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Full-Text Articles in African Languages and Societies
Neocolonialism And Globalization: The Dual Phenomena Of Exploitation And Underdevelopment In Modern Africa, Jack Riegert
Neocolonialism And Globalization: The Dual Phenomena Of Exploitation And Underdevelopment In Modern Africa, Jack Riegert
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Since the 1960s till date, African independence has been a mirage. Real freedom for African countries had been redefined by the impact of neo-colonialism and globalization. While neo-colonialism simply means indirect hegemonic control of former colonies or developing countries by former European colonizers and Western powers, globalization is the integration of global economy marked by free trade, free flow of capital, and the exploitation of cheaper foreign labor and raw material markets. Under neo-colonialism and the globalized world, though presumed independent, Africa is still dominated and exploited. Kwame Nkrumah, perhaps one of the most influential African leaders of history, aptly …
The African American Political Party Flip, Shanna Riley
The African American Political Party Flip, Shanna Riley
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
My paper discusses the African American political party flip during the 1930s-1960s. Throughout my research, I found that there were many factors in the African American political party flip which began in the 1930s and continued into the 1960s. After analyzing the origin of the Democratic and Republican parties, I found that the latter supported freeing slaves during the 1800s. I will discuss how presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson each handled Civil Rights during their times in office, and how this impacted the African American vote. Each president saw the power of African American voters, and knew that …
A Study Of Precolonial Urban Africa, Molly Cooper
A Study Of Precolonial Urban Africa, Molly Cooper
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Africa’s precolonial era of urban development lasted from approximately 3000 BC until the colonial era began in the sixteenth century AD. During this period, urban centers were built in regions of high ecological and economic potential, such as the Mediterranean coast, the Nile towns of Nubia, West Africa, and the Sub-Saharan region of Africa. Studying key cities in each of these areas demonstrates the rich history of precolonial Africa as well as the continued influence of these sophisticated cultures. Using historical records, archeological findings, and analysis of urban trends of cities such as Carthage, Meroe, Djenne, and the Great Zimbabwe, …
Gdr Involvement In South Africa: When Does Solidarity Become Engagement?, Edward Vaughan
Gdr Involvement In South Africa: When Does Solidarity Become Engagement?, Edward Vaughan
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
The German Democratic Republic (GDR) was one of the most influential forces during the Cold War in Southern Africa. Thanks to their assistance, revolutionary groups such as the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO) and the African National Congress (ANC) were able to stand up against the Apartheid government in South Africa aided by the United States. This project examines the GDR support and solidarity measures during the Cold War and if the GDR‘s involvement in this area constitutes active engagement with the conflict. Since the German reunification, research into the specific policies of the GDR and its connection to …
A Passage To Bowling Green: A Chronological Exploration Of James Baldwin’S Connection To Bgsu’S Ethnic Studies Department, Blaze Campbell
A Passage To Bowling Green: A Chronological Exploration Of James Baldwin’S Connection To Bgsu’S Ethnic Studies Department, Blaze Campbell
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
James Baldwin became connected to Bowling Green State University’s (BGSU) Ethnic Studies Department starting in the late 1970s, making four visits to campus, once as a guest speaker, once as a Write-in-Residence, and twice as a Distinguished Visiting Professor. The purpose of this paper is to understand how the relationship between BGSU and Baldwin developed. I constructed a historical, chronological narrative utilizing primary sources including various documents from BGSU’s archival collection to understand Baldwin’s affiliation with the university.
Baldwin’s 1977 visit to BGSU was his first public lecture in the United Sates since his departure to France years prior. Additionally, …
Haitian Carnival: The Art Of Resistance, Kari Boroff
Haitian Carnival: The Art Of Resistance, Kari Boroff
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
This paper explores the different characters that are represented during Haitian Carnival, where participants mask their identities in order to act out mythological and political tales, emphasizing the corruption, politics, and social issues of Haiti through costume and drama. These characters which can appear bizarre, comical, or terrifying, embody subjects such as Haiti’s successful slave revolt in 1791, elements of Vodou, satirical representations of political figures, and social issues such as AIDS. Moreover, this raw, powerful, expressive side of Haitian Carnival can be compared to the artwork of André Eugène, whose work is characterized by and embodies the haunting, provocative …
Solidarity Between Women In Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus, Michael Eniola Oshindoro
Solidarity Between Women In Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus, Michael Eniola Oshindoro
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Adichie presents a complex reality of the Nigerian society, with particular focus on the Igbo, a tribal majority in the country. The novel details a woman’s ordeal and how she breaks free from her husband’s abusive grip, which does not spare their two children either. Mr. Eugene Achike, mostly referred to as Papa in the novel, sets the rules in the house and makes Beatrice Achike, also known as Mama, and their teenage children, Kambili and Jaja, follow them; regularly he uses physical torture to enforce the rules. While in public he fights for human rights and freedom of speech …
Colorism: The Effect Of Interracial Racism, Hannah Mcdermott
Colorism: The Effect Of Interracial Racism, Hannah Mcdermott
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
It is clear that issues involving race have plagued the growth of the United States since the early stages of the land's development. However, through Wallace Thurman's novel The Blacker the Berry, he is able to illustrate the struggles of racism within the African American society, having detrimental effects on the psychological aspect of racism as well. My paper focuses on the main character, Emma Lou, who faces both public and personal racism throughout her upbringing. Focusing on the problems that discrimination brings forward, the novel hones in on African Americans in education, family, the work place, and even …
Reframing Aesthetic Theory In The Caribbean Through Derrida’S Theory Of Deconstruction, Micaela Deogracias
Reframing Aesthetic Theory In The Caribbean Through Derrida’S Theory Of Deconstruction, Micaela Deogracias
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
There has been an ongoing struggle to pinpoint the definition of Caribbean aesthetic. Although still framed through Western values of beauty and significance, the Caribbean has been making strides towards breaking out of the artistic definitions of the Eurocentric art history canon. A means of doing so is evident in the works of Livia Ortiz Ríos, a Puerto Rican abstract expressionist artist who frames her art through the Chaos Theory and Derrida's Theory of Deconstruction. The latter's discussion of binary comparisons beautifully mirrors the present binary comparison of Caribbean art to Western art. This work will focus on Derrida's Theory …
A Modern Mother: Harriet Powers, Alyssa Johnson
A Modern Mother: Harriet Powers, Alyssa Johnson
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
The proposed presentation, “A Modern Mother: Harriet Powers (1837-1911),” was inspired by Linda Nochlin’s provocative question, “Why have there been no great women artists?” While the question is simple and concise, it enlists a number of responses. The most common response to this question, as pointed out by the contemporary group of artists known as the Guerilla Girls, is to counter with the question: “Why haven’t more women been considered great artists throughout Western history?” The reframing of Nochlin’s question implies the presence of greatness among the female ranks of artists, and allows for discovery and celebration of those forgotten. …
"Unite Yourselves In The Name Of Anywaa": Music And Anywaa Ethnic Identity In Gambella, Ethiopia, Sarah Bishop
"Unite Yourselves In The Name Of Anywaa": Music And Anywaa Ethnic Identity In Gambella, Ethiopia, Sarah Bishop
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Ethnicity is highly politicized in northeast Africa and has been implicated in conflicts, tensions, and protests in different countries throughout the region. Various, complex factors play a role in this: political marginalization and cultural denigration of certain ethno-linguistic groups within nation-states, unequal access to resources, increasingly ethnicized cycles of violence, and overall rise in identity politics around the globe are a few. This paper aims to expand our understanding of ethnicity by examining how ethnic phenomena are manifested in expressive culture and how expressive culture reflects, shapes, and informs ethnic consciousness. I do so by exploring local music-making amongst members …
Racism, Prejudice, And Democratization: The Westernization Of Japan Under U.S. Occupation, 1945-52, Jasmine Mitchell
Racism, Prejudice, And Democratization: The Westernization Of Japan Under U.S. Occupation, 1945-52, Jasmine Mitchell
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Following the unconditional surrender of Japan on September 2, 1945, the Allied forces set out to establish a military occupation in Japan to instill democratic ideals upon the nation and rid Japan of its militarist and fascist sentiments. In facilitating Japan’s transformation into a democratic nation with values of freedom, liberty, and equality, there was also an influx of cultural exchanges between the American occupation forces and Japanese citizens. In fact, the issue of race revealed itself as a major component of American democracy that created a strain on the interactions and relationships between African American GIs, white GIs and …
Giving A Voice To The Voiceless And Women's Education In Kenya, Lyndah Wasike
Giving A Voice To The Voiceless And Women's Education In Kenya, Lyndah Wasike
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Social stratification in any given capitalistic society leaves the poor voiceless. Moreover, children from well-off families attend prestigious schools, they are more informed and have resources to make meaningful life decisions. On the other hand, their poor counterparts attend low-cost schools and as if that is not enough, lots of problems claim a share of their lives. How can we make a safe learning environment for teenage girls from humble families? Meekers, Gage, & Zhan (1995) cites that in many cases, adolescents are insufficiently or incorrectly informed about their changing sexuality, and about the consequences and responsibilities associated with sexual …
Blended Styles Of African American Folk Music, Joseph Johnson
Blended Styles Of African American Folk Music, Joseph Johnson
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
From childhood to the present, I have heard stories from my grandmother of growing up as an African American in rural North Carolina. As a young girl, she experienced a great deal of racial injustice, but she also told me of many of her most memorable experiences, mainly in relation to the church and old-time string band music. Through the musicological study of Rhiannon Giddens and The Carolina Chocolate Drops, Jake Blount, and Valerie June, I will show how these performing artists in the U.S. keep the tradition of African American old-time music alive while blending it with other contemporary …
The Impact Of Ww Ii On African Nationalism And Decolonization, Jacob Louis Money
The Impact Of Ww Ii On African Nationalism And Decolonization, Jacob Louis Money
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Who was the true victor that emerged from the Second World War? General consensus among academia is that the United States and USSR were the chief benefactors from the downfall of the Axis, as they became the foremost states among the global community, in part due to the regression of traditional powers such as Britain and France. However, Africa as a whole was profoundly changed by the war and the most destructive conflict in history propelled the continent along the path to self-determination. Without the contribution of Africa to the allied cause, both in manpower and material, the eventual triumph …
Pop Music As E-Civism: Negotiating Change Through Subaltern Voices In Burkina Faso, Lassane Ouedraogo
Pop Music As E-Civism: Negotiating Change Through Subaltern Voices In Burkina Faso, Lassane Ouedraogo
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
In 2014, a popular revolution led by a group of underground pop musicians ousted a 27-year regime in Burkina Faso. In attempting to find meaning in how these musicians were able to mobilize millions of people across the country under the banner of Le Balai Citoyen (the Citizen Broom), I studied their works before the 2014 revolution. I found that pop music from Burkina Faso represents a subaltern discursive engagement voice whereby lyrics and video frames disseminate a counter-discourse and call for action against government malpractices. By examining the lyrics and video frames as a discursive voice in 40 YouTube …
The Relevance Of The Message To Time And Space: President Barack Hussein Obama Speaking, Michael A. Nkansah
The Relevance Of The Message To Time And Space: President Barack Hussein Obama Speaking, Michael A. Nkansah
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
This paper adopts the traditional perspective of rhetorical criticism by Aristotle to analyze the speech that is said to have made Barrack Hussein Obama, the President of United States of America. The traditional perspective has been used to explain advertisements, novels, films and for the most part speeches. Concepts that form the construct of the traditional criticism are used to describe, interpret, evaluate and make subtle judgments about the rhetorical artifact. In order to achieve this, Aristotle proposed three elements for rhetorical analysis of an individual’s performance to a target audience within a span of time: (i) the speaker or …
Ethics And The Policing Of African Americans And Those Of African Descent In America, Richard Brown, Abhijeet Shirsat
Ethics And The Policing Of African Americans And Those Of African Descent In America, Richard Brown, Abhijeet Shirsat
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
What role does ethics play in policing Black America? The criminal justice system has a race problem (Obama, 2017; Alexander, 2010). Data shows that racial disparities exist within corrections (Robertson, 2014). The numbers of minorities that are entangled within the courts, the number of arrests made by police and the numbers of unarmed blacks who have recently been killed by the police, support the notion that who have been given a pass by county prosecutors and states attorneys (Chaney & Robertson, 2015). Amadou Diallo, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and John Crawford are just a few of the names …
The "Independence" Of Ethiopia And Liberia, William Seger
The "Independence" Of Ethiopia And Liberia, William Seger
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
This essay will examine the independence of Ethiopia and Liberia, two states frequently upheld as the only remaining independent African states during the colonial era. These two countries remained independent primarily because of the diplomatic regard that European nations held them, not because of military or geographic factors. The European view that these countries were legitimate players on the world stage was essential to avoiding outright conquest. However, these countries failed to achieve “real” independence. They had to sacrifice territory, succumb to European economic intrusion, and be placed in spheres of influence in order to remain “independent.” In fact, Liberia …
Nothing Compares 2 U: The Performance Of Prince Through Cover Songs, Jacqueline Hudson
Nothing Compares 2 U: The Performance Of Prince Through Cover Songs, Jacqueline Hudson
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Prince was lauded as one of the greatest and most influential multi-hyphenate (singer-songwriter-producer-instrumentalist) in the music industry. He influenced many artists across different genres of music such as rock, funk and soul. Not only was his music timeless over the years as long as he began as a performer in the late seventies, his lyrics were thought-provoking, innovative and reflective of its time. Being a prolific songwriter, Prince wrote songs originally for other artists such as Stevie Nicks and The Bangles. Also, he obviously wrote songs for himself, but a few of these songs have been covered musically by other …
Firelie Báez: Road Map Of Symbols, Mariah Morales
Firelie Báez: Road Map Of Symbols, Mariah Morales
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
The Dominican diaspora artist, Firelie Báez, is painting in the history of resilient Afro Caribbean women and making their acts of defiance more readily known through various works such as Bloodlines and Sans-Souci. Báez imbeds images in her artwork that follows the slavery movement from Africa to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, then ultimately to the rich cultural past of Louisiana. Báez’s work is a full on multi-sensory experience. She provokes different responses with her diverse styles of media. The artist’s subtle but powerful narrative found within her work promoted by her dynamic range of color selection, makes the viewer …
Haunted By Solitude: Isolation And Representation In Zanele Muholi’S Archive, Michelle M. Fikrig
Haunted By Solitude: Isolation And Representation In Zanele Muholi’S Archive, Michelle M. Fikrig
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
This paper focuses on contemporary South African photographer Zanele Muholi’s (b. 1972) extensive photographic archival project, Faces and Phases, which documents South Africa’s black queer community. The series exists not only as a book published in 2014, but as an exhibition that has been shown globally. In the introduction to her book of the Faces and Phases series Muholi states her goal as “[articulating] the collective pain [black lesbians] as a community experience” (emphasis mine). Yet the series, composed of over two hundred black and white portraits, is made up of photographs of individual black lesbians. This paper explores …
A Life Elsewhere?: Afropolitanist Reading Of Race Struggle, Identity And Home In Chimamanda Adichie’S Americanah, Hammed Oluwadare Adejare
A Life Elsewhere?: Afropolitanist Reading Of Race Struggle, Identity And Home In Chimamanda Adichie’S Americanah, Hammed Oluwadare Adejare
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Globalization and global movements have had significant impacts on the kinds of literary works that have been produced by writers of African descent in the 21st century. There is currently the pervading popularity of diasporic writing, a kind which has come to be associated with works produced by a community of immigrant writers, either with common ancestral homelands or shared immigration experiences. Many of these works have painted African immigrants as leaving their home countries because of desperate situations. Many have also presented the narratives of double- trouble for Africans who fled their homes only to be confronted with …
Accessibility Of Educational Materials For Undergraduates With Visual Impairments: An Ongoing Study, Oluwafisayo Ilemobola Oke
Accessibility Of Educational Materials For Undergraduates With Visual Impairments: An Ongoing Study, Oluwafisayo Ilemobola Oke
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Persons with visual impairments in Nigeria are known for making demands for access to information that suit their reading interests (Adetoro 2014). The provision of such services is rendered by public libraries (Adetoro 2010; Atinmo 2007). However, public libraries are confronted with surmounting the challenge of high demands for alternative educational formats (Adetoro 2010). Much of the research that have been carried out relating to access of alternative educational materials have been focused on secondary school aged participants and older adults leaving out college age individuals. They also deployed quantitative methods of data collection which only show a numbered representation …
Translation And Botswana Literature In Setswana Language: A Postcolonial Criticism And Practice, Keith Phetlhe
Translation And Botswana Literature In Setswana Language: A Postcolonial Criticism And Practice, Keith Phetlhe
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
The role of translation in the development and transformation of various aspects of both traditional and modern Botswana literature cannot be overlooked. This is not only because of its significance in defining and describing the different categories of the literature but also due to fact that translation has opened paths that make it possible to theorize and critique Setswana literature in the context of translation. Translation in Setswana literature applies to a vast volume of works encompassing the written and oral genres. This project aims to explore the perspectives and arguments that have been submitted by various translators and authors …
Mande Cultural Expression In The Work Of Female Potters, Amanda Johnson
Mande Cultural Expression In The Work Of Female Potters, Amanda Johnson
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
For centuries, Mande women of West Africa have been creating ceramics through traditional methods passed down from one generation of women to the next. Mande ceramics, created by skilled female artists, function not only as a means of making money, but also represent broader Mande concepts of social organization and spirituality. The process by which ceramics are created and the forms of the vessels represent ideas of Mande culture, and show how Mande ideas have spread throughout West Africa and remained constant over time. The potters themselves, known as numumuso, use hand building techniques to create ceramic vessels from …
Iconoclasm In Ancient Egypt, Micaela Deogracias
Iconoclasm In Ancient Egypt, Micaela Deogracias
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
Iconoclastic controversy in Egypt caused the destruction of thousands of pieces. Those impacted were nearly lost to history, if it were not for the inability to efficiently destroy all traces of a ruler. While iconoclasm affected a wide span of Egyptians, this study will focus on Pharaoh Akhenaten and his family (including Tutankhamen), Queen Hatshepsut, and Queen Hatshepsut’s son, Thutmose the Third. This study will explore cultural symbolism and focus on the mystery of missing crooks and flails in Egyptian statuary. Among the topics discussed in the symbolic portion of the study will include reasons for the symbols’ absences and …
Wrapped In Tradition: Ceremonial Skirts Of Kuba Women In The Western Congo Basin, Rachel Wilson
Wrapped In Tradition: Ceremonial Skirts Of Kuba Women In The Western Congo Basin, Rachel Wilson
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
The Kuba Kingdom resides in the central Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The numerous clans which make up the kingdom have become recognized around the world for their exceptional corpus of design patterns which adorn their embroidered ceremonial skirts. The decorated wrap-skirts of Kuba women are a social construct and have come to represent the communal artistry of the Kuba clans. The raffia cloths are woven by the men and decorated through the combined effort of several women. The effect of having the skirt decorated by multiple women is that each skirt has its own unique design …
Performing Afro-Mexican Identity: The Racial Politics Of Negrito And Devil Dances, Alexus Chavana
Performing Afro-Mexican Identity: The Racial Politics Of Negrito And Devil Dances, Alexus Chavana
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
In examining the racial dynamics of Mexico, one clearly notices relatively few Mexicans who identify as Black or Afro-Mexican. This paper is therefore concerned with the historical context that forged the racial atmosphere of Mexico today. Mexicans are discouraged to embrace la tercera raíz or the third root of Mexican heritage and identity stemming from Africa. The Mexico of today has been profoundly shaped by this African influence that dates back to the arrival of Cortés and the Spaniards. However important African identify is for understand boarder Mexico, most are reluctant to acknowledge this aspect of their heritage. After centuries …
Eclectic Architecture In A “Model Colony”: The Sacred Heart Cathedral In Lomé, Diana Kate Karsanow
Eclectic Architecture In A “Model Colony”: The Sacred Heart Cathedral In Lomé, Diana Kate Karsanow
Africana Studies Student Research Conference
In the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, while under the colonial rule of the German Empire, Togo was coined the “model colony.” This status was due largely to economic success and what has been referred to as a more peaceful colonial encounter. Some have argued the German administration’s ability to recognize cultural differences between themselves and the local people was successful in lieu of more rigid assimilation polices. German administrators did not overtly force their beliefs and social structure upon the local people of Togo, but instead, as I explore in this paper, creatively intertwined their own perspectives …