Digital Commons Network^™

Building In Struggle: A Home Buying Cooperative As A Transformative Asset Accumulation Enterprise- A Case Study Analysis, Angela Yaa Jones

Africana Studies Theses

The object of this study is twofold: One of the objectives is to analyze predatory lending practices as a result of the subprime market crisis and the effects it posed to African Americans wealth accumulation. And the second objective is to explore how the cooperative structure and principles examined through a case study analysis and analyzed within a soci-economic black political economy framework, has the capacity to be transformative in alleviating correlates caused by economic discrimination and economic disenfranchisement experienced by African Americans.

Black Matter: Re-Evaluating Representations Of Blackness Through Theatre Arts, Aubrey S. Williams

Africana Studies Theses

There are many studies that detail the misrepresentation of Black people or lack thereof in classic media (visual art, literature and theatre). This study seeks to explore how Blackness is represented in classic media: film, television, visual art and theatre and how these representations shape the consciousness of young Black and African American adults ages 18-25. Using a narrative research approach, this study explores the arc of Black representation in classic media beginning in the late 1800’s and ending with the Black Arts Movement. This study utilized an original stage play as a creative component to mirror the content of …

Teaching Black Kids When Black Excellence Isn't A Curriculum Priority - A Phenomenological Study, Letitia Y. Thornton

Africana Studies Theses

This study examines the Culturally Relevant Pedagogy (CRP) strategies of culturally aware teachers who serve high populations of African American students. This study posits that teachers share the phenomenon of classroom CRP implementation through creative, and sometimes covert tactics. This phenomenon exists since cultural relevance is often omitted in curriculum norms. This study seeks to provide field examples of CRP, allowing stakeholders to evaluate them for their audiences.

The theoretical framework for this phenomenological study is Critical Race Theory in Education. CRT in Education explains why CRP is necessary, contributing to the rationale that learning environments should support its implementation. …

The Hidden Curriculum: A Narrative Study On Instructors’ Need To Understand The Behavior & Schooling Of African American Youth Of Low Socioeconomic Status, Dia Bennett

Africana Studies Theses

The purpose of this study is to +understand the instructor perspective of their pedagogical approach to the needs of African American students of low socioeconomic status (SES) in urban school settings. Utilizing surveys and a questionnaire will prompt the dialogue for this narrative study. Thus, utilizing the narrative of the instructors will make their personal history and opinions an indicator for their choice of approach or if they recognize a need for specialized instruction for African American youth of low SES. This study will use a sample of 6 experienced and less experienced instructors teaching in urban low- income schools.

Folk Medicine Use Among The Gullah: Bridging The Gap Between Folk Medicine And Westernized Medicine, Tiara S. Banks

Africana Studies Theses

This study examined the practice of folk medicine among a group of African Americans living on the coast of the Sea Islands, the Gullah/Geechee. The Gullah/Geechee are descendants of enslaved Africans, transported from Western and West-Central Africa, who have preserved their African influenced culture consisting of language, food ways, rituals, and folk beliefs. Twenty members of the Gullah/Geechee community, including three nurses, participated in this study consisting of semi-structured interviews relating to the use of folk medicine. The findings revealed folk medicine use was linked to family influence and traditions, spirituality, mistrust of the medical community, dual health care, lack …

The Role Of Empowerment In The Job Search Process Of Re-Entering African American Men, Chloe Jackson

Africana Studies Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether Black men experienced empowerment throughout the process of employment preparation. This study also sought to give voice to this population regarding their experience in this process. A definition of empowerment, posed by Barbara Solomon of “empowerment theory”, was used to understand the process of empowerment the study participants may have experienced. Nine African American male former offenders who had participated in a job readiness program, and are 18 and older, were interviewed about the preparation they received, and how they perceived this training effected their pursuit of agency, employment, and recidivism.

Silence Is Not Golden: Attitudes Towards Suicide In The African American Community, Latrice Wright

Africana Studies Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the opinions of African American college students as they relate to suicide. A questionnaire was distributed to 92 individuals in a computer classroom setting. Their responses were then analyzed to investigate whether ethnic identity salience influenced the students’ perspectives of suicide. Regression analysis revealed that ethnic identity salience did not influence acceptability and normality of suicide in the African American students. Analysis also demonstrated that ethnic identity salience did not effect whether the African American students viewed suicide as being related to mental or moral illness. Seventeen of those who took the …

An Exploratory Study: Perceptions Of Power Dynamics And Sexual Decision-Making Among College-Age African American Women, Latisha Oliver

Africana Studies Theses

This qualitative grounded study explores power dynamics and its influence on sexual decision-making amongst college-age African American women. The film All of Us was shown to eighteen African American women to understand how they perceive power dynamics and sexual decision-making. Taking place at Georgia State University‟s main campus in Atlanta, focus groups and one on one interviews were implemented. Much of the research being conducted theorize that the risk factors regarding HIV infection are related to risky sexual decision-making and lack of consistent condom use; however this study concluded that there is a relationship between sexual decision-making and gendered power …