Africana Studies Commons^™

No Hair! Don't Care! Resistance And Empowerment Of Bald And Low Shaved Black Women, Monica Rivers

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

No Hair! Don’t Care! Resistance and Empowerment of Bald and Low Shaved Black Women is an invitation to discuss the experiences of Black women who choose to wear bald and low shaved haircuts. The project examines standards of beauty, femininity, sexuality, sexual harassment, self- acceptance, and self-expression through the voices of Black women: Because sometimes the biggest statement you can make with your hair is by having none.

Counterstories Of Black High School Students And Graduates Of Nyc Independent Schools: A Narrative Case Study, Kahdeidra M. Martin

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Public youth resistance movements in 2019 and 2020 exposed the entrenchment of racism, sexism, heteronormativity, and classism across New York City independent schools (NYCIS). In order to support the imminent need for schools to provide effective diversity, inclusion, and equity supports that address broad issues of school climate, relationships, and pedagogy, there is a need to better understand the specific, hyperlocal experiences of Black/African Descendant (BAD) students, who occupy several unique, unexplored spaces in educational research. The following four research questions helped to conceptualize the experiences that support and hinder the academic success and long term well-being of BAD students …

Toward The Black Indian Ocean: Race And The Human Project In The Afro-Asian Imagination, Micheal A. Rumore

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

“Toward the Black Indian Ocean: Race and the Human Project in the Afro-Asian Imagination” asks the question: why hasn’t the Indian Ocean been typically theorized as an African diasporic site? While the burgeoning discipline of Indian Ocean studies frequently positions notions of oceanic “cosmopolitanism” as a way of engaging with universalist anticolonial aspirations, the field has been limited by static conceptions of the African continent. In response, this dissertation argues that the marginalization of Black Africans in conceptions of Indian Ocean cosmopolitanism reflects a colonial provenance and attempts to delineate this representational history. Theoretically, I engage with Black feminist critiques …

The Ill-Treatment Of Their Countrywoman: Liberated African Women, Violence, And Power In Tortola, 1807–1834, Arianna Browne

Master's Theses

In 1807, Parliament passed an Act to abolish the slave trade, leading to the Royal Navy’s campaign of policing international waters and seizing ships suspected of illegal trading. As the Royal Navy captured slave ships as prizes of war and condemned enslaved Africans to Vice-Admiralty courts, formerly enslaved Africans became “captured negroes” or “liberated Africans,” making the subjects in the British colonies. This work, which takes a microhistorical approach to investigate the everyday experiences of liberated Africans in Tortola during the early nineteenth century, focuses on the violent conditions of liberated African women, demonstrating that abolition consisted of violent contradictions …

Archaeology And Settlement Histories Along The Pra River, Southern Ghana, Circa 500 B.C. – Ad 1970, Samuel Amartey

Dissertations - ALL

Archaeological and historical data are used to examine transformations in settlement organizationand settlement patterns along the Pra River, southern Ghana, from the first millennium BC to the mid-twentieth century. The study's focus is on Supomu Island and Wawase, two abandoned settlement sites located in the lower reaches of the Pra River, 15 kilometers north of the coastal trading and port town of Shama. Mapping of surface features, surface collections, shovel test pits, and test excavations are used to document intra- and inter-site artifact distributions. These lines of evidence are used in conjunction with historical sources to explore the processes of …

Racial Equity For Registered Drama Therapists: A Community Engagement Project, Jamila Batts Capitman

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Mental health professionals are currently faced with an increased need to meet the demands of clients of color who are disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 global pandemic. Disparities in mental health care for people of color are an ongoing problem stemming from the fact that Western Psychology, the dominant approach to mental health care, is limited by the Eurocentric Worldview. Practitioners who intend to create inclusive therapeutic approaches must consider the unique cultural orientations and historical, social and political realities of clients of color. As of 2021, The North American Drama Therapy Association (NADTA) requires that 50% of all continuing …

A Vanguard At The Intersections: Black Girls And The Black Panther Party's Oakland Community School, Logan Phillips

Senior Honors Papers / Undergraduate Theses

This thesis explores the history and legacy of the Oakland Community School (OCS), a community survival program created by the Black Panther Party (BPP) that ran from 1973-1982. More specifically, the work analyzes the significance of the pedagogy at OCS as it relates to the development of African American students' racial consciousness and identity formation. Despite popular misconceptions of the Black Panther Party, this research seeks to demystify the Party, provide an understanding of the critical need for education as a site of liberation, and explore the Party’s effort to establish an educational space that impacted the development of identity, …

Producer Interview: Teak Underdue, Kris Jones

Backstage Pass

This interview is with three-time Grammy-nominated music producer Teak Underdue of Hallway Productions. He discusses his background and the path he has taken to become a well respected music creator and producer. The interviewee offers advice for aspiring producers on how to build their reputation and credits in the music industry.

Black Lives Matter, Randal Mckoy

Capstone Collection

The notion of systematic racism continues to exist even today among African-Americans. The systematic racism that they face prevails in every area of their life, whether it is social or economical. This paper examines the experiences of systematic racism that African Americans go through in their daily lives and to what extent they believe that reparations can be used to address those inequalities and be a means to overcome racism in the United States. The literature reviewed focused on various aspects on the history of racism and inequality in the United States, systematic barriers in education, as well as the …

De La Esclavitud A La Libertad: La Historia De Una Esclava Afromexicana, Margaree G. Jackson

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

Resumen: “De la esclavitud a la libertad: La historia de una esclava afromexicana,” es una colección de poemas descolonizados contados desde la perspectiva de una mujer afromexicana ficticia del siglo XVII. La protagonista, Maricela Rivas, es una esclava que nació en la plantación azucarera Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, una plantación verdadera ubicada en Veracruz, México. Su historia se basa en las pocas historias que existen sobre la vida de la mujer afromexicana que formaba parte esencial de la sociedad y cultura mexicana pero que le falta representación y una voz. Estos poemas le dan una voz y perspectiva al …

Home, Kandace James

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

My feature-length screenplay follows an anxious girl who, after her mother kicks her out of the house, is forced to live in her car. She’s in love with the dog walker but she’s the one who got her kicked out in the first place. Possessing the voices of queer, Black women, I display one possible outlook on the queer experience. “Home” broadens the narrative of young Black girls lived realities in America. “Home” depicts the realities of what it means to be young, Black, queer women in a world marked with religiosity, abuse, and grief, while in the process of …

Ethiopia: A Rising Regional Power?, Makeda Fikremariam

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

This study analyzes Ethiopia's potential to be considered a rising regional power in East Africa. This project began with a qualitative analysis considering literature on hegemony, and broadly accepted regional powers within the International community. It then considers regional powers within the African context (Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa) to gain an understanding in how the existing literature fits within Africa. The second substantial chapter then considers prominent Ethiopian leaders whose legacy is still felt in the 21st century, including individuals such as Emperor Menelik and Haile Selassie. This analysis shows Ethiopia's complex history which complicates the country's ability to …

In With A Runny Nose, Out In A Body Bag: Why Is It So Difficult For Black Women To Leave The Hospital Alive?, Chelsea Carter

Liberal Arts Capstones

In the Black community, there is an unspoken understanding about going to the doctor with a runny nose, and leaving in a body bag. A recent article published by The Oprah Magazine demonstrates that racism is rampant in the United States healthcare system, and it is taking the lives of Black women at an alarmingly disproportionate rate (Stallings, 2018). When seeking medical treatment, many Black women are at the mercy of doctors who hold an implicit bias against Black women. Simply put, implicit bias describes when people behave and treat others based on negative preconceptions they have about other people, …

Amjambo Africa! (May 2021), Kathreen Harrison

Amjambo Africa!

In this Issue

Chad’s president dies.........2/3

Corruption in Africa.........2/3

Maine & slave trade..............5

Vaccine pause/editorial .......6

Portland Empowered..........12

Onyx Emelo photo essay ...13

Liberation Farms photo essay.......................14

A taste of Jamaica................15

Support for AAPIcommunity........................17

Midcoast Literacy................18

Amran Osman.....................19

Minorities in Healthcare....20

Finance.................................21

Guest Columnists/community voices.....................24/25/26

Ekhlas Ahmed.....................27

Ryan Adams.........................28

Cynthia McGuirl.................28

Navigating benefits.............29

Racial justice........................31

Translations

French..................................7

Swahili.................................8

Somali..................................9

Kinyarwanda.....................22

Portuguese.........................23

Look Over Here: A Brief History And Exhibition Of Black Women In Photography, Millie Drury

English and Creative Writing Presentations

This is an informative online photography exhibition. It contains a brief history of black women in photography before presenting ten black female photographers in chronological order according to years active with a short profile and examples of their work. This exhibition is meant to give students and faculty exposure to the work of black female photographers and understand the history behind their present status in the field.

"Positive Discrimination Doesn't Mean Anything": Understanding Black French Ambivalence Toward Affirmative Action, Crystal M. Fleming, Hewan Girma

Africana Studies: Faculty Publications

Using in-depth qualitative interviews with French Caribbeans of African descent (N=52) in the Paris region, this study examines minority perspectives on the possibility of racial or ethnic affirmative action in France. Through a narrative analysis of their justifications for supporting or criticizing affirmative action, we find that the majority of our respondents expressed reservations over the possibility of quotas and other affirmative action initiatives, with many describing ambivalent views and mixed emotions. In explaining their discomfort with the idea and implementation of affirmative action, respondents point to concerns over the efficacy and legitimacy of such policies, a moral defense of …

Hip Hop Urbanist Reconstructions: Strategies & Tactics For Spatial Reparations, Isaac Howland

Architecture Senior Theses

No abstract provided.

Comparing African Cultural Retention And Its Effect On Racial Attitudes In The Music And National Identities Of Cuba And The United States, Lucie Turkel

Honors Scholar Theses

This project investigates to what extent the African roots of popular music in Cuba and the United States are acknowledged and examines if this level of cultural acknowledgement has any influence on the postcolonial social, cultural, and economic treatment of African Americans and Afro-Cubans. Does a greater and/or more widespread acceptance of African cultural retention and overall African heritage in a country’s national identity help alleviate racism in that country? Using primary sources from Cuban and American music and cultural periodicals, economic statistics, and political and cultural histories, I have determined that Cuba has a higher level of African cultural …

A Stolen Culture: The Harmful Effects Of Cultural Appropriation, Amirah Lockhart

Honors Theses

Entertainment has always been an outlet from reality, no matter the culture. Whether in the form of music or television, entertainment has something for everyone. Different factors influence the content of the entertainment being consumed, but culture is one of the most important and decisive elements. The appropriation of entertainers in their work is not always immediately obvious to all consumers of entertainment, but members of the affected culture are quick to notice and usually shut out. I argue that the cultural appropriation of Black culture in most cases facilitates results that are harmful and damaging to the Black community. …

The Legend Of Neptune: A Portrait Of Enslavement And Emancipation In 18th-Century Worcester County, Massachusetts, Brigitte Lewis

Honors Theses

“The Legend of Neptune” tracks the life of a man named Neptune, who was enslaved at my childhood home in Still River, MA 01467 for fifteen years during 1742-1757. The general topic of this undergraduate thesis is slavery in seventeenth and eighteenth-century central Massachusetts; the main topic is uncovering the voice, history, and stories of an identified enslaved and then free Black man named Neptune. The project uses a vast array of primary sources to construct a narrative that centers Neptune’s life and experiences, supported by secondary historical research. This project also tells a counternarrative to the official history of …