Chapter4AfrocentricityandEducationCarterG.Woodsonw.docx

Chapter 4
Afrocentricity and Education
Carter G. Woodson wrote in the book, The
Mis-education of the Negro, that
Africans in the United States were being mis-
educated by the promotionof Europe as
if it were the only source of human
knowledge.[1] Indeed, Woodson’s classic reveals
the fundamental problems pertaining to the education of
the African person in the
Americas. As Woodson contends, African people have
been educated awayfrom
their own culture and traditions and attached to the
fringes of European culture; thus
dislocated from themselves, Woodson asserts that African
Americans oftenvalorize
European culture to the detriment of their own
heritage.[2] Although Woodson does
not advocate rejection of citizenship or nationality,
he believed that assuming Africans
hold the same position as European Americans vis-a-
vis the realities of the United
States, Brazil, or Colombia would lead to the
psychological and cultural death of the
African people. Furthermore, if education is ever to
be substantive and meaningful
within the context of society, it must first address
the African’s historical experiences.
I will examine the nature and scope of this
approach, establish its necessity, and

suggest ways to develop and disseminate it
throughout all levels of education. Two
propositions stand in the background of the
theoretical and philosophical issues I will
present. These ideasrepresent the core presuppositions
on which I have based most
of my work in the field of education, and they
suggest the direction of my own thinking
about what education is capable of doing to
and for an already politicallyand
economically marginalized population: (1) Education is
fundamentally a social
phenomenon whose ultimate purpose is to
socialize the learner; to send a childto
school is to prepare that childto become part of
a social group. (2) Schools are
reflective of the societies that develop them (i.e., a
white supremacist-dominated
society will develop a white supremacist
educational system, a communist society
will
develop a communist educational system, etc.).
One of the ways the Afrocentrists have designed for
situating problems in
education, with applications to othersectors of
the society, is critical location. The
definition of critical location is the site where
the researcherlocates a researchable
problem within a matrix of political, social,
and economic fields in order to determine
the extent to which the problem is being
affected by internal and external forces. For
example, the problem of effectiveness of culture in
schools can be adequately
located, that is, situated for a critical location

project.
In education, centricity refers to a perspective
that involves locating students
within the context of their own cultural referencesso
that they can relate socially and
psychologically to othercultural perspectives.
Centricity is a concept that can be
applied to any culture. The centrist paradigm is
supported by research showing that
the most productive method of teaching any student
is to place his or her group within
the center of the context of knowledge. For
most white students in the Americas this
is easy because almost all the experiences
discussed in classrooms are approached
from the standpoint of European perspectives and
history. American and Brazilian
Asante, Molefi Kete. Facing South to Africa : Toward an
Afrocentric Critical Orientation, Lexington Books, 2014.
ProQuest Ebook Central,
http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/purdue/detail.action?docID
=1776000.
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education, however, is not centric; it is
Eurocentric. Consequently, black students in
both countries are also made to see themselves

and their groups as the marginalized.
Only rarely do black children read or hear of
African people as active participants in
history. This is as true for a discussion of
the American Revolution as it is for a
discussion of Dante’s Inferno; for instance, most
classroom discussions of the
European slavetradeconcentrate on the activities of
Europeans rather than on the
resistance efforts of Africans. A person educated in
a truly centric fashion comes to
view all groups’ contributions as significant and
useful. Even a white person educated
in such a system does not assume superiority
based upon racist notions.
Afrocentricity is a frame of reference where
phenomena are viewed from the
perspective of the African person as an agent
in his or her own narrative. The
Afrocentric approach seeks in every situation
the appropriate centrality of the African
person.[3]In education this means that teachers provide
students the opportunity to
study the world and its people, concepts, and
history from an African worldview. In
most classrooms, whatever the subject, Whites are
located in the subject perspective
position. How alien the African childmust feel, how like an
outsider! The little African
childwho sits in a classroom and is taught to
accept as heroes and heroines
individuals who defamed African people is being
actively de-centered, dislocated, and
made into a nonperson, one whose aim in
life might be to one day shed the “badge of
inferiority,” his or her blackness. In Afrocentric

educational settings, however,
teachers do not marginalize Africans by causing
them to question their own self-worth
because their people’s storyis seldom told. By seeing
themselves as the subjects
rather than the objects of education—be the
discipline biology, medicine, literature, or
social studies—African students come to see
themselves not merely as seekers of
knowledge but as integral participants in it.
Because all content areasare adaptable
to an Afrocentric approach, African students can be
made to see themselves as
centered in the reality of any discipline. It
must be emphasized that Afrocentricity is
not a black version of Eurocentricity.[4]
Eurocentricity is oftenbased on white
supremacist notions whose purposes are to protect
white privilege and advantage in
education, economics, politics, and so forth.
Unlike Eurocentricity, Afrocentricity does
not condone ethnocentric valorization at the
expense of degrading othergroups’
perspectives. Moreover,Eurocentricity presents the
particular historical reality of
Europeans as the sum total of the human
experience. It imposes Eurocentric realities
as universal; i.e., that which is white is
presented as applying to the human condition
in general, while that which is non-white is
viewed as group-specific and therefore not
human. This explains why somescholars and artists of
African descent rush to deny
their blackness; they believe that to exist as a
black person is not to exist as a
universal human being. They are the individuals

Woodson identified as preferring
European art, language, and culture over African art,
language, and culture; they
believe that anything of European origin is
inherently better than anything produced by
or issuing from their own people. Naturally, the person
of African descent should be
centered in his or her historical experiences as an
African, but Eurocentric curricula
produce such aberrations of perspective among
persons of color.
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Multiculturalism in education must include a
nonhierarchical approach that
respects and celebrates a variety of cultural
perspectives on world phenomena. The
multicultural approach holds that although European
cultures are dominant in Brazil
and the United States, a dominant majority is
not a sufficient reason for imposing it on
a diverse student population as universal.
Multiculturalists assert that education, to

have integrity, must begin with the proposition that all
humans have contributed to
world development and the flow of knowledge
and information, and that most human
achievements are the result of mutually interactive,
international efforts. Without a
multicultural education, students remain essentially
ignorant of the contributions of a
major portion of the world’s people. A
multicultural education is thus a fundamental
necessity for anyone who wishes to achieve
competency in almost any subject. The
Afrocentric idea must be the stepping-stone from which
the multicultural idea is
launched. A truly authentic multicultural education,
therefore, must be based upon the
Afrocentric initiative. If this step is skipped,
multicultural curricula, as they are
increasingly being defined by white “resisters”
will evolve without any substantive
infusion of African American content, and the African
American childwill continue to
be lost in the Eurocentric framework of
education. In otherwords, the African child
will neither be confirmed nor affirmed in his or
her own cultural information. For the
mutual benefit of all Americans, this tragedy,
which leadsto the psychological and
cultural dislocation of African children, can and
should be avoided.
The Afrocentric idea presents the most revolutionary
challenge to the ideology of
white supremacy in education because it centers
African students inside history,
culture, and science, rather than outside these

subjects. No othertheoretical position
stated by Africans has ever captured the imagination
of such a wide range of
scholars and students of history, sociology,
communications, anthropology, and
psychology.
The Afrocentric challenge has been posed in three
critical ways: (1) It questions
the imposition of the white supremacist view as
universal and/or classical. (2) It
demonstrates the indefensibility of racist theories
that assault multiculturalism and
pluralism. (3) It projects a humanistic and
pluralisticviewpoint by articulating Afro-
centricity as a valid, non-hegemonic perspective.
The forces of resistance to the Afrocentric,
multicultural transformation of the
curriculum and teaching practices began to
assemble their wagons almost as quickly
as it was mentioned that society needed
equality in education. Some people in
the
United States formed a group called the
Committee for the Defense of History. This is
a paradoxical development because only lies,
untruths, and inaccurateinformation
need defending. In their argumentsagainst the
Afrocentric perspective, these
proponents of Eurocentrism created artificial
argumentsin false categories and fake
terms (i.e., “pluralistic” and “particularistic”
multiculturalism). As the late African
scholar Cheikh Anta Diop maintained: “African history
and Africa need no defense.”[5]

Afrocentric education is not against history. It is
for history that is correct, accurate
history, and if it is against anything, it is
against the marginalization of Africans,
Asians, and Native Americans in North and
South America. The Committee for the
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Defense of History is nothing more than a futile
attempt to buttress the crumbling
pillars of a white supremacist system that
conceals its true motives behind the cloak
of American liberalism.
Naturally, different adherents to a theory will have
different views on its meaning.
While two discourses presently are circulating
about multiculturalism, only one is
relevant to the liberation of the minds of African
and white people in the Americas and
that discourse is Afrocentricity: the acceptance of
Africa as central to African people.
Yet, rather than getting on board with

Afrocentrists to fight against white hegemonic
education, somewhites (and someblacks as well)
have opted to plead for a return to
the educational dinosaur age. Unfortunately for them,
however, those days are gone,
and such misinformation can never be packaged as
accurate, correct education
again. The resisters speak of two kinds of
multiculturalism: pluralist multiculturalism
and particularist multiculturalism. They claim that
Afrocentricity advances a
particularist multiculturalism. These imaginary
divisions in multicultural perspectives
conceal the true identity of those who wish to
advance white supremacy in education.
It was perhaps inevitable that the introduction of
the Afrocentric idea would open
up the discussion of the school curriculum in
a profound way. Why has Afrocentricity
created so much of a controversy in
educational circles? The idea that an African
childis placed in a stronger position to learnif
he or she is centered, that is, if the
childsees himself or herself within the content of
the curriculum rather than at its
margins, is not novel. What is revolutionary is
the movementfrom the idea
(conceptual stage) to its implementation in
practice, when we begin to teach
teachers
how to put African youth at the center of
instruction. In effect, students are shown
how to see with new eyes and hear with new ears. African
children learnto interpret
and center phenomena in the context of African

heritage, while white students are
taught to see that their own centers are not
threatened by the presence or
contributions of African Americans and others.
The character of the nation in which they are
developed shapes institutions. Just
as crime and politics are different in different
nations, so, too, is education. In the
United States a “whites-only” orientation has
predominated in education. This has had
a profound impact on the quality of education
for children of all racesand ethnic
groups. The African American childhas suffered
disproportionately, but white children
are also the victims of mono-culturally diseased
curricula. During the past five years,
many white students and parents have approached
me after presentations with tears
in their eyes or expressing their anger about
the absence of information about
Africans in schools. Few teachers can discuss with
their students the significance of
the Middle Passage or describe what it meant or
means to Africans. Little mention is
made in American classrooms of either the
brutality of slavery or the ex-slaves’
celebration of freedom. American and Brazilian
children have little or no understanding
of the nature of the capture, transport, and
enslavement of Africans. Few have been
taught the true horrors of being taken, shipped
naked across twenty-five days of
ocean, broken by abuse and indignities of all
kinds, and dehumanized into a beastof
burden, a thingwithout a name. If our

students only knew the truth, if they were
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taught the Afrocentric perspective on the Great
Enslavement, and if they knew the full
storyabout the events sinceslavery that have served
to constantlydislocate Africans,
their behavior would perhaps be different.
Inequitable policies and practices veritably plagued
the African people. No
wonder many persons of African descent attempt
to shed their race and become
“raceless.” One’s basicidentity is one’s self-
identity, which is ultimately one’s cultural
identity; without a strong cultural identity, one is
lost. Black children do not know their
people’s storyand White children do not know
the story, but remembrance is a vital
requisite for understanding and humility. This is why
the Jews have campaigned (and
rightly so) to have the storyof the European
Holocaust taught in schools and

colleges. Teaching about such a monstroushuman
brutality should forever remind the
world of the women and children who were forced
to pick cotton from “can’t see in
the morning ‘til can’tsee at night,” until the blood
ran from the tips of their fingers
where they were pricked by the hard boll; or if
they were made to visualize their
ancestors in the burning sun, bent double with ways in
which humans have often
violated each other. Teaching about the African
Holocaust is just as important for
many of the same reasons. Certainly, if African
children were taught to be fully aware
of the struggles of African ancestors they would
find a renewed sense of purpose and
vision in their own lives. They would cease
acting as if they have no past and no
future. For instance, if they were taught about
the historical relationship of Africans to
the cotton, sugar, rice, and mining industries in
both continentsthey would know how
men, constant stooping, and dragging rough, heavy
sacks behind them-or picture
them bringing those sacks trembling to the scale,
fearful of a sure flogging if they did
not pick enough cotton, perhaps our African youth
would develop a stronger
entrepreneurial spirit. If white children were taught
the same information rather than
that normally fed them about American slavery, they
would probably view our society
differently and work to transform it into a better
place.
Hegemonic education can exist only so long as true

and accurate information is
withheld. Hegemonic Eurocentric education can exist
only so long as whites maintain
that Africans and othernon-whites have never
contributed to world civilization. It is
largely upon such false ideasthat invidious distinctions
are made. The truth, however,
gives one insight into the real reasons behind
human actions, whether one chooses to
follow the paths of others or not. For
example, one cannot remain comfortable
teaching that art and philosophy originated in Greece
if one learns that the Greeks
themselves taught that the study of these
subjects originated in Africa, specifically
ancient Kemet.[6] The first philosophers were the
Egyptians Kagemni, Khun-anup,
Ptahhotep, Kete, and Seti; but Eurocentric
education is so disjointed that students
have no way of discovering this and otherknowledge
of the organic relationship of
Africa to the rest of human history. Not only
did Africa contribute to human history,
African civilizations predate all othercivilizations.[7]
Indeed, the human species
originated on the continent of Africa, this is true
whether one looks at either
archaeological or biological evidence. Two othernotions
must be refuted. There are
those who say that African American history should
begin with the arrival of Africans

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as slaves, but it has been shown that Africans
visited and inhabited North and South
America long before European settlers “discovered”
the “New World.” Secondly,
although America became somethingof a home
for those Africans who survived the
horrors of the Middle Passage, their experiences on
the slaveshipsand during
slavery resulted in their having an entirely
different perspective about the Americas
from that of the Europeans who came, for the
most part, of their own free will
seeking opportunities not available to them in their
native lands. Afrocentricity
therefore seeks to recognize this divergence in
perspective and create centeredness
for African students.
The reigning initiative for total curricular change is
the Afrocentric movementthat
has shaped discussions in education, art,
fashion, and politics. Critics have claimed
incorrectly that Afrocentricity is anti-white; yet, if
Afrocentricity as a theory is against
anything it is against racism, colorism, prejudice,
ignorance, and mono-ethnic

hegemony in the curriculum. Afrocentricity is pro-
human. Further, the aim of the
Afrocentric curriculum is not to divide Brazil
or the United States, it is to make
diverse
societies flourish, as they ought to flourish. Both
nations have long been divided with
regard to the educational opportunities afforded to
children. By virtue of the protection
provided by society and reinforcedby the Eurocentric
curriculum, the white childis
already ahead of the African childby first grade.
Our efforts thus must concentrate on
giving the African childgreater opportunities for
learning at the kindergarten level.
However, the kind of assistance the African childneeds
is as much cultural as it is
academic. If the proper cultural information is
provided, the academic performance
will surely follow suit. When it comes to
educating African children, the Brazilian and
United States educational systems do not need
tune-ups; they need an overhaul of
their educational engines. Educators must stop maligning
Africans and Africa.
Afrocentricity may be the escape hatch Africans so
desperately need to facilitate
academic success and break awayfrom the cycle of
mis-education and dislocation
that camewith enslavement. By providing philosophical
and theoretical guidelinesand
criteria that are centered in an African perception
of reality and by placing the African
childin his or her proper historical context and
setting, the Afrocentric idea in

education revitalizes the curricula of schools in
Brazil and the United States.
NOTES
1. Carter G. Woodson, The Miseducation of the
Negro. Washington: Associated
Publishers, l933.Hilliard would take up someof
the issues later in his work, Asa G.
Hilliard, The Maroon Within Us: Selected Essays on
African American Community
Socialization. Baltimore: Black Classic Press,
1995.
2. Woodson, l933,p. 7
3. Asante, An Afrocentric Manifesto. Cambridge:
Polity Books, 2007.
4. See Molefi Kete Asante and Abu Abarry, eds.,
The African Intellectual Heritage.
Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1996;
also Molefi Kete Asante and Ama
Mazama, eds., The Encyclopedia of Black Studies.
Thousand Oaks: Sage
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Publication.
5. In an interview with Molefi Kete Asante in
December 20,1980, Diop told Asante
that Africa needed no defense; it only had to be
advanced.
6. See Asante, Herodotuson Egypt. Philadelphia:
Ramses, 2013.
7. See Cheikh Anta Diop, The African Origin of
Civilization: Myth or Reality. New
York: Lawrence Hill, 1974.
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African-American Studies: Legacies & Challenges:
“What Would Black Studies Be If We'd Listened to
Toni Cade?”
Beverly Guy-Sheftall
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African-American Studies: Legacies &
Challenges: "What Would Black Studies
Be If We'd Listened to Toni Cade?"
I wonder what it would take to fully integrate
gender and sexuality into Black political
consciousness. lVhat would it take for our public
intellectuals, the self appointed spokespersons, the
opinion leaders and the like to go beyond lip
service given to "unity" and "common interest" to
articulate a political sensibility that embraces
substantive equality as a value within our
community.
- Kimberle Crenshaw in Black Men on
Gender, Race and Sexuality, edited by
Devon Carbado, 1999
A S A GRADUATE STUDENT at Emory U niversi-ty in the late
1970s, I began my formal
training in both African-American Studies and
Women's Studies and embarked upon a jour-
ney which continues to define my research and
teaching--gendering Mrican-American intel-
lectual history and articulating persistent femi-
nist impulses among black women and men
from slavery to the present. While much of this
work has focused on the US, increasingly I
have been exploring feminist politics within a
more global context, particularly in Africa, the
Caribbean and Brazil. My work, and the work

of other scholars that falls under the rubric of
black feminist studies, has been an important
intervention in what can be labeled hegemon-
ic Black Studies, whose conceptual frameworks
have been shaped by masculinist imperatives
and heterosexist paradigms that have failed to
capture the complexities of black experience
here and around the globe.
I T IS INSTRUCTIVE to consider the gendered aspects of the
early history of Black Stud-
ies, which has heretofore been invisible to
scholars. This "herstory" of the development
of the field concerns itself with a little known
Page 22
by Beverly Guy-Sheftall
organization, the International Council of
Women of the Darker Races, which emerged
as a result of the racial uplift impulses and
international educational projects of the
black women's club movement in the US.
Organized by several prominent club women
in 1924, most notably Margaret Murray
Washington, founder of the Tuskegee
Women's Club in Alabama, the Council's
first president, and a member of the
Tuskegee faculty, its purpose was to study the
history of peoples of color throughout the
world, particularly West Mrica, India, Haiti,
and Cuba, and to disseminate knowledge
about them for the purpose of engendering
racial pride. Study groups, which were called
Committees of Seven, were also formed to

infuse public school curricula with material
on blacks and other people of color.
It can now be argued that these curriculum
development efforts were certainly a precursor
to Black Studies. Field trips were also orga-
nized to gain first-hand experience of other
cultures. The Council also studied the situa-
tion of women and children of color transna-
tionally. Like Anna Julia Cooper, who men-
tioned Muslim harems and the Chinese
practice of foot-binding on the first page of
her pioneering 1892 text, A Voice from the South,
Council members were aware of the global
realities of women. Margaret Murray Washing-
ton taught a course at Tuskegee on the condi-
tion and status of women throughout the
world that clearly illustrated black women's
awareness of the importance of gender long
before there was a women's studies movement
within the mainstream academy. If black schol-
ars had followed the model of Margaret M.
Washington and the Council, they would have
understood the importance of a gendered
approach to understanding the experiences of
people of color.
THE BLACK SCHOLAR VOLUME 35, NO. 2
BLACK FEMINIST STUDIES, a corrective for traditional Black
Studies, probes the
silences, erasures, and complexities sur-
rounding the experiences of peoples of
Mrican descent wherever they live. The early

scholarship was comparable to the painstak-
ing excavation projects of an archaeologist
digging for hidden treasures. Black feminist
literary critics made visible a rich, though
mostly invisible tradition of black women
writers going back to the nineteenth century.
These scholars disrupted a largely male nar-
rative in the construction of Mrican-Ameri-
can literary tradition. In this regard, the
early work of Mary Helen Washington and
Barbara Christian comes to mind-as well as
that of Alice Walker who is responsible for
rescuing Zora Neale Hurston from the shad-
ows-possibly from oblivion. When Roseann
Bell, Bettye Parker and myself published
Sturdy Black Bridges in 1979, it was the first
anthology of black women's literature,
though courses on black women writers later
came to Black Studies.
My own contributions in this regard-that
is gendering Black Studies-have been most
satisfying in two projects, Words of Fire: An
Anthology of African Feminist Thought, which
re-imagines Mrican-American intellectual
and political history by including the voices
of black women as far back as 1832. More
transgressive, perhaps, has been Traps:
African American Men on Gender and Sexuality
(with Rudolph P. Byrd), which makes the
case that the gender progressive discourse of
African-American men has been largely
ignored in black political history, though
there is a growing body of scholarly work
about black masculinity. The silence sur-
rounding a significant aspect of black men's

commitments to a broad range of social jus-
tice issues, especially around issues of gender
and sexuality, compelled the publication of
Traps, This anthology posits that despite the
commitment of some black men to the eradi-
cation of sexism and heterosexism, black lib-
eration has been conceptualized, generally
speaking, in the narrowest of terms and has
focused heavily on recuperating black man-
hood, constructing patriarchal families and
ending racism. As urgent as the struggles
against white supremacy have been (and
Black Studies has contributed to its decline),
the relative lack of attention to the eradica-
tion of other oppressions has resulted in
inadequate conceptual frameworks for
understanding the black experience.
H EGEMONIC black nationalist discourse, characterized by
both masculinist and
heterosexist frameworks, has been particu-
larly influential within activist-intellectual
communities and has stifled the develop-
ment of more egalitarian models of black
empowerment which are free from the ideo-
logical traps of sexism and homophobia. Put
another way, the tendency to conflate black
freedom with black manhood, our uncritical
acceptance of orthodox conceptions of gen-
der, the celebration of normative and rigid
constructions of black masculinity, and per-
sistent denials about homosexuality have
prevented Mrican-Americans from establish-

ing the truly revolution communities that
Toni Cade Bambara and others challenged
us to imagine over thirty years ago in her
groundbreaking anthology, The Black Woman.
My discussion of the legacies and chal-
lenges of Mrican-American Studies has been
shaped by an explicitly black feminist con-
ceptual framework and over thirty years of
undervalued scholarship and activism that
began with the publication of Bambara's The
Black Woman in 1970, which has inspired the
topic of this article, "What Would Black Stud-
ies Be IfWe Had Listened to Toni Cade"?
What is needed are new questions and a
new angle of vision:
1.) Gender has become a major category of
historical analysis in the study of racial-
ized experience here and throughout the
Mrican diaspora. How have black schol-
ars responded to this major paradigm
shift and what can we expect over the
next several decades in this regard? What
difference would it make for the field of
Black Studies or Mrican Diaspora Studies
to examine black experience with new
frameworks in which gender and sexuali-
ty are major categories of analysis?
2.) Men are as influenced by their gender as
women. They have also actively participated
in the project of gender construction and
Page23

have been profoundly shaped by prevalent
notions of what it means to be a man in
American society. Since this is the case,
scholars must examine men of African
descent as gendered beings and continue to
mark the ways in which their racial experi-
ences have been shaped by gender. Men's
lives have been impacted by particular mas-
culinity constructs as have women's lives
been shaped by specific femininity con-
structs. That is, scholars need to explore
more fully and systematically how gender sys-
tems and gender constructs within particular
African diasporic contexts, over time, and
across class, have impacted the lived experi-
ences of people of African descent. A partic-
ular challenge is studying gender constructs
in the African context prior to the transat-
lantic slave trade, though these excavation
projects are necessary.
4.) Scholars must also analyze the taboo sub-
ject of sexuality throughout Africa and the
African diaspora, including the complexity
of our erotic desires and behaviors. The
AIDS pandemic and the controversial and
under-explored "down-low" phenomenon
are compelling issues in this regard.
5.) Despite the fact that Pan-Africanism, Afro-
centricism and black feminisms (to a lesser
extent) are corrective, oppositional dis-
courses that have been critical to the devel-

opment of conceptual paradigms and theo-
ry building within the interdisciplinary
fields of Black Studies, Africana Studies, or
African Diaspora Studies, it is also the case
that the work of African feminist scholars
and activists have been largely ignored in
these fields. Professors Sidney Lemele and
Robin Kelley have been particularly insight-
ful about what is needed to reinvigorate
African Diaspora Studies: "the failure to
adopt a serious gendered analysis has been
perhaps the biggest weakness in diaspora
studies, in general, and the historiography
of Pan Africanism, in particular; gender
offers the freshest and most exciting possi-
bilities for the study of diasporic political
and cultural movements." It is certainly the
case that Black Studies scholars need to
explore the emergence of gender discours-
es within the African context beginning
with Filomena Chioma Steady's foundation-
a! text, The Black Woman Crossculturally. In
Page 24
this anthology, she articulates an African
feminist framework that is radically differ-
ent from Euro-American feminism. Despite
the hegemony of Western feminist theory
and gender discourses, there is a growing
body of work since Steady that can be
placed under the rubric of "African femi-
nisms," which provides an alternative lens
for examining women's resistance transna-
tionally. Scholars are certainly compelled to
consider this important new work as the

field of Black or Africana Studies is re-imag-
ined. In particular, the work of contempo-
rary African feminist intellectuals, scholars,
writers, artists and activists, though they
continue to be accused at home of diluting
the struggle against imperialism and neo-
colonialism, has the potential for trans-
forming Black Studies, which has been lim-
ited in many ways by anti-feminist and
masculinist paradigms. These counter-dis-
courses by African women intellectuals
need to be taken seriously as the important
field of Black Studies continues to evolve.
BLACK STUDIES has contributed in impor-tant ways to the
transformation of
American higher education and the strug-
gles of black people around the globe. If it
stays true to its liberatory politics, its trans-
gressive mission and its intellectual agenda,
it must now address a new set of questions
and issues that will illuminate the complex
experiences of African descended people in
even more profound ways.
Works Cited
Toni Cade Bambara, The Black Woman (New York: New
American Library, 1970).
Roseann Bell, Bettye Parker, Beverly Guy-Sheftall, Sturdy
Black Bridges (Detroit: Gale Publishing, 1979)
Rudolph Byrd and Beverly Guy-Sheftall, eds., Traps:
African American Men on Gender and Sexuality
(Bioomington: Indiana University Press, 2001).

Anna Julia Cooper. A Voice from the South (Xenia, OH:
The Aldine Printing House, 1892)
Kimberle Crenshaw in Black Men on Gender, Race and
Sexuality, Devon Carbado, ed. (New York: NYU Press,
1999).
Beverly Guy-Sheftall, Words of Fire: An Anthology of African
Feminist Thought (New York: The New Press, 1995).
Filomena Chioma Steady, The Black Woman Cross-
culturally, Boston: Schenkman Publishing Company,
Inc., 1981).
Bringing Afrocentricity to the Funnies: An Analysis of
Afrocentricity Within Aaron
McGruder's "The Boondocks"
Author(s): Tia C. M. Tyree and Adrian Krishnasamy
Source: Journal of Black Studies, Vol. 42, No. 1 (JANUARY
2011), pp. 23-42
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/25780790
Accessed: 22-01-2020 00:06 UTC
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Bringing Afrocentricity to
the Funnies: An Analysis
of Afrocentricity Within
Aaron McGruder's The
42(1) 23^2

?TheAuthor(s) 2011
Reprints and permission: http://www.
sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0021934709359081
http://jbs.sagepub.com
(DSAGE
Boondocks
Tia C. M.Tyree1 and Adrian Krishnasamy2
Abstract
Cartoonist Aaron McGruder entered the syndicated comic strip
arena
in 1998. As an African American, McGruder's social
commentary, political
criticism, and jokes have a perspective on America unlike
White syndicated
cartoonists. Yet one cannot assume that his comic strip is
Afrocentric simply
because McGruder is African American. The authors of this
work attempt
to determine if McGruder?through his characters?speaks from
an
Afrocentric perspective. More specifically, the authors
analyzed McGruder's
comic strips to determine if the principles and concepts of
Afrocentricity,
including the 10 principles of nommo, were present within the
comic strip.
It was determined through The Boondocks, he speaks of
resistance, liberation,

peace, harmony, and does so in the "language" of African
Americans?Ebonics.
He places African Americans at the center of his discourse and
gauges the
external world through the lens of his young African American
characters.
Keywords
Nommo, Afrocentricity, The Boondocks, comic strips, Aaron
McGruder
"I think we as Black people spend way too much time worrying
about
what White people think of us. I don't give a (expletive) about
what
White people think."
?Aaron McGruder
'Howard University,Washington, D.C.
2Bowie State University, MD
2020 00:06:59 UTC
24 Journal of Black Studies 42(1)
Each day Americans open their newspapers to read comics.
Some are after a
quick laugh, others want to read what obstacle their favorite
characters are
tackling and still others are looking for the underlying political
and social

commentaries that lie deep within the comedic lines of three
little African
American boys in the comic strip The Boondocks. Cartoonist
Aaron
McGruder is the creator of the comic strip, and as an African
American,
McGruder's social commentary, political criticism, and jokes
have a per
spective on America unlike the White syndicated cartoonists.
Through socially constructed institutions such as slavery and
segregation,
African Americans faced unequal treatment in America.
Hundreds of years
of mistreatment at the hands of the U.S. government and White
Americans
caused African Americans financial, spiritual, educational and
other hard
ships. Nonetheless, African Americans found various outlets to
express their
frustrations, perseverance, and desire for social change. Negro
spirituals,
heroic tales of African Americans achieving success or
outsmarting White
Americans, and even jokes brought hope and inspiration to
many. However,
the most powerful force of the three perhaps may be jokes and
their ability to
bring laughter and transformation to the minds and situations
of those in the
African American community.
Humor is important to African Americans. It is referred to as
"the gift of
laughter" (Fauset, 1994). Laughter allows African Americans to
put their

desires, situations, and ideals into perspective. Throughout
history, humor
exposed the absurd treatment of African Americans in America,
highlighted
the hypocrisies and pretensions of White Americans, and
helped to reveal
and mock the rationalization of the mistreatment of African
Americans
(Levine, 1977). Despite White Americans' insistence that
African Americans
were unintelligent, uncultured, and unaware of their self-worth,
the manner
in which African Americans mastered the use of humor showed
they com
pletely understood the perversions, absurdities, and
impossibilities of Ameri
can social structures (Levine, 1977).
Sharing a laugh is a social experience. Whether laughter
manifests itself
from a joke, anecdote, gesture, or tale, an individual must
understand the
experiences, people, places, or ideas within the community in
order to really
share in a laugh. According to Levine (1977), laughter
provided African
Americans with a sense of their condition in America as well as
an important
degree of self- and group knowledge. This concept created the
foundation
of this research study. The authors of this work attempt to
determine if
McGruder?through his characters?enlighten African American
readers

using Afrocentrictiy. More specifically, the authors analyzed
McGruder's
comic strips to determine if the principles and concepts of
Afrocentricity,
2020 00:06:59 UTC
Tyree and Krishnasamy 25
including the 10 principles of nommo, were present within the
dialogue of
McGruder's The Boondocks comic strips.
Literature Review
The History of Comic Strips and The Boondocks
A comic strip is a short strip or sequence of drawings that tells
a story. Comic
strips derived from the cartoon. It was widely popular in the
late 19th century
and originally developed as a marketing tool to attract
customers to the Sun
day edition of local newspapers. Richard Outcault, William
Randolph Hearst,
Joseph Pulitzer, James Swinnerton, and Rudolph Dirks are
commonly cred
ited as the creators of the modern-day comic strip. While
evidence of comic
strips appearing in newspapers can be traced back as early as
1892, the pub
lishing of Richard Outcault's The Yellow Kid in Joseph

Pulitzer's New York
World in 1886 is most widely accepted as the birth of the
comic strip genre in
the American press. By the early 1900s, there were more than
150 comic
strips in syndication. However, it would not be until the early
1920s that daily
or Sunday installments of cartoons began to introduce
plotlines, which
spanned more than a single day.
Today, comic strips are a staple in newspapers, and many
comic strip char
acters are the subject of books, movies, and television
programs. However,
similar to other American traditions, African Americans are not
historically
the main subject of comic strips, nor are their experiences
chronicled in
nationally recognized and respected syndicated comic strips.
While there are
dozens of syndicated White cartoonists, there are less than a
dozen popular
African American syndicated cartoonists in mainstream
American newspa
pers. Some of the most popular African American cartoons and
cartoonists
are Robb Armstrong's Jump Start, Ray Billingsley's Curtis,
Stephen Bent
ley's Herb and Jamaal, Jerry Craft's Mama s Boyz, and Aaron
McGruder's
The Boondocks.
McGruder is one of the newest and arguably the most famous
and success

ful African American cartoonist. The Boondocks started within
the Univer
sity of Maryland's Diamondback student newspaper in 1997.
After striking
an agreement with Universal Press Syndicate, The Boondocks
made its
national debut on April 19, 1999. His comic strip is syndicated
in about 350
newspapers, and an animated television show based on his
popular comic
strip began to air in November 2005 on Cartoon Network.
McGruder's origi
nally conceived his anime-style comic strip as a television
show, but he felt it
would be easier to have his creative work placed in newspapers
than on
2020 00:06:59 UTC
Figure I. The Boondocks main characters (left to right): Riley
Freeman, Huey Freeman, and
Robert Freeman
television (Owen, 2005). The cartoonist authored four best-
selling books of
his comic strips and coauthored another book of his work.
In the media, some called McGruder a "very dangerous Black
man" and

the "most dangerous Black man in America" because of the
views expressed
within the comic strip (Wickham, 2002, p. 11 A). McGruder is
an equal
opportunity critic who targets both African American and
White public fig
ures, including politicians, civil rights leaders, and entertainers
(McGruder,
2005). He is the archrival of Blacks who have "gone astray" as
well as Whites
whom he believes undermine the interests of his race
(Wickham, 2002, p.
11 A). His comic strip is categorized as more "in-your-face"
than "tongue-in
cheek" and is a mix of social commentary and comic relief
(Wickham, 2002,
p. 11 A). It touches on political and social issues, such as war,
religion, socio
economics, and racism, and it is often the subject of much
controversy and
public debate. In response to the comic strip's content, many
publishers do
not publish those with potentially controversial topics or
offensive language
in their daily newspapers, do not pay for the rights to publish
the strip, or do
not place it in the Opinion-Editorial section, instead of on the
pages with
other comic strips. Examples of unpublished comic strips
include those cov
ering the fierce attack against the war in Iraq in 1991 and the
2003 comic
strips about the love life of Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice.
An Afrocentric Approach

Since each culture has its own set of values, language, and
ideologies, it is
important to analyze cultural discourse using the proper lens.
With McGruder
2020 00:06:59 UTC
being African American, it is best and most appropriate to view
his works
through the lens of Afrocentricity. Karenga (1988) posits
Afrocentricity is a
theoretical perspective founded in the human interests and
cultural images of
people from African descent. According to Molefi Asante
(2003), Afrocen
tricity is a mode of thought and action that places Africa at the
center and
African interests, values, and perspectives as dominant. This is
often seen as
a radical approach, because usually the Eurocentric approach is
reflected in
the White-centered hegemonic ideology of America. In
addition, to be Black
and an Afrocentric is to be against all forms of oppression,
including racism,
classism, child abuse, homophobia, patriarchy, pedophilia, and
White racial
domination (Asante, 2003, p. 2). Afrocentricity is a critical
component of

Black studies and allows scholars to have a different
perspective to under
stand the intellectual works of Africans and African Americans
that is not
Eurocentricity (Asante, 1998, p. 58).
African Americans have a unique culture independent of
mainstream White
America. Black culture is a reality (Chimezie, 1984).
Therefore, it is imperative
that Afrocentric methodologies are considered and connected to
African Ameri
can communication patterns (Jackson, 1995). To understand
communication,
one must understand the operative value of culture (Woodyard,
2003). Rhetoric
and culture are inseparable, and any attempt to interpret or
critique rhetoric must
take the influence of culture into consideration (Woodyard,
2003).
In order for an Afrocentric thinker to have a well-grounded
measure of
knowledge about experiences, one must understand that
discourse is to be
analyzed with the knowledge gained through cosmology,
society, religion,
medicine, and traditions (Asante, 1998). A non-Afrocentric
person operates
in a manner that is negatively unpredictable, disparages
traditions that give
people of African descent hope, and trivializes his own
mobility (Asante,
1998, p. 3). Afrocentricity is the centerpiece of human

regeneration; it chal
lenges and takes to task the perpetuation of White racial
supremacist ideas in
the imagination of the African world and, by extension, the
entire world
(Asante, 2003, p. 2).
Language is the standard and most easily identifiable
component of any
culture. Charles Green and Ian Smart (1997) liken people
without a sense of
cultural identity as a tree without roots, and they posit Africans
in the Dias
pora who live in North America have embarked upon an
unrelenting quest for
cultural identity. Since African Americans were long denied
the opportunity
to learn, read, and write standard English, Whites were able to
manipulate
their communication. However, African Americans have long
since been
resistant to the pressures and desires of White Americans to
speak proper
English (Green & Smart, 1997). In Race Rules: Navigating the
Color Line,
Michael Eric Dyson posits that African Americans always
sought literacy,
2020 00:06:59 UTC

because it provided them the opportunity to reinvent
themselves and to shape
their identities.
Asante (1998) and other scholars believe Ebonics is the
language of Afri
can Americans. It was named in 1973 as a combination of the
word ebony
and phonics (Green & Smart, 1997). The development of a
"Black vernacu
lar" is an essential form of resistance (Green & Smart, 1997).
While the dom
inant White culture has traditionally frowned upon Ebonics as
substandard
English, Asante (1998) insists "Ebonics is a creative enterprise,
born out of
the materials of interrelationships and the energies of the
African ancestral
past" (p. 69). Furthermore, Asante insists it is critical for the
African Ameri
can protester not to use rhetoric of the established order,
because the protes
tor cannot master the language as skillfully as those in the
established order.
Instead, by using a "Black discourse" with words, tones, and
sounds reflec
tive of the African American protesters culture, he subverts the
established
order through the use of "guerrilla rhetoric tactics" (Asante,
1998,
p. 128). Ultimately, Ebonics represents an intersection of
identity, language,
and resistance, and it is just one of the vehicles African
Americans can use to
liberate, cleanse, and humanize their culture in the "White
supremacist con

trolled and operated media" (Green & Smart, 1997).
Afrocentrists speak of liberation, harmony, and aim to raise
consciousness
of African Americans. Asante (1998, p. 171) posits that for the
African Ameri
can orator and writer, the quest for harmony is the ultimate
aspiration. For
Africans, attaining spiritual harmony is possible, and a person's
humanity is
linked to his pursuit and fulfillment of harmony (Alkebulan,
2003). From the
African American perspective, a healthy individual must be
harmonized to
ensure harmony within the society and one is "human only in
the midst of
others and the person is defined as human by performing
actions that lead to
harmony" (Asante, 1998, p. 200). The concepts of harmony and
liberation are
linked and become key components in Afrocentric discourse
(Jackson, 2003).
The concept of Maat brings these powerful and complex forces
together.
According to Karenga (1994), Maat evolves through seven
virtues of truth,
justice, propriety, harmony, balance, and reciprocity. In
addition, Asante
(1998) posits Maat applies to all Black culture, and Obenga
(1995) asserts
Maat is the ruling force between good and evil and provides
individuals with
an understanding of their role and interdependency with the
universe.

Manifestations of Nommo
In the African American community, nommo is a word that
generates power
to a speaker. McPhail (1996) urges people to recognize their
shared humility
2020 00:06:59 UTC
"coherence" with one another, with the goal of achieving
freedom from
oppression and domination. Based on an oral tradition, nommo
creates a
sense of "sharing, giving, generative, productive and ultimately
creative and
full of power" (Asante, 1998, p. 105). Nommo also defines the
idea of
messianism
where the speaker had to believe in a special calling not in the
mere
sense of a religious person who believes that she or he is called
to
preach, but more in the classical messianic sense of someone
who
believes she or he is called to lead people out of physical
bondage.
(Asante, 1998, p. 140)

Several scholars have viewed African American discourse
through the
manifestations of nommo (Clarke, 2004; Cummings & Roy,
2002; Yancy,
2004). However, Afrocentric scholars recognize the generative
power of
language or nommo (Cummings & Roy, 2002). According to
Yancy
(2004, p. 290), nommo is the creative "power of the word" that
identifies
life as its beginning and end. Yancy (2004, pp. 293-296) adds
nommo is a
means to define the Black self and lived experiences, has the
power "to
move Black folk toward a greater sense of community," and
provides
what is "fundamental to the traditional African world view."
Clarke
(2004) argues the concept of nommo represents the
instrumental power of
speech to bring forth African American selfhood and the Black
experi
ence. Numerous scholars believe one of the most important
reflections of
nommo is to maintain communal harmony (Asante, 1998;
Karenga,
2003). Karenga (1988) extends the power of nommo to
transcend both
time and space by asserting it allows people to move forward in
history
and society.
Nommo is not just about words, phrases, or linguistic
conventions, but it

is about how the power of language can influence and inform
all aspects of
African American life (Cummings & Roy, 2002). Nommo is
about using lan
guage not just to define African Americans' state in America
but to liberate a
people through education and understanding of the power
structures that
maintain the status quo. Nommo can be present in
interpersonal, public,
group, or even mass communication events that relate to the
African culture
and experiences (Cummings & Roy, 2002). Ten characteristics
often mani
fest themselves in the presence of nommo, which are rhythm,
soundin' out,
call and response, stylin', lyrical quality, improvisation,
historical perspec
tive, repetition, indirection, and mystification. These
manifestations have
been identified in many places, including speeches, closing
arguments in
2020 00:06:59 UTC
legal cases, poems, spirituals, and rap lyrics, and those
manifestations essen
tial to this work are discussed in the "Results and Discussion"

section.
Research Questions
While research on comic strips and their content is extensive,
there remains
little research focused on African American comic strips. In
addition, the
research conducted often analyzes content without situating the
findings
within the larger context of the African American community,
which is
important since the characters and creators are African
American. This
research attempts to do what has not been done in other
research focused on
The Boondocks by taking an applied approach to Afrocentricity
theory.
According to Walker and Greene (2006), the Afrocentric
approach is not an
attempt to ignore or belittle the viewpoints of others but to
bring attention to
the experience of communities whose voices have not been
historically heard
in an oppressive system (Walker & Greene, 2006).
Furthermore, one cannot
assume rhetorical discourse among African Americans is
Afrocentric or is a
positive reflection of the African American community. In fact,
it is often
"polluted, distorted and dismembered by the onslaught of
European images
and symbols" (Asante, 2008, p. 48).
This research attempts to answer the following questions:

1. Is the content of The Boondocks comic strip Afrocentric?
2. Are the 10 principles of nommo present with The Boondocks
comic
strip?
Method
For the purpose of this study, McGruder's last complete book
of compiled
syndicated comic strips, Public Enemy #2: An All-New
Boondocks Collec
tion, was analyzed. Published in 2005, the book features daily
and Sunday
comic strips from March 13, 2003 to November 13, 2004. In
total, the book
contained 164 comic strips, which were presented in the same
format as orig
inally published in newspapers across the country. The book is
the last of five
compilations of his comic strips. It followed the publications of
The Boon
docks: Because I Know You Don't Read the Newspaper in
October 2000,
Fresh for '01. . . You Suckas in July 2001, A Right to Be
Hostile in October
2003, and Birth of A Nation in August 2004. While McGruder
released
another book in October 2007 titled All the Rage, it did not
provide the same
amount of rich data as his final compilation, nor did it
represent the exact
content of the comic strip as seen in its syndicated form in
newspapers across

2020 00:06:59 UTC
the country. Instead, the book incorporated reprinted daily and
Sunday comic
strips, banned comics strips not printed in newspapers,
commentary from
Aaron McGruder concerning those comic strips, interviews, and
profiles.
Therefore, it was not analyzed.
A qualitative textual analysis was performed to determine if the
comic
strip's content represented key concepts present within
Afrocentric theory,
including elements such as liberation and harmony, as well as
the 10 mani
festations of nommo. This method is most effective, because it
goes beyond
simply counting instances of the presence of keywords within
texts. Instead,
it looks toward finding a deeper meaning within those texts.
Starosta (1984,
1988) notes a qualitative textual analysis does the following:
(a) explores the
rich meanings embedded in texts, (b) situates text in relation to
other texts
that serve as a reference of the text, and (c) locates the
significance of the text
in cultural and historical contexts. Furthermore, this method
examines cul

tural products as strong forces that shape contemporary culture
(Martin &
Nakayama, 2007). It is used to describe and interpret the
characteristics of
recorded or visual messages through the analysis of language,
symbols, num
bers, and nonverbal cues through rhetorical criticism and the
use of content,
interaction, and discourse analysis (Frey, Botan, & Kreps,
2000).
Results and Discussion
After an extensive analysis of the 164 comic strips, it was
determined that
The Boondocks both exhibited Afrocentric thought and 5 of the
10 manifesta
tions of nommo. While the characters and creator of The
Boondocks are Afri
can American, this did not guarantee the comic strip did not
echo dominate
Eurocentric ideology present within the United States.
However, through the
actions of and worldview held by the cartoon characters,
McGruder repre
sented elements of Afrocentricity designed to liberate the
consciousness of
African Americans and teach them about the American power
structures
keeping them in their current state.
Displaying the Fundamentals of Afrocentricity

What Afrocentricity demands of its followers is an emic not
etic perspective.
Afrocentrists and Afrocentric works must be delivered from an
insider's per
spective. There must be an understanding of what is the
African descendant's
experience in America, what challenges have been faced by the
people, what
has been accomplished, what still must be accomplished, and
what is stand
ing in the way of liberation and equality of African Americans.
In the January
25, 2005, comic strip, McGruder's character Huey seems to
provide insight
2020 00:06:59 UTC
into the creator's purpose when he notes comedy should
"expose the folly"
of the world and that comedians should use their humor to
"question the
status quo."
McGruder brings his Afrocentric message to comic strip
readers through
the personalities, character names, plots, and dialogue. The
main characters
are Huey Freeman and his younger brother Riley, who were
moved to the

predominantly White suburb of Woodcrest, Illinois, by their
grandfather (see
Figure 1). On the cover of the book under study, Huey is
depicted in a manner
similar to a mug shot with classic references to his physical
characteristics.
His race is described as "Black as the Ace of Spades" and his
nationality is
"(Un)American." As explained in the May 4, 1999, comic strip,
10-year-old
Huey is named after Black Panther Huey P. Newton. His last
name can relate
to the desire of African Americans to be free in America.
Huey's discourse is
considered to be that of a Black national and is very critical of
many aspects
of modern African American culture, politics, racism, elitism,
socioeconom
ics, and other societal ills. The issues raised by this young
African American
boy could be viewed as extraordinary or peculiar, but
McGruder stated, "It's
always easier to use kids to get across threatening ideas in a
non-threatening
way" (Joy, 2005, p. C9). This speaks to a longstanding
technique in Black
humor called inversion. This comedic technique is referred to
as "universe
changing," and it defines instances in which role reversals and
situations are
used in jokes to inspire laughter (Levine, 1977).
Riley possesses many of the opposite characteristics of Huey.
He is
engulfed in Hip Hop culture, enamored by "thug life," lacks

cultural knowl
edge, and often represents those aspects of the African
American culture his
brother criticizes. Michael Caesar, Huey's best friend, is a
sounding board for
Huey's ideas and acts both critical and supportive of his
concepts. The tragic
mulatto character often represented in the U.S. media is also
present in The
Boondocks. Jazmine is a biracial young girl, who by Huey's
account, is out
of touch with her African ancestry. Her father, Thomas Dubois,
is a lawyer
and National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People member.
His name is a reference to W.E.B. DuBois and the racial
stereotype Uncle
Tom, who is a docile, selfless, kind, and supportive African
American who
panders to the needs of White Americans (Bogle, 1974).
Language
McGruder not only uses Ebonics as a form of resistance, but he
also speaks
of resistance and the power structures that oppress African
Americans. Ebon
ics was noted throughout the dialogue of the main characters.
Examples of
2020 00:06:59 UTC

words and phrases used are deez, sista gurl, bruh,f'real, Yo,
Spit game at,
I'm da bomb, F'shizzle, I got jacked, whuppins,
youknowhowwedo, and
Nigga, which is presented in the cartoon as "N***A." In an
interview,
McGruder addressed his use of nigger in his television show. "I
think it
makes the show sincere. At a certain point, sometimes we use
bad language,
and the N-word is used so commonly now, not only by myself
but people I
know, that I feel it's fake to write around it and not use it"
(Owen, 2005, para.
17). One might assume the same holds true for the use of the
word in his
comic strip too.
An example of the use of Ebonics is in the January 1, 2004,
comic strip.
Caesar is depicted in the exercise of establishing an Ebonics
nickname for the
changing year. Examples of names he suggested included "the
deuce-double
oh-quad," "the two-k-quatro," and "the dub and four pennies."
McGruder
asserts that Ebonics is a part of African American dialect,
regardless of socio
economic status. In the July 18, 2003, comic strip, the two
main characters
ponder whether Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice uses
Ebonics. Caesar
speculates whether she speaks with her friend about having to
…

2015, Vol. 46(5) 506 –520
© The Author(s) 2015
Reprints and permissions:
sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0021934715583664
jbs.sagepub.com
Article
Black Feminist-Womanist
Research Paradigm:
Toward a Culturally
Relevant Research Model
Focused on African
American Girls
LaShawnda Lindsay-Dennis1
Abstract
Black Feminist and Womanist theories are culturally based
perspectives
that take into consideration the contextual and interactive
effects of
herstory culture, race, class, gender, and other forms of
oppression. These
frameworks provide a contextualized understanding of African
American
girls’ experiences and perspectives. The purpose of this article
is to provide

an overview of the current status of research about African
American girls.
In addition, this article demonstrates the need for a theoretical
perspective
that can be used to produce research that accurately examines
the lives
of African American girls. Major themes of Black Feminist
Thought and
Womanism will serve as a viable theoretical framework for
studying this
population. Last, principles of a Black Feminist-Womanist
research model
will be defined.
Keywords
African American girls, Black Feminisim, Womanism,
culturally responsive
research
1Paine College, Augusta, GA, USA
Corresponding Author:
LaShawnda Lindsay-Dennis, Department of Education, Paine
College, 1235 15th Street,
Candler Memorial Library 101F, Augusta, GA 30904, USA.
Email: [email protected]
583664 JBSXXX10.1177/0021934715583664Journal of Black
StudiesLindsay-Dennis
research-article2015
mailto:[email protected]
http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1177%2F00219347
15583664&domain=pdf&date_stamp=2015-04-23
Lindsay-Dennis 507

In general, African American1 girls are an understudied group
in educational
research (Lindsay-Dennis, 2010; Rozie-Battle, 2002). Most
often, they
appear in the research literature as comparison groups for
African American
boys and White girls. As a scholar with a vested interest in
African American
girls, I have noticed a shift in this area of inquiry. In 2009, the
Institute for
Women’s Policy Research released Black Girls in New York
City: Untold
Strength and Resilience (Jones-DeWeever, 2009). This report
was one of the
first publicly disseminated strength-focused work on African
American girls.
Prior to 2009, a search of public and research databases using
the terms
African American girls, Black girls, and African American
female adoles-
cents mostly resulted in empirical and theoretical sources that
focused on risk
behaviors (sexual behaviors, teenage pregnancy, obesity, sexual
attitudes,
HIV/AIDS, and drug use). Focusing on the “problems” that
African American
girls face pose to society has not furthered scholarship on the
Black girlhood
or their lived experiences. Instead, deficit-focused research
reinforces a one-
dimensional view of African American girls as loud,
unintelligent, sexually
promiscuous, and welfare dependent (Stephens & Phillips,
2003; Townsend,
Thomas, Neilands, & Jackson, 2010).

A large portion of research about Black girlhood utilizes a
positivistic per-
spective, which focuses on variables that are “measurable” and
“observable.”
A positivist approach to research is based on the belief that
knowledge is
gained from positive verification of observable experience as
opposed to
introspection or intuition. Positivistic research focuses on
prediction and con-
trol, empirical verification, and value-free research (Cohen &
Crabtree,
2006). With this perspective, it is difficult for researchers to
determine the
interpretive effects of metaphysical experiences. For example,
positivism
does not allow investigation of the residual effects of
multigenerational
trauma through continued oppression (Leary, 2005). Ignoring
this aspect of
Black girlhood fails to situate girls’ experiences and their
perspectives within
the appropriate cultural context. This limitation contributes to a
pathological
view of African American girls’ behaviors in which they are
viewed out of
context. Therefore, perspectives that consider the
“immeasurable” aspect of
Black girlhood is greatly needed (Evans-Winters & Esposito,
2010).
In addition, positivistic research stresses the importance of an
objective
and dispassionate stance in the research process. Within this
framework, a

realist ontological stance, which assumes that there are real-
world objects
apart from the human knower, is used to conduct an
investigation (Cohen &
Crabtree, 2006). A dispassionate researcher allegedly suspends
personal bias,
feelings, and thoughts about a topic and/or participants.
Possessing a dispas-
sionate view of research is believed to increase validity and
credibility of
one’s study. However, possessing an objective and
dispassionate stance does
not ensure that one’s research is credible and valid. Personal
bias influences
what is studied, who is studied, how it is studied, how the data
are interpreted,
and what conclusions are drawn (V. G. Thomas & Miles, 1995).
Research
that has consistently portrayed African American girls as “the
problem” is a
direct result of and will continue to produce one-dimensional
views of
African American girls’ developmental trajectory.
The Need for a Culturally Relevant Research
Model
Since 2009, there has been steady increase in information about
African
American girls in research and public spheres. This “sudden”
interest in Black

girls is best documented by recent reports. These reports
include Black Girls
Matter: Pushed Out, Overpoliced and Underprotected
(Crenshaw, Ocen, &
Nanda, 2015); Unlocking Opportunity for African American
Girls: A Call to
Action for Educational Equity (Smith-Evans & George, 2014);
The State of
Girls: Unfinished Business Black/African American Girls (Girl
Scouts, 2013);
Race, Gender, and the “School to Prison Pipeline”: Expanding
Our Discussion
to Include Black Girls (M. W. Morris, 2012); Black Girls in
Franklin County,
Ohio: Progress, Power and Possibility (Reno, Stanley, Staats,
Baek, & Jemczura,
2011); and Placing Black Girls at Promise: Report of the Rise
Sister Rise Study
(Frazier, Belliston, Brower, & Knudsen, 2011). These reports
documented the
multifaceted, complex, and unique experiences of African
American girls.
Other Black female scholars have made tremendous strides to
widen the
scope of educational and psychological research about African
American
girls (Belgrave, 2009; Brown, 2009; Evans-Winters & Esposito,
2010;
Lindsay-Dennis & Cummings, 2014; Love, 2012; A. Thomas,
Speight,
Turner-Essel, & Barrie, 2012; Townsend, 2008; Townsend et
al., 2010; Winn,
2010). However, culturally relevant theories and research
methodology to
study African American girls have lagged behind the research in

this area.
Evans-Winters and Esposito (2010) state,
Girls of African descent are at the bottom of the social totem
pole in society;
thus, there is an urgent need for a theoretical framework that
serves to expose,
confront and eradicate race, class and gender oppression in our
families,
communities and schools. (p. 22)
Limitations of Developmental Theories
Given the influx of interest in this area, there is a demonstrated
need to utilize
culturally relevant research paradigms that do not rely solely on
positivism
Lindsay-Dennis 509
and normative developmental theories (Wong & Rowley, 2001).
Many devel-
opmental theories are based on middle-class, White male norms.
This does
not suggest that challenges associated with membership in
devalued racial/
ethnic, gender, and economic groups directly cause any
particular develop-
mental outcome. However, problems arise when deviations from
White, male
normative behavior is perceived as negative and interpreted as
evidence of
maladjustment. For example, identity development theory
proposes identity

formation is achieved once a youth develops a sense of self that
is indepen-
dent of family relationships. For girls and ethnic minorities, a
sense of self is
developed in relation to one’s family. Applying traditional
identity theory to
African American girls would suggest that they are not meeting
developmen-
tal trends (Townsend, 2008). In contrast, consideration of
culture would help
one to understand Black female identity development.
Therefore, examining
African American girls’ experiences within a cultural context
can better
inform this domain of research.
Black Feminism and Womanism: A Dual Cultural Lens
Furthering the scholarship on African American girls requires
scholars to
integrate existing theories and/or develop theories that provide
an appropriate
lens to accurately identify, name, interpret, and write about this
group’s expe-
rience (Few, Stephens, & Rouse-Arnett, 2003). Black Feminist
Thought and
Womanism are culturally based perspectives that take into
consideration the
contextual and interactive effects of herstory, culture, race,
class, gender, and
other forms of oppression (V. G. Thomas, 2004). These
frameworks encour-
age incorporation of African American girls’ social location in
the research
process. Collectively, Black Feminist Thought and Womanism
situates

African American girls’ development, attitudes, and behaviors
in a cultural
context. Although Black Feminist Thought and Womanism are
different theo-
retical frameworks (refer to Table 1), both theories allow for
examination of
the Black female psyche and social experiences, providing a
means to con-
textualize Black girlhood.
Black Feminist Thought centers on African American girls’
experiences
and empowers them with the right to interpret their reality and
define their
experiences (Taylor, 1998). The guiding premise of this
perspective is that
“academic knowledge” and “everyday experiences” should
guide research-
ers’ theorizing about African American girls. In addition, Black
feminism
situates “academic knowledge” and “everyday experiences”
within the con-
text of racial, gender, and class oppression. These intersecting
oppressive
forces shape the collective and individual worldviews,
behaviors, and out-
comes of African American girls. There are four principles of
Black Feminist
Thought: (a) concrete experience as a criterion of meaning, (b)
use of dia-
logue in assessing knowledge claims, (c) an ethic of caring, and

(d) an ethic
of responsibility. Each domain lends meaning to the lived
experiences of
Black girls.
Adding Womanism into this discussion further contextualizes
research
about Black girlhood. Many scholars view Womanism as
another term for,
extension of, or a form of Black feminism (Banks-Wallace,
2000; Collins,
2000). However, Phillips and McCaskill (2006) define
Womanism as a sepa-
rate concept with its own goals, characteristics, and methods
that are not
equivalent to Black feminism. The central principle of
Womanism is the
absolute necessity of speaking from and about one’s own
experiential loca-
tion (Phillips & McCaskill, 2006). Womanism is a social change
methodol-
ogy that stems from everyday experiences of Black women and
their modes
of solving practical problems. The goals of Womanism include
using
Table 1. Overview of Black Feminist Thought and Womanism.
Black feminist thought
(Collins, 2000)
Womanism
(Phillips, 2006)
Purpose Empowerment self-definition Social change
Activism

Ending all forms of oppression
Guiding
premise
African American women
share the common
experience of being Black
in a society that denigrates
women of African descent
Black womanhood serves
as the origin point for a
speaking position that freely
and autonomously addresses
any topic or problem
Characteristics Lived experience as a criterion
of meaning
Use of dialogue in assessing
knowledge claims
Ethic of caring
Ethic of personal accountability
Anti-oppressionist
Vernacular
Non-ideological
Communitarian
Spiritualized
Values Everyday intellectuals
Lived experiences
Within group diversity

Outsider within status
Communal mothering
Everyday experiences and
problem solving
Dialogue
Cultural harmony
Self-help and mutual aid
Arbitration and mediation
Spirituality
Motherhood
Healing
Lindsay-Dennis 511
everyday people to solve problems, ending all forms of
oppression for all
people, restoring the balance between people and nature, and
reconnecting
humans with the spirit realm.
Womanism encourages researchers to examine intergenerational
survival
strategies used to achieve and maintain balance among people,
nature, and the
spiritual world. These survival strategies include mothering,
dialoguing, using
mutual aid/self-help, and spirituality as a means for solving
problems. Black
girls learn these strategies through socialization. Socialization
constitutes the

indirect and direct messages transmitted from one generation to
the next that
contribute to identity formation. Mothers, grandmothers, and
other mothers
teach/show Black girls how to use these strategies to navigate
through multi-
ple spaces. Womanism stresses the importance of viewing
intergenerational
strategies of survival as an intuitive and measurable process.
Collectively, Black feminism and Womanism acknowledge that
African
American girls inherit an unearned legacy of race, gender, and
class oppres-
sion as descendants of the only group of women that were
enslaved and
brought to the United States to work, to produce, and to
reproduce (Collins,
2000; Shorter-Gooden & Washington, 1996). Black feminism
and Womanism
recognize that many African American girls thrive in a unique
racial and gen-
dered context, which shapes their worldviews, emotional and
behavioral
responses. The experiences of Black girls are clearly
intersectional and can-
not be adequately explained with an isolated emphasis on either
race or gen-
der. Black feminism and Womanism provide a dual lens for
researchers to
authentically investigate the nuances of Black girlhood. Also,
Black femi-
nism and Womanism provide a means for examining African
American girls
through a strength-oriented perspective by placing them at the
center of anal-

ysis. This dual lens forces one to examine the intersection of
race, gender,
class, sexuality, and socially defined markers of identity that
impact Black
girls’ lives.
Black Feminist-Womanist (BFW) Research:
Defined
BFW research is a culturally congruent model to guide studies
about African
American girls. This research paradigm allows for consideration
of intersec-
tionality and metaphysical aspects of African American girls’
cultural perspec-
tives, and demonstrates a commitment to social change and
community
building. This paradigm invites researchers to view their
research on a con-
tinuum rather than isolated acts of data collection. More
specifically, this pro-
cess includes examining young African American girls’
decisions and actions
as outputs related to their worldviews and experiences. BFW
researchers
understand that African American girls do not develop in a
vacuum. The BFW
research paradigm acknowledges that only within the context of
the commu-
nity does the individual appear and, through dialogue, continues
to emerge

(Dillard, 2000). As a result, the researcher recognizes that
intergenerational
transmission of worldviews, behaviors, and coping mechanisms
affects Black
girls’ development (Banks-Wallace, 2000; Collins, 2000;
Phillips, 2006).
Unlike positivistic, dispassionate research modalities, BFW
research
encourages active engagement and passion to guide the research
process.
Therefore, one’s cultural lens and experiences is not bracketed
for the sake of
validity and credibility. A researcher’s multiple identities
(cultural, race, eth-
nicity, gender, sexual, religion, and spiritual) shape her or his
interest in,
engagement with, and responsibility to African American girls
(Dillard,
2000). A passionate, engaged approach to research forces the
individual to
explore the meaning of one’s lived experience and research
training. This
reflection process helps the researcher to determine whether
those experi-
ences infer with the study of Black girlhood.
A BFW researcher has a deep sense of personal and professional
responsi-
bility to the Black girlhood scholarship. For many African
American women,
research about African American girls is both an intellectual
and spiritual
pursuit of purpose, whereby one’s own lived experiences
emerge (Dillard,
2000) and serve as an impetus for social and personal change.

For many
African American female scholars, the connection between their
intellectual
pursuits and spiritual awareness is a metaphysical reality that
must be
acknowledged (Heath, 2006; Phillips, 2006). Allowing these
experiences to
come forth in research process honors the phenomenological
experience of
researcher and the population under investigation. Often, this
research is an
extension of them. Therefore, honoring and validating the whole
self in the
research process creates a space for self-definition, healing, and
wholeness.
Researcher Role as Bricoleur
A BFW researcher may often experience difficulty when trying
to construct a
literature view about African American girls using available
sources within
one’s academic discipline. For example, a recent search about
“African
American girls’ experiences in school” yielded about 30
sources; only about
15 to 20 articles have been published within the last 10 years.
Constructing a
literature review with these limited sources will undoubtedly
provide an
underdeveloped synopsis about Black girls’ experiences in
schools. BFW
research proposes that gathering all relevant information will
help to uncover
intricacies of African American girls’ lives. Therefore, using
multiple sources

of information provides a means to examine a variety of issues
and causes of
Lindsay-Dennis 513
Black girls’ behavior (Stephens, Phillips, & Few, 2009).
Therefore, it is
imperative for the BFW researcher to read widely to gain a
comprehensive
understanding of the developmental trends and cultural
strengths that African
American girls employ in their everyday lives. This process
includes explor-
ing literature outside of one’s immediate discipline (Evans-
Winters &
Esposito, 2010).
The ability to conceptualize one’s research agenda using
information
from multiple disciplines is a vital aspect of BFW research.
This “Jill of all
trades” scholarship embraces flexibility and plurality by
amalgamating
multiple disciplines, multiple methodologies, and varying
theoretical per-
spectives. The “Jill of all trades” metaphor is drawn from the
French word
bricoleur, which describes a handywoman who makes use of the
tools
available to complete a task (Kincheloe, 2001). Bricoleurs view
the research
process as involving far more than one “correct” procedure and
source of
information. Within the African American context, a bricoleur

is parallel to
a quilt maker, Black woman, who stitches scraps of fabric to
create a quilt
that often depicts her family heritage. Similarly, the researcher
stitches
theoretical scraps, and methodologies to create comprehensive
“quilt” cap-
tures the essence of African American girls’ worldview,
behaviors, and psy-
chosocial outcomes (Banks-Wallace, 2000; Kincheloe, 2001;
Sheared,
1994).
Not only does the BFW scholar approach research using wide
lens, but she
also recognizes the ethic of risk that permeates educational and
social science
literature (Beauboeuf-Lafontant, 2002). This does not translate
into ignoring
the risks that African American girls face; however, it does
require that girls
are always the focal point of the research (Collins, 2000).
Centering the
research on Black girls moves them from the margins to the
heart of the
inquiry. Based on the BFW perspective, the researcher
understands that per-
sonal bias influences decisions about research questions, data
collection, and
data analysis procedures. Instead of ignoring these nuances,
acknowledgment
of how personal assumptions about Black girlhood impact the
investigation
is critical. Although it is not necessary for one to suspend
personal beliefs and
experiences, it is necessary to monitor personal biases and

assumptions. One
strategy that a researcher can use to monitor bias is to keep
extensive field
notes and journal about the entire process. This information can
also be used
to record beliefs and judgments. Awareness of bias can lessen
the likelihood
of inaccurately interpreting the data, silencing the participants,
and ignoring
the diverse experiences and perceptions of participants (Few et
al., 2003).
Thus, the researcher relies on personal responsibility and self-
awareness to
ensure that studies conducted about/on African American girls
is rigorous,
authentic, and accurate (Collins, 2000).
The BFW perspective stresses the understanding of how
intersecting iden-
tities and personal differences may enhance and impede a
researcher’s ability
to gain access to Black girls. Therefore, a researcher should not
assume one’s
race/ethnicity and gender will result in immediate access, trust,
and insider
status. Differences in experience, age, geographical location,
job status, edu-
cation, socioeconomic status, sexuality, and many other factors
may relegate
a researcher to an outsider status. To be awarded insider status,
the researcher
must demonstrate a level of high commitment, ethic of caring,

and personal
accountability to the girls and their parents.
Employing culturally congruent research methods to ensure that
Black
girlhood is at the center of the analysis is another component of
BFW
research. Placing Black girls at the center of analysis requires
the use of inno-
vative research methods (Few et al., 2003). One of the goals of
BFW research
is to provide a space for self-definition for marginalized
individuals; there-
fore, the sole usage of quantitative methods is often ineffective.
Providing
opportunities for African American girls to share their
experiences is an
important aspect of the self-definition process (Banks-Wallace,
2000).
Research designs that facilitate dialogue, accompanied by
reflection of ideas/
theories generated throughout this process, may enhance
participants’ ability
to speak for themselves, name their own experiences, and make
decisions
about their lives. Dialoging and sharing stories in the research
context can
provide opportunities for healing because it may allow some
African
American girls to share experiences, knowledge, and/or
exchange wisdom
that is often devalued in other settings (Lindsay-Dennis,
Cummings, &
McClendon, 2011). Providing this opportunity for Black girls
transmits an
important message communicating to them that they are capable

generators,
interpreters, and validators of knowledge and their lived
experiences (Phillips
& McCaskill, 2006).
Quantitative measures can also silence African American girls
by forcing
them to rate themselves and their lived experiences on scales
that are cultur-
ally incongruent. Many educational and psychosocial
assessments, survey,
and measures lack cultural validity for African American female
participants
(Tillman, 2002). Examining the cultural validity of research
tools is an impor-
tant aspect of advancing the scholarship on Black girlhood.
Although quanti-
tative methods have limitations, there are many advantages to
this approach.
Quantitative methods used in conjunction with qualitative
research methods
(i.e., focus groups, interviewing, and participant observation)
can enrich the
data. Quantitative methods utilized to expound upon reoccurring
themes that
emerge from several qualitative studies can further our
understanding of
African American girls’ development. Adding voices behind the
numbers can
be a powerful way to enact social change and community
building.
Lindsay-Dennis 515

The BFW scholar does not assume that conducting qualitative
research
with African American girls is a simple task. In fact,
individuals that con-
duct research with this population must be prepared to engage
in participa-
tory witnessing. Participatory witnessing includes active
engagement of the
self in the research, which includes being physically present and
actively
involved in all aspects of steps of research plan (Taylor, 1998).
Participatory
witnessing may also involve sharing one’s lived experiences,
paper (i.e.,
academic) credentials, and professional obligations with
research partici-
pants (Banks-Wallace, 2000). The researcher can demonstrate
an ethic of
personal responsibility by establishing credibility at the
beginning of the
research project. For example, researchers would need to show a
vested
interest in learning from the participants. The BFW investigator
must also
recognize that historical experiences of racism and unethical
research have
contributed to intergenerational mistrust of research. Therefore,
demon-
strating a commitment to the community that extends beyond
data collec-
tion is essential. Collaborating with participants to analyze the
data will not
only increase content validity but also demonstrate an ethic of
caring.
Reciprocal dialogue with the research community is a critical
aspect of

BFW research (Collins, 2000; Phillips, 2006). Dialogue that
communicates
the importance of “telling our stories” and acknowledges the
wholeness of
African American girls’ experiences strengthens the richness of
the data. A
dialogical relationship increases the researcher’s ability to
engage partici-
pants in authentic ways. It also provides a means to better
understand the
sociocultural, individual, and other nuanced factors that
influence the vari-
ables under investigation (Banks-Wallace, 2007). Researchers
can gain
significant additional insight into Black girlhood by observing
and partici-
pating in dialogue with community members (i.e., African
American adult
women).
Last, a researcher who embraces the BFW perspective seeks to
give voice
to the participants and shares their voices with them. Thus, it is
important for
one to develop a plan to disseminate research findings in the
community
where the data were collected. Sharing the results with African
American
girls and their families shows the researcher’s commitment to
BFW research
goals, particularly social change and community building. As
the arbitrator
between Black girls and larger society, the BFW researcher has
a duty to dis-
seminate the information widely through traditional (scholarly
journal, pol-

icy reports, books, and conference presentation) and non-
traditional venues
(news media outlets, social media, and community
forum/workshops).
Employing these strategies helps to bridge the gap between
academic knowl-
edge and everyday life while creating opportunities for data-
driven social
change and community building.
Conclusion
The growing interests in African American girls as a social and
cultural group
calls for a unique methodology that contextualizes their
experiences and per-
spective. This article argues that Black Feminist Thought and
Womanism
have theoretical and methodological implications that should be
used to fur-
ther the scholarship about African American girls. By
identifying common
themes, principles, and research strategies’ within these
frameworks, the
BFW research paradigm has been established. This
comprehensive paradigm
can be used to ground the experiences and outcomes of Black
girls in a cul-
turally relevant, strength-focused way.
African American girls share the common devalued status of
being Black

and female in the United States (Collins, 2000; Phillips, 2006).
Grounding
investigations in BFW research principles can help to diversify
the research
on African American girlhood. Although commonalities among
African
American girls exist, this does not equate to universal truths
about Black
Girlhood. Many African American girls are considered to be
“resilient” given
their ability to adapt and achieve in contexts of familial, social,
and economic
risks; however, there is little investigation of this segment of
the African
American female population. To develop prevention and
intervention pro-
grams that speak to the unique and diverse needs of African
American girls,
there is a dire need to understand how some African American
girls are able
to maintain high self-esteem, develop healthy identities, achieve
academi-
cally, and thrive in psychologically and socially threatening
environments
(Fordham, 1993; E. W. Morris, 2007). BFW research provides a
comprehen-
sive understanding of risks; it also helps to examine the varied
responses and
strengths of African American girls.
African American girls are an understudied group in social
science and
education research (Rozie-Battle, 2002). Therefore, the BFW
research para-
digm calls for more systematic, authentic, well-informed
research that places

them at the center of the analysis. The BFW research paradigm
addresses this
gap by providing researchers with a culturally responsive
perspective …
Student Last Name 2
Student Name
AAS 27100
Ms. Xx
6 March 2020
“Surveying African American
Studies” Midterm Packet
Part I: African American
Studies
Harris, Robert L. “The
Intellectual and Institutional
Development of Africana
Studies.” The African
American Studies Reader,
2nd ed., edited by Nathaniel
Norment, Jr., Carolina
Academic Press, 2007,
395-400.
Karenga, Maulana.
Introduction to African
American Studies. Los
Angeles, University of
Sankore Press, 1982.
Part II: Afrocentricity
Stewart, James. “Reaching
for Higher Ground: Toward
an Understanding of Black/
Africana,” Africana Studies:

A Disciplinary Quest for
Both Theory and Method,
edited by James L. Conyers,
Jr., McFarland & Company,
1997, 108-29.
Asante, Molefi Kete.
Facing South to Africa:
Toward an Afrocentric
Critical Orientation,
Lexington Books, 2014.
ProQuest Ebook
Central, http://
ebookcentral.proquest.
com/lib/purdue/
detail.action?
docID=1776000.
Part III: Black Feminism/
Womanism
Aldridge, Delores.
“Womanist Issues in Black
Studies: Towards
Integrating Africana
Womanism into Africana
Studies,” Out of the
Revolution: The
Studies, edited by Delores
Aldridge and Carlene Young,
Lexington Books, 2002,
191-201.
Hudson-Weems, Clenora.
“Africana Womanism: An

Overview,” Out of the
Revolution: The
Studies, edited by Delores
Aldridge and Carlene Young,
Lexington Books, 2002,
205-217.
Part IV: Contemporary
Defining & Evolution of the
Field
Aldridge, Delores P.
“Women in the Development
of Africana Studies.”
Handbook of Black Studies,
edited by Molefi K. Asante
and Maulana Karenga, 2006,
51-66.
Guy-Sheftall, Beverly.
“African American Studies:
Legacies and Challenges:
‘What Would Black Studies
Be If We Listened to Toni
Cade?’” The Black Scholar,
vol. 35, no. 2, 2015, https://
doi.org/
10.1080/00064246.2005.11
413308. Accessed 22 Jan
2020.
Part V: Theoretical
Applications of Afrocentricity
and Black Feminism

Lindsay-Dennis,
LaShawnda. “Black
Feminist-Womanist
Research Paradigms:
Toward a Culturally Relevant
Research Model Focused on
African American Girls.”
Journal of Black Studies,
vol. 45, no. 5, 2015, https://
doi-
org.ezproxy.lib.purdue.edu/
10.1177/002193471558366
4. Accessed 22 Jan 2020.
Tyree, Tia C.M. and Adrian
Krishnasamy. “Bringing
Afrocentricity to the
Funnies: An Analysis of
Afrocentricity Within Aaron
McGruder’s ‘The
Boondocks’.” Journal of
Black Studies, vol. 42, no. 1,
2011, https://www.jstor.org/
stable/25780790. Accessed
22 Jan 2020.
Page 1 of 3
AAS 27100 Introduction to African American Studies (online)

“Surveying African American Studies” Midterm Packet
Instructions
Deadline: Friday, March 6, 2020 by 11:59 PM to Blackboard
Purpose: The central purpose of this assignment is for students
to collectively familiarize
themselves with the breath of terms, concepts, histories,
methods, and theories that comprise
African American Studies. Through a critical and concise
synthesizing of multiple works written
by multiple African American Studies scholars, students will be
able to comprehensively define
and conceptualize what African American Studies is and who it
serves as an academic discipline.
Additionally, this assignment will familiarize students with
prominent African American Studies
scholars whose works mark the origin and continued evolution
of African American Studies.
This assignment can then serve as a carefully composed
reference guide of African American
Studies’ core concepts and understandings that students can
utilize throughout the semester and
in future African American Studies courses.

Chapter4AfrocentricityandEducationCarterG.Woodsonw.docx

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