African-American Studies
My Goal in This Class
My goal in this class is twofold. I would like to learn more about African-American history in general because the topic is very interesting to me, and I feel it is important to know about our culture and our history. In addition, I feel that the topic of black American slavery has changed the culture and society of our country from the very start, and that it has had a profound affect on our country and our people, and I would like to learn more about that, too. That in turn leads to a discussion of civil rights and the continuing fight for equal consideration and equal opportunities. Even today, there are barriers between black and white, rich and poor, and natives and non-natives. I would like to get a bigger grasp on what causes these differences and why they cannot seem to be overcome in our culture and around the world.
One way to achieve these goals is to read more literature and historic accounts of the African-American struggle for freedom. However, this leads to the need for a greater understanding of African-American's roots in Africa, which is one reason we read books such as Chinua Achebe's classic novel about the Igbo's struggle under British rule, "Things Fall Apart." To understand African-Americans we must understand where they came from, what they gave up (besides of course their freedom), and what they hoped for. I believe that understanding more about the roots of this culture can only create more acceptance and tolerance among all people.
Finally, I hope to achieve a good grade in this class! It is an interesting topic to me, and I feel that I will get a lot out of learning more about African-American culture, society, and historical context. I know that black Americans have a colorful and varied history of triumphs and failures, and I think this class will give me a stronger foundation of knowledge to build my own thoughts and ideas regarding African-American culture and experience. I know there is much more to the history than slavery and civil rights, and I hope to come to a better understanding of the entire culture, history, and hopes of black Americans and what that culture has in store for the future.
Whereas in 1963, 70% of all African-American families were headed by married couples, that rate had dipped to 46.1% by 1996. In 2001, the rate had increased to 47.9%, the first uptrend in 40 years (Kinnon, 2003). The rate of African-American crime and incarceration, which is closely linked to males from single-parent households, has also dipped since 1996. Concerns about TANF and current welfare programs While the statistics are compelling, there
The simultaneous convergence of these leaders, groups, and movements, is easy to understand when one considers the environment of the Harlem area during the early 1900s. With vast numbers of new African-American citizens having come from the racist south, the area was ripe with social, political, and cultural concepts that come with new found freedom. In such a charged atmosphere, leaders such as Garvey had an audience ready to listen,
Thus, the New Negro Movement refers to the new way of thinking, and encompasses all the elements of the Negro Renaissance, artistically, socially and politically (New). The Harlem Renaissance changed the dynamics of African-American culture in the United States forever, for it was proof that whites did not have a monopoly on literature, arts and culture (Harlem). The many personalities of the era, such as composer Duke Ellington, dancer Josephine
African-American Civil Rights Struggle African-American Civil Rights How Have African-Americans Worked to end Segregation, Discrimination, and Isolation to Attain Equality and Civil Rights? Background to the Movement Discriminatory Laws World War One and the intensification of the Problems The American Civil Rights Movement Rosa Parks Other measures Civil Rights Act 1964 The modern world talks about no racial discrimination, no gender disparity and equality for all strata and ethnicities of society. Discrimination is seen as a complete and utter no-no,
African-American Odyssey Through the reasoned and systematic analysis presented in Martin & Malcom & America: A Dream or a Nightmare, author James H. Cone investigates the fundamental philosophical contrasts between the ideas espoused by the Civil Rights movement's most revered leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And Malcolm X In the preface of the book, Cone identifies both King and Malcolm X as the founding fathers of "the two main resistance
African-Americans are second only to Native Americans, historically, in terms of poor treatment at the hands of mainstream American society. Although African-Americans living today enjoy nominal equality, the social context in which blacks interact with the rest of society is still one that tangibly differentiates them from the rest of America. This cultural bias towards blacks is in many notable ways more apparent than the treatment of other people of
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