A Paradigm is a struggle to define, develop, and defend the disciple. Within African American studies we see different examples of Paradigms. As expressed by Maulana Karenga, in Black Studies, a paradigm is an analytic, empirical, and ethnical framework for studying, understanding, and explication African American life in its historical and current unfolding. Throughout this week we have discussed various paradigm that refer to the black experience. Each one is both unique and important to the to the development of African and African American Studies. Dr. Molefi Kete Asante breaks down the paradigm known as Afrocentricity. Afrocentricity is considered a revolutionary shift into the belief in the necessity of adjustment to black disorientation, …show more content…
The Afrocentric method considers that no phenomena can be understood properly without a location (Asante). Everything must analyze through time and space in order to properly understand complexity of the many themes within Afrocentricity (such as art, music, tradition, etc.) Due to the complexity of the Afrocentric method, anyone studying it must constantly be recording where they stand in the phenomena and be aware of the fluctuations that occur. This method is a form of cultural criticism that allows of to seen pass privilege and positions of power in order to understand the methodology. It is also imperative to remember and to find the aspect of politics and economic structure within the realm of the Afrocentric method (Asante). Afrocentricity is very complex. It’s philosophy essentially is a way seeing all aspect of African people (culturally, socially, and politically) as the center of …show more content…
It is very challenging to develop a paradigm within an interdisciplinary subject. Black Studies integrates various subject areas. Therefore, they do not just pick among the conceptual and methodological parts of the traditional disciplines, but they conceptualize the social fabric and rebrand the world in the way makes up for variety of issues that are in a disciplinary such as this one (Karenga, 398). The second issue that occurs is expressing and equal importance for concepts. Black studies have increments of academic and social study. The importance of active self-knowledge, self-realization, and self-production is imperative for critical analysis. Determining Black Studies history as a discipline is a central problem within the discipline. Stewart suggest that me make sure we have to take into consideration that Black Studies has a history long before the 1960s. He splits information into two fundamental periods: prediscipline and actual discipline history (Karenga, 400). Prediscipline period consist of scholars who often work alone, while the discipline period will be marked by self-consciousness, organization, and institutionalization (Karenga). Also, many black scholars are work have not been claim them to be as a part of the
Allen goes on to explain and support his views on black neocolonialism. He does so by illustrating his views of black power, from the original conception of the term, and the history of effort towards giving the black community political influence. Continuing from this ...
Among them a positive redefinition of Black identity in face of Whites’ renewed efforts to blame the devastating socio-economic conditions that many Black inner-city residents faced on “inherent cultural pathologies.” This shift in Black Consciousness, accompanied by the establishment of African American Studies Departments, a Black Psychology Movement and many other developments, which, if not actively fostered, were at least greatly influenced by black power’s cultural
Black Power, the seemingly omnipresent term that is ever-so-often referenced when one deals with the topic of Black equality in the U.S. While progress, or at least the illusion of progress, has occurred over the past century, many of the issues that continue to plague the Black (as well as other minority) communities have yet to be truly addressed. The dark cloud of rampant individual racism may have passed from a general perspective, but many sociologists, including Stokely Carmichael; the author of “Black Power: the Politics of Liberation in America”, have and continue to argue that the oppressive hand of “institutional racism” still holds down the Black community from making any true progress.
Sprouted from slavery, the African American culture struggled to ground itself steadily into the American soils over the course of centuries. Imprisoned and transported to the New World, the African slaves suffered various physical afflictions, mental distress and social discrimination from their owners; their descendants confronted comparable predicaments from the society. The disparity in the treatment towards the African slaves forged their role as outliers of society, thus shaping a dual identity within the African American culture. As W. E. B. DuBois eloquently defines in The Souls of Black Folk, “[the African American] simply wishes to make it possible for a man to be both a Negro and an American, without being cursed and
Dorsey, A. (2007). Black History Is American History: Teaching African American History in the Twenty-first Century. Journal of American History, 93(4): 1171-1177
The above-mentioned essays are: Nihilism in Black America, The Pitfalls of Racial Reasoning, The Crisis of Black Leadership, Demystifying the Black Conservatism, Beyond Affirmative Action: Equality and Identity, On Black-Jewish Relations, Black Sexuality: T...
Brown, Ernest Douglas. "Africanisms in American Culture." JSTOR. University of Illinois Press, n.d. Web. 06 Mar. 2014.
The term “New Negro” transformed the stereotypical image of African Americans as ex-slaves that were ignorant and inferior, to a race of intellectuals who articulated their culture in writing, art, and music. The phrase “New Negro” was in use long before the Harlem Renaissance, but this school of thought was truly emphasized by Alain Locke in his book The New Negro: An Interpretation. The New Negro was put together for the purpose as described by Lock: "to document the New Negro culturally and socially, - to register the transformations of the inner and outer life of the Negro in America that have so significantly taken place in the last few years." It was felt that African Americans were eager to claim their own agency in culture and politics instead of just remaining a problem for the whites. The “New Negroes” included poets, novelists, and blues musicians creating their art out of their own African folk, her...
Mercer, K. (1994). Welcome to the Jungle: New Positions in Black Cultural Studies. London: Routledge.
Thomas, Deborah A. "Modern Blackness: "What We Are and What We Hope to Be"." Small
Gabriel, Deborah. Layers of Blackness: Colourism in the African Diaspora. London: Imani Media, 2007. Print.
...cy." Western Journal Of Black Studies 28.1 (2004): 327-331. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Sept. 2013.
The aspect of African-American Studies is key to the lives of African-Americans and those involved with the welfare of the race. African-American Studies is the systematic and critical study of the multidimensional aspects of Black thought and practice in their current and historical unfolding (Karenga, 21). African-American Studies exposes students to the experiences of African-American people and others of African descent. It allows the promotion and sharing of the African-American culture. However, the concept of African-American Studies, like many other studies that focus on a specific group, gender, and/or creed, poses problems. Therefore, African-American Studies must overcome the obstacles in order to improve the state of being for African-Americans.
Khapoya, Vincent B. The African Experience: An Introduction. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998. Print.
Korang, Kwaku Larbi. “Making a Post-Eurocentric Humanity: Tragedy, Realism, and Things Fall Apart.” Research in African Literatures 42.2 (2011): 1–29. ProQuest. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.