,

most

crucial

were

young

facility.

missions

as

an

perspective. Equity

T he professor's

the

thrust

African-American
was a consistent

was focused by his

dissertation on the Black Codes.

Like the other professors in the

study,

to establish

he

consistently

Afri ca n-A m er ic an

attem pted

experience

on

its

own

the

merit.

"legitimacy"

o f the

17 5

His course was designed to uncover the "illogic" of racism. To
serve

that

American

objective,

Moses

taught

students how laws

his

pr ed om inantly

were used to keep

Buropean-

Blacks inferior in the

United States. This meant tracing a history of legal

injustice in North

America,

the "New World"

to

from shortly after Africans first

today,

equity

when

such

political

as

Rep arations

en franchisement

affirm ativ e

were

landed in

pro po se d

and

action

are

as

remedy

a

under

measures

to

secure

incessant attack.

for

African-Americans.

The "truths" that Moses’s students learned about AfricanAmer ican s
be

(academic

resilient

to

mission)

survive

en slavem ent,

leaders and

inventors, ju st

Among

myths

did

the

nothing

contribute

to the

monolithic.
listed
and

by

that

to gain

The

building

students

religious

were

ties,

and

the

social

the
were

co nce rned

cur riculum,
planning

once
on

and

these

becoming

the

1)

social

were

Afric an -A mer ican s

3)

not

African-Americans
community

equality,

opportunities.

are

(3a.)

stronger

Few

family

students

(3b.). The most focused

A fri can-A m erican

students

to

were.

African-Americans did
and,

had

Africa n- Am er ican s

were:

political

mission

plu ggin g

2)

African-A merican

educational

displayed evidence o f a social
a n s w e rs

2)

of America;

of

Af rica n- Amer ican s

groups

exposed

freedom;

1)

and,

as other

Moses

their

needs

included:

became
workers

ex per ien ce

teachers.
made

Some

similar

into

who

comments.

Moses's concern for equality was manifest in periodic lectures and
volunteer

instruction

at an area elementary

also proficient

in

students'

scores on

math

mathematics,

assisted

standardized

the
tests,

school.

Moses,

school

in

so that

who

is

boosting

it could

compete

with a local rival. O f course, he managed to infuse some history into

1 76

his lessons.

Another o f Moses's missions was to lecture on various

topics regarding
discussing

race

Michigan

Black

the law

and

restrictive

African-Americans,

covenants

during

a

as

he did

meeting

of

while
the

History Network.

A speech that he gave in the wake of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s
funeral,

and

"sealed"
o f life
for

meeting

Niara

Sudarkasa,

Harold

Cruse,

T o u r e ' s interest in social action in improving the quality
for

African-Americans.

African-American

Toure

History

was

said

to

that

build

the academic

archives,

through research

and writing in the field. As a social

tried to

the system

"inform

African-Americans."
To ure's

class

endured,

and

Th e

needs

were

and others,

equal

Students

about

the

problems that

said

that

Afri can-A m eric ans

how strong

of

about

they

Af rican- American

op p o r tu n ities ,

"truth"

was

the

been

including

mission,

he

they

learned

in

hardships

that

they

in order

comm un ity

reserves

it causes for

the

must have

and

challenge

listed

to survive.

most

often

e m ploym en t.

Toure said that he was inclined to participate in organizations that
have an "ac tiv ist

c h a r g e . " The best example o f this was his attending

the Million Man March. Upon returning, he joined the
March Coalition,

a local chapter formed

a subcommittee
em p o w e r m e n t

whose aim
in

M a n e th o 's
conf irmed
point

his

contact

This

to be taught as equal
as

essential

to

inform

Man

after the event. He served on

devise

strategies

for educational

c o m m u n ity .
with

his academic

o f view."

is to

Million

legendary

mission

meant

that

of

historian

teaching

John

history

African-American

Ho pe

from
history

to any, and that correct information
future

action.

Vincent

Harding

Franklin

"an accurate
would

have

was posed

reminded

1 77
Manetho

that

fortu na te

an

important role was

enough

"for knowledge

to

sharing

learn with the

must

not

be

for

what

he had been

Africa n-A m er ica n

students

and university

African-Americans' ability to persevere through
was

the

from

most

common

the class.

Abraham

The

Lincoln

C hr ist ophe r
education

"myth"

was

was

the

Unity

youths,

in

pressing

was

another.

the

students

said

freeing

most

the

America.
need

cited

they

learned

frequently

slaves,

T he

facing

Com m unit y

types alone."

"tough times"

that

that was refuted most

"discovered"

most

was

that

interested

C olumbus

co m m un ity.
tutoring

"truth"

co mmunity,

and

that

students

the

was that

said

that

African-A merican

service,

including

response to these

needs.

Finally, Manetho’s social mission reflected his method in teaching
and research as well. First,
History

Network,

the potential to
Michigan.

as a member o f the Michigan

a critical activity
access a c c u r a t e

was

structuring

to em power

society.

laypersons

The primary

with

events

that

had

data on the Black experience

Second, he is a co-founder and

Michigan genealogical

Black

the tools

in

presenter at meetings o f

a

objective o f this society

necessary

to

trace

their

family

heritage.
Sum m ary:
influenced
var ious

by

stages

The
their
of

they were exposed
impact
teacher,

on

models

individual
their

heritage." On

hum an

to the

their teaching

his mother,

presented

by

the instructors

educations.

T h e professors

and

professional

influences that they
philosophies.

strongly

Robeson

were at
when

said had the most
claimed

modelled his focus on

that

his

the "survival

the other hand, Moses’s dissertation on the

Codes" was a key.

were

develop men t

is

"Black

first
of

17 8
In addition, regardless of context,
students

pay

attention

to the

W het her

A fri can-A m ericans were

African-American history made

"struggle"

of

African-Amer ican people.

rep rese nted

as

fighting

in the

country's wars in the hopes o f gaining full citizenship, or trying to
persevere

despite

the

"fight" of

the people

Moreover,

the

the
the

students'

hardships

was uppermost

instructional
stated

of

in

the

thrusts

of

and

stated

concer ns

African-American

oppression

and

enslavement,

students'

the

four

future

the

minds.

professors
actions

influenced

with

regard

community.

For instance, in Manetho's case, teaching African-American
history from an
it should

"accurate” point o f view was a consistent theme.

come as no surprise that students in

So,

his class spoke o f

teaching and tutoring as responses to the needs o f the AfricanAmerican
students

community. Tutoring
sought

tutored

would

to
be

share

and

what

e quipped

teaching were

they

with

learned

ac cu rate

means

with

that

others.

information

Those

that

would

assist them in the classroom and possibly outside o f it. As the
pr ofessor

mentioned

necessary

to

in

his research,

"inform future

ac cur ate

information

is

action."

Moreover, the racial composition o f the classes in the study
apparently
words,
the

the

more

American

affected
larger

how
the

social

con ce ntratio n

of

were

addressed.

Afri ca n-A m er ica n

In

other

students,

aggressive their response was to the needs of the Africanco mmunity. Spatial

concerns o f African-Americans
equation.

missions

and

conceptual

appeared

to play

proximity to

the

a role in this

to

1 79
In Moses's classes, for instance, his predominantly rural
E u r o pean-A m eric an
of a

social

some

suggested

mission

overwhelming
contrasted
students,

students
for the

teaching

who

could

not

about

to leave

R o b e s o n 's

to

be

baffled

African-American

others

response was

with

appeared

the

the

community.

ques tion

Although

African A m er ican s, the

the item blank.

predominantly

escape

by

This can

be

African-American

commun ity's

welfare

by

simply

thinking that it was not "their issue.” Robeson’s classes not only
discussed teaching,
social

action

but

groups,

also

patronizing

as potential

Black

businesses

and join ing

activities.

The four professors conceived o f their own social missions as
rooted

in

local

genealogical

involvement.

societies

and

area

bring the fruits o f academia
im pr es sion

that

the

For

example,

educational

to "the

instructors

par ticipation
coalitions,

in

were

ways

people." Beyond that, it was

were

interested

in

co m m unit y

to
my

service

for two other reasons. First it allowed them to display their wares,
while
some

simultaneously

giving

visibility

o f the actions were proactive.

detention

facility

would probably

to

"their

concerns."

Perhaps,

Robeson’s lectures in the

lead

to a

more

positive reaction

from these young men if he were to face them on the street. Second,
their

community

grateful

they

enou gh

to

service was a way

were,

acquire.

for

the

for the professors to exhibit

talents and

skills that

they were

how

fortunate

1 80

The

"Model"

Multicultural

Curr iculum

"How many o f you arc going to be teachers?” M oses asked the
class, during the concluding session o f the sem ester. Seven hands
were raised. ”A dded to th e o th er classes, there are nineteen
classroom s that w ill get th is incorporated, a n d m aybe o ver TIM E
THIS WILL C H AN G E.”
When
classes

discussed

mission,

they

cu rriculum.
the

Rights

Moses's

teaching

were

Cu rie

"model"

Civil

the predominantly

also
said

conceptualizing

multicultural

per sp ec ti ve

a

"model"

Afric an -A me rica n

curriculum
wom en

is

students in Moses's

about Af ric an -A mer ican s

that

Movement,

European-American

that

because,

would

"another way o f looking at things," and,

a

social

multicultural

History
"if there

not have

Afri ca n-A m er ic an

as

been
history

contribu tes

to

had n’t been

a

mobilized."
suggests

if students can envision

that,

they might conceive o f "four or five" others.
For question four on their surveys, students were asked to,
"Please

provide

experience
ethnic

was

groups

Americans

in

exam ples

of

connected

to t h a t

this

(11 = 12.5%)

A f r i c a n - A m e r ic a n

how

the
of

c l a s s . ” Women

were

the

e x p e r ie n c e

groups

A frican-A m erican

other
(18=20%)
that

cultures

and

and First

students

linked

the

to most f re qu en tly.

I mainly saw the bond between the women's rights movement
and African-A merican movement. In some cases they fought to
win voting
rights together. Both experienced oppression or
repres sion and strived to ov ercom e.
Af. Am. women worked w/women o f all color |sicJ in fighting
for women's rights.
A f rican-A m ericans w er e co m pared to Revolution ary soldiers
fighting for their independence and to women who were
struggling for the right to vote.

For some, a Native-American connection was made.
African-American History is similar to other ethnic groups,
such as the Indians. The Indians were raped of their land just
like African Americans. The Indians had dances
and rituals
that was |s ic | practiced by African Americans as well.
Their struggle was much o f the same as Native Amer,
Hispanics, and other groups that are outnumbered by the
"white" American.
A few of the intercultural ties that were made with the AfricanAmerican

experience

were

unexpected.

For

instance,

one

student

said

that the course linked "Malcolm X and Israel."
A "model" multicultural moment that made Moses proud was
when a former student who is now in K-12 education won a teaching
award at her school.
that

co ndensed

paragraphs on
Through

the

She said that she was unhappy with a textbook
A fri can-A m eric an

Booker T.

Washington and

the infusion of information

student

in Moses's course,

gained

the recognition

ex per ien ce

several

Luther King, Jr.

from notes that she kept as a

she breathed

and esteem

Martin

to

life into

o f her

her curriculum,

and

peers.

P rofessor Robeson had ju s t shown a film that discussed a program
created by th e U.S. m ilita ry f o r its personnel, to fa c ilita te various
cu ltu ra l g ro u p s' understanding o f each other. "The bottom line in
dealing with peo p le who are racially d ifferen t is education and
d efin itio n s,'' he told the class.
Renaissance African-American
groups
they

other

are,"

Professor
red ef ine

by

than

understanding

R obeson
the

African-Americans

norm.

added

the
that,

Studies Chair Abernathy
"can

get an appreciation

con tributions
ideally,

said that

Blacks

have

multiculturalism

o f who
made.

helps

to

1 82

An analogy between
America,

and

was

students' dominant

the

"Plea se

et h n ic

the oppression

provide

experience

was

g rou ps

African enslavement and oppression in
o f Jewish
response

exam ples
connected

in

this

of
to

people during

(12=34%)
how

that

the
of

to

the Holocaust,

question 4:

African-Am erican

other

cu ltu r e s

and

class."

We learned that blacks have suffered a Holocaust worse than
that o f our Jewish counterparts in Germany. Africans have
been in a holocaust
the last 200 years with millions and
millions paying the price. I mean before this class 1 never
looked at our situation and thought o f it as a holocaust but
that’s what it has been.
World War II--African American troops freed Jews in
co nc en tr atio n camps. World War I-- A fr ican-A m eri can troops
fighting along with
the French
against the common en emy- -th e
G erm ans.
While in the cafe eating, myself and two friends were talking
about African American culture. My friends were asking
questions and because of what I have learned; 1 could answer
their questions objectively. The questions were not just about
Black history. I learned a lot about the African American
experience and the Jewish experience and how they are alike
and d iff erent.
On another level,
Th is class co nnected the Africa n-A mer ican experience to other
cultures by showing
not only our differences but how we are
alike. Dr. Robeson showed films demonstrating how some
practices are u n i v e r s a l |emphasis mine] regardless o f ethnic
background.
A fte r m entio n in g the e ffects o f the B row n decision, E m m ett Till,
and the bus boycott, Toure sum m ed up this p a r t o f his lecture by
saying th a t the C ivil R ights M ovem ent was a classic exam ple o f the
courage o f B lacks and th e ir W hite supporters.

18 3

Decenter said that providing a knowledge base for AfricanAmerican scholars, would
information
addition,
studies

he

the
of

teaches

included

in

profe sso r’s Diasporan

Latin-America and

pr omotes

a

to

"power,

share

be the quickest way

"model"

Furthermore,

"when

e x p er ien ces,

you

you
foster

research

Toure added
by

resources,

people's

courses. ” In

assists inexplaining

curriculum

making,
put

people's

other cultures.

multicultural

decision

"other

for Toure to get the

minds

pointing

and
to

that
to

he

the

need

wealth."

other

peoples'

multicu ltu ral ism ."

Again, the relatively small number o f students in Toure's class
(15),

inhibited

"model"
context
Civil

an

in-depth

multicultural

curriculum.

for the discussion

Rights

glance at
In

how

students

spite o f this,

o f multiculturalism

perceived
the

the

most common

in the course,

was

the

Movement.

Civil Rights Movement people o f all color |s ic| helped moved
|s i c | the agenda forward. The abolitionist during slavery
helping to free slaves.
The African-American experience had an effect on all
American ethnic groups because there were other races that
helped blacks out to fight oppression. Example: Integrated
f r e e d o m riders.
...Caucasian as well as Afro-American college
active during the Civil Rights Movement.

students were

But one student said that the experiences o f various ethnic groups
sho uldn't

be

conn ected.

The NA AC P was partialy | s i c ( related to non-Blacks. Also the
Freedmen's Bureau was a link to non-African Americans. In an
AAS |African American Studies] class 1 really don't expect to

1 84

hear much about other cultures tied together with Blacks. It
didn’t work in history -*• it doesn't work n o w —that’s reality.
In debunking the m yth that advocates o f Black Power such as
S to kely C arm ichael w anted Blacks to only have access to Black
in stitu tio n s, M anetho sa id : "Indeed, a ll W hite in stitu tio n s sh o u ld be
o p en ed to all, as d esired by individuals o r as they qualify. ”
Because "the problems" and fears are the same, it is important to
study

the

models o f various ethnic groups

Americans,

Milton

unde rstan ding
"model"
is

multicultural

areas."

groups

own

some

relations..."

Manetho

is

essential

insights

it

because

he

contribute

o f the

learn about other

heritage,

models

curricu lum

Furthermore,

o f people

have to

These

intercultural

transferable,

other

said.

such as

is

the

have

imperative
greater

groups,

the

the

"a framework

added

because,

that one

that
"the

more they

a
approach

analyses
studies

oppor tunities

for

in

other

that

people

can appreciate

their

added.

Af ri ca n-A m er ica n

ex per ien ce

Af ric an -A mer ican

heritage

the

to

comparable

Manetho’s students noted multicultural

during

African-

and

and

First

Jewish

links between

Americans
people

the

( 10 =2 9% ),

(7=20%),

most

and

the

often

course.

We briefly discussed the link
between the Indians
Americans in the discovery o f America jU.S.J.

and

African-

Partially a native american, I never realized that our people
were any way connected to the black nation. This also helps
clear |u pj why there are a lot of blacks<-—>indians with a
significant amount o f blood in each o f the people. Could drums
o f native americans be related to the introduction o f Africans’
drum? Could beadwork be related to native americans and
th e ir c u l t u r e ?

18 5

Some made an analogy between the attempt to dehumanize
Jewish

people

Am er ica ns

during

during

the

the

Holocaust,

period

of

and

North

the predicament
American

of

African-

enslavement.

The African-American experience with the sambo like child
| w a s | like those o f Jewish descent in concentration camps acting
like children.
The African-American experience was similar to that o f the
Jews in concentration camps, with the exception that the
African-American slaves control every aspect | o f their lives|
possible that was not controlled by the master.
One student integrated the various experiences.
Examples - 1) Experience in slavery was compared to the
Jewish holocaust. 2) A fri can-A m eric an lan gua ge /d ialect has
effe cted Southern whites. 3) Afri ca n-A m er ica ns' labour
contributed to the building o f this country--buildings, raising
crops, exploring or being used as guides for early explorers of
the West.
Therefore, the African-American experience can be conceived of
as

a

to

median

student

ex am ples

with several significant

surveys. Asians, women,

of

groups

A f r i c a n - A m e r ic a n
Im p li cations

frame

for

This project
an

African-center ed

apply

to

the

instructors.
and

Bascia,

whose

and

heritages

of

intersections,

First

share

Americans,

strong

Education

of

are

connections

on

A f rican-centered

described and explained how the Seven

impact

according

with

an

refere nc e.

Fu tu re Resear ch

pe rspectives

Th e

cultural

and

(Detroit

Public

practices

educational

1990) on the Afrocentric

of

Schools,

In stru ction
Principles o f

1994)

can

African -center ed

context

(McLaughlin,

instructional

Talbert,

milieu was a key.

I 86

Instructors' academic and
discussion
o f the

(Cruse,

study

1967;

for a

formulation.
academ ic

co m po nen ts

1962;

dimensions

the

Hare,

multicultural

1972).

understanding

of this

The

curriculum,

o f this study

responses

social missions,

of

were also a part

implications

which
(Du

"reaches

Bois,

1969),

This was an outcome o f the project because

Students'

and

Frazier,

forms of human

were also examined.
the other

missions

"model"

out and touches” all

from

social

were

and

were essential

used

the

to

for its

triangulate

"model"

data

the

multicultural

curricula

study.

Although land, education, and political empowerment, were
mentioned

as

American

co mm unity,

alternate
legal

essential

routes

for

k now ledg e

p er sis te n t

foci.

the

the
four

arriving

enf ranchisement,

historical

for

social
of

the

reconstruction

of

professors

the

at

these

in

the

objectives.

activism,

and

the

A frica n-Amer ican

African-

project

proposed

Cultural

continuity,

necessity

o f accurate

exper ience,

were

The areas o f concentration o f the professors in the study
corroborated
the

not only

principles could

instructors'
standing.
"spirit"

the

in which

that

have multiple

interpretations
Therefore,

notion

could

a singular

meanings

be

parallel,

what was important

in

the tenets were addressed.

document

in practice,
that
this

is,

enough,

that

however,

the principles
their teaching

with these concepts.

The only

did not
did

not

but

that the

o f equal

study

was

the

None o f the history

teachers had seen the principles prior to this study,
instructor said

such as

inform
appear

so, each

his method.
to be

Oddly

inconsistent

way that this was possible was that

1 87

there

was

a

deeper

structure

that

undergirded

the

instructors'

practices.
As the interviews with the professors showed, the perspectives of
the

historians

in

this

study

were

that were incidental

to what

undergraduates

and

g r a d u a te

se minar s,

informal

and

the

linked

professors

students .

en c o u n t e r s

may

not

in

such

knowledge
wh o

ar e

be

a manner.

considering

American

school

fortunate

careers

districts,

formal

in te gra te

coursework,

that the professors

c o n f eren c es,

top-notch

multicultural

to grasp

obvious

this

valuable

implication

educators

in

However, all

is that

pr edom inantly

or as instructors o f courses on

Americans at the university
s e lf - co n scio u s ly

as

were t a u g h t as

exchanges occurred.

enough

An

experiences

U niver sity

with

scholars were where most of these
educators

to educational

level,
their

need to be taught
e x tr a c u r r ic u la r

so they can gain
in the

students
African-

African-

how they can

e x periences

the type o f critical

with

perspectives

study exhibit.

O f course, this thinking is not new. Carter G. Woodson spoke of the
need

for

learning
1990).

Afric an -A m er ican s
experiences

Such

create

institutional

a

nexus

ones

in

between
the

"natural"

1930’s (Woodson,

training should not be left to chance, however.

o f education
building

and

to

should play a facilitating

paradigms

through

the

use

role, by

of

this

suggesting

Colleges
methods for

information.

In addition, this knowledge bank is even more critical if
Afrocentricity
find

the

the

formal

teaching

is not taught

treatment

of

in classes that

African-center ed

curricula o f postsecondary

is paramount

for

those

students take.

pedagogy
institutions.

planning

on

to

be

Many

inadequate

As a result,

teaching

will

African-

self­

in

1 88

American

History.

cor robo ra tes
"attacked"

This

the

is especially

notion

from

that

true

since

interdisciplinary

this study

fields

must

be

m ultiple per spec tives .

With respect to the seven principles, the framers should clarify
how

much

should

information

teachers

responsible
this

issue

of

for.

about

c o n te m p o r a ry

T he

directly.

timeline
History

guidance

of

civilizations,

for

A fri can-A m erican
Toure's

instructors

principles in their teaching,
from

Nubian

example,

History

1866-Present

who

attempt

course

to

such as those in Detroit,

be
raised

incorporate

the

would benefit

in this area.

O f the three contexts for Afrocentric instruction, Renaissance was
adva ntage ou s
specifically

for

designed

A f rican - A m er ican
dem and
tracks:
2)

1)

can

reasons.

for

population

This

guaranteed

Afri ca n-A m er ica n
with

other

contribute

d is c ip li n a r y

to

It

had

an

African-Amer ican

student

two tracks.

collegiality

latter

several

students

History.

was
two
for

things
their

unit

In

sig nificant

African -A merican

professional

academic

fact,

the

enough

to

for teachers
courses;

History

development,

in

and,

professors.

and

these

help

The

stave

off

iso lation .

O f the two administrators who had views inimical to
Afrocentricity,
p e r sp e c t iv e s

one

was at

su gg est

that

Renaissance.

Decenter

ad m in is tr a to rs

in their departments should study the field,

and

with A fro centr ic

profe sso rs

if they are to be

responsive to the

needs o f all faculty in

for Afrocentricity

can enhance one's knowledge o f his

area o f expertise: as Dr. Curie showed.

Milton's

their units.

An appreciation
or her own

1 89

An additional finding of this research is that those interested in
teaching

A fri can-A m erican

contexts

of

faculty

institutions

position.

thought

that a

initiates can
really
The

where

Thus,

proposes how this

History,
they

are

the current

might be

course

enter

should

in

study

considering

study

Tour e

"Institutional Politics"
with

cen tere d

or

abs en ce

instruction,

and

must also be noted.
introduces
because

students

the

professional
education,

of

administr ators '

contexts

these
of

prospective

com pone nts

of

ar e

McLaughlin,

in

told me that

should

should

be

be required,

the

and

how

so
it

of

the

content,

theory
In

which

addition,

burea uc ra cy ,

and

culture o f K-12

school districts

Talbert,

for

taught.

institutional
to

he

structures for African-

kn ow ledge

essential

hires

it

in organizational

dynamics

com m un ity,

environment,

because

for such an offering.

pr ogrammatic

Perhaps, a course
to

a

a greater appreciation

operates. This study affirms the need

presence

educational

accepting

is relevant,

accomplished.

"academia"

the

should

Bascia's

study

model

these

(1990).

The academic and social missions o f the professors in this project,
again,

were

reflective

of

their

instructional

appr oac he s

and

With respect to social missions, each took part in a l o c a l
which

was

tied

mentioned

directly

above,

self-assessment

training

o f prospective

provid e

optim al

dev elopm ent,
com m unity
to

offer.

W.E.B.

This

Du

needs

academicians,

levels o f personal

while,
the

to their interests and

at

the

maximum
study

Bois be

same
benefit

recom m ends
studied by

so

expertise.

to be an
that

gratification

time,

yielding

for whatever
that the

initiative
As

explicit

their

research.

service

part

o f the

will

and

professional

the

African-A merican

these

scholars

schola rship/activism

prospective African-American

have
of

190
Historians.

Although

modern

academicians

might

point

to

Du

Bois’s

promotion of, for instance, integration, as a flaw in his platform
(Asante,
Studies

1987),
(Du

in

Bois,

many respects,
1969; Warren,

he set the standard for

Black

1988).

The data from this study's analysis of the model multicultural
curricu lum
in

suggest

teaching

that,

Afrocentric

like

these

curricula,

experiences o f First Americans,
Since

instructors

suggests a
Th e

task

manner

interc ultural
on
just

in

for

be

history

which

the

history,

and
but

women,

departments
professors

Am er ica ce ntri c
K-12

and

to teach

others

such

the

information,

colleges

this

study

the im p o rta n c e
perspectives

and

interested

other groups as well.

and

in

r eaff irm s

across

instructors,

must critically integrate

trained

c o n n e c tio n s

Asiacentric
in

must

four

o f education.
incorporated
that in fo rm ati o n

receive

postsecondary

this

inclusion,

not

curricula.

The above is even more vital when one considers the Michigan
context, and its relationship to national trends.
Michigan,
started

by

helping
Press,

more

than 30 percent o f the charter

Af rica n-Amer ican s

co n ce rned

parents

improve

12 February 1996, sec.

in c o r p o r a te

A f ro c e n t r i c

("Striving

for

urban

1, p. 7, col.

At the K-12
schools have

Success:
edu ca tion ,"

Charter

level in
been
Schools

D etro it Free

1-6). The majority

cu r ricu la.

At Aisha Shule in Detroit, parents are so committed to the school’s
principles,

they agree to take a day o f f work and spend it with their

child at school, if he or she has a disciplinary problem. Teachers'
sense of a professional mission at this school is so great that they
teach at Shule despite the fact that they are paid 25 percent less

19 1
than they would be in the public schools.

Moreover, a model

multicultural

teaching

curricu lu m

is

p rom oted

by

students

Japanese.

The question therefore becomes, with such strong community
contexts,
will

social

missions,

and

prepare the teachers

multicultural

for settings

cur ricular

thrusts,

who

such as Shule? The answer is

not a difficult one. Each o f the schools in this study is a major
producer
teacher

of

K-12

educators,

nonetheless.

teachers.

And,

their role

in

this

there

is

Unfortunately,

colleges of education
represented
stu de nts

in

this

learn

although

history

process
little

professors

are

not

is prominent,

eviden ce

that

major

such as the ones that service the schools

study

anything

support or embrace
about

Afrocentricity.

A f rican-cente red

m ethods

So,

at

if

the

postsecondary level, it will be in classes like Moses's at Halcyon.
Tom orrow 's

teachers

trained

today's

the

by

instructors

in

of

African -A merican

masters
this

of

students

Afrocentric

content

will

have

notably

to

be

including

study.

Perhaps the most significant recommendation o f the project is
that, in the tradition o f the Indaba Salons held by the Detroit Public
Schools

(Detroit

Public

leaders

co nc er ned

abou t

Schools,
the

1994),

education

teachers
of

and

Af ric an -A mer ican s

engaged in intense study and dialogue on critical
raised

by

this

study

the

needs

unique

mission

paper.
of
in

The y
the

must

study

educational

Africa n-A mer ican

meeting

them;

and,

they

organizational

issues such as those
context;

community,
must

be

study

and

they

must

their

how

Afrocentricity can be used as a key to unlock the doors o f the world's
other cultural centers. O f course, study o f the above, begins with selfstudy.

1 92
An inscription etched on the temple o f Ipet-Isut (Karnak) in
Egypt

is particularly

instructive.

"(Hu)man, know thyself."

It reads:

19 3
AP PE N DIX
Questions
C h a ir s .

for

interviews

with

A

American or

African-A merican

1. Briefly explain the impact o f your undergraduate
education on your choice o f a career in History.
a. Dissertation topic?
b. Other experiences.

and

History

graduate

2. Please describe, to the best of your ability, what events, forces,
etc., led to the creation o f African-American History courses at your
university.
3. How would you define African-American
significance to higher education?

History, and

its

4. What are the academic and social challenges that AfricanAmerican History faces, and how do you address them?
5. List organizations, activities that you are a part of, books, articles,
etc. that you have published, that respond to these challenges.
6. Please identify which scholars, theories, methods, approaches,
are critical to your philosophy as a chair of a unit that includes
A frican-Am erican
S tudies.
7. In what ways do African-centered approaches
teaching o f A fric a n - A m e r ic a n History?

contribute

to

8. How is Afrocentric African-American History relevant to the
creation o f a "model" multicultural curriculum that touches "all"
forms o f human u n d e r sta n d in g ?

etc.,

the

1 94

APPENDIX B
Ques tions
H i s to r y .

for

interviews

with

professors

of

African -A merican

1. Briefly explain the role o f your undergraduate and
education on your decision to teach African-American
a. Dissertation topic?
b. Other experiences.
2. How would you define African-American
significance to
higher education ?
3. What are the academic and
discipline, and how are your
to ad dress them?

History, as well as its

social challenges posed by the
African-American History classes

4. List organizations, and extracurricular activities, etc.,
involved with that respond to these challenges.
5. Please identify which scholars,
inform your philosophy as an
A m erican History.
6.

What

makes

your

classes

graduate
History.

that

you

used

are

theories, methods, approaches,
etc.,
African-centered teacher o f African-

African-centered?

7. As an Afrocentric teacher o f African-American History, how is
your instruction relevant to the creation o f a "model"
multicultural
curricu lum that "touches" all forms o f human under standing?

19 5

APPENDIX
S tu den t
I.
to

2.

C

q u estion n aire

Please
describe
how
the
history
and
culture
of
that
of
African-Am ericans
during
this
course.

What

"

truths"

have

you

learned

about

Africa

was

African-A m ericans

linked

in

this

class?
b.
How
was
the
course
helpful
in
m isconceptions
that
you
may
have
people
(or
the
A fr ic a n -A m c rican

J.
Discuss
the
needs
of
the
m entioned
in
this
course.
b.
How
were
you
encouraged

clearing
up
stereotypes
and
had
of
A frican-A m erican
experience)?

African-A m erican
to

respond

4.
Please
provide
exam ples
of
the
manner
A m erican
experience
was
c o n n e c te d to
that
ethnic
groups
in
this
class.

to

com m unity

that

were

them?

in
of

which
other

the
Africancultures
and

196

M I C H I G A N STATE API»KNnix „
U

N

I

V

October
TO:

E

R

3,

S

I

T

Y

'

1995

b ee N. June
432 A d m i n i s t r a t i o n

RE:

Building

IRB*:
TITLE:
REVISI ON REQUESTED:
CATEGORY:

AP P ROVAL DATE:

9 5-480
THE A C A D E M I C AND S O C I A L MIS SI O N S OF
A F R I C A N - C E N T E R E D A F R I C A N A M E RICAN HISTORY
C L A S S E S IN M I C H I G A N U N I V E R S I T I E S
N/A
1 -C
10/02/95

T h e Univers it y Com m ittec on R e s e a r c h I nvolv ing Hu m a n Subjects' (NCRI Its)
r e v i e w of this project in complete.
I am ple a s e d to adviflu that the
r i g h t o and wclfare'of the huma n e u b j e c t o ap pe a r to be ad equatel y
p r o t e c t e d and m ethods to o b t a i n informed c o n s e n t are appropriate.
Ther efore, the UCRIHS a p p r o v e d this p roject and any revision listed
above.

OFFICE OF

RESEARCH
AMD
GRA DU ATE
STUDIES
U n iv e rs ity C o m m itte e on
R e sea rch In v o lv in g
h u m a n S ub je cts
(U CRIHS)

RENEWAL:

UCRIHS approval is valid for one c a l e n d a r year, b e gi nning with
the approval date oh own above.
In v e s t i g a t o r s p l a nning to
continu e a p roje ct b e y o n d one year must use the green renewal
form (enclosed w i t h tne o r i g i n a l app roval letter or w hen a
project is renewed) to seek u p d a t e d c e r t i f i c a t i o n . The re ia a
m a x i m u m of four uuch e x p e d i t e d r e n ewa ls possible.
Investigators
w i s h i n g to c o n t i n u e a p roject b e yond that time need to submit it
again for c o m plete review.

REVIS IONS:

UCRI H S must r e v i e w any ch a n g e s in p r o c e d u r e s i nvolving human
subjects, prior to i n i t i ation of tne change.
If this is done at
the time of renewal, p l e a s e u s e the g r e e n renewal form.
To
revise an a p p r o v e d protocol at any o t h e r time d u r i n g the y e a r f
cend y our w r i t t e n re quest to the U C RIHS Chair, r e q u esting revised
approval and r e f e r e n c i n g th e p r o j e c t ' s IRB 0 and title.
Include
in your request a d e s c r i p t i o n of the c h a n g e and any revised
instruments, co nsent forma or a d v e r t i s e m e n t s that are applicable.

PROBLEMS/
CHANGES:

S h o u l d either of the foll o w i n g arise d u r i n g the course of the
t
work, i n v e stigato rs must n o tif y UCRI H S promptly:
(1) probl emo
(unexpected side e f f e c t a { complaints, etc.) involv ing numan
subjects or (2) c h a n g e s m
chu r e s e a r c h e n v i r o n m e n t cr new
information i n d i cating g r e a t e r risk to the hu m a n subje cts than
exi s t e d when the p r o t o c o l was p r e v i o u s l y r e v iew ed ana approved.

If we can be of any future help, pleas
lease do not
at (517)355- 2180 or FAX (517)432-1171.
Sincerely,

M ic h ig a n Stale U niversity
2 32 A d m in is tra tio n B u ild in g
East la n s m g . M ic h ig a n
4 8 8 2 4 -1 0 4 6

D a v i d E. Wright
U C R I H S Chair
^

5 1 7 /3 5 5 -2 1 8 0
FAX 5 17 /4 3 2 -1 1 /1

D E W :b e d

cc:

Ira M tcr,gw S:re

r,

lO c A <i i i M . u . i y u t D » z s y

Ita i'su e rtA rh o n

Whi tney Woods

h e s i t a t e to contact us

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