African Class: Study Guide
Chapter 14
- TO BEGIN, LET ME GIVE YOU THREE TERMS TO DESCRIBE MUSIC IN AFRICA:
1) PERSONAL MUSIC. THIS TYPE OF MUSIC IS PERFORMED, AS YOU MIGHT GUESS, BY ONE
PERSON FOR THEIR OWN ENJOYMENT. THIS PERSON MAY BE SINGING, PLAYING AN
INSTRUMENT, OR DOING BOTH AT ONCE.
2) GROUP MUSIC. THIS IS MUSIC PERFORMED BY A SPECIFIC, FOR THAT SPECIFIC GROUP. AN
ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF ALL GROUP MUSIC IS DANCING.GROUP MUSIC CAN ALSO BE MADE
UP OF DRUMMING, SINGING, HAND-CLAPPING OR RECITING A VOCAL REFRAIN.
3) LISTENER’S MUSIC. UNLIKE THE FIRST TWO TYPES, LISTENER’S MUSIC IS PERFORMED BY
PROFESSSIONAL MUSICIANS FOR AN AUDIENCE. THESE ARE ACTUALLY MUSICIANS. IT IS
PERFORMED PRIMARILY FOR THE AUDIENCE THAT COMES TO LISTEN TO IT.
P. 265 – MOST CARIBBEAN MUSICAL FORMS BELONG TO A HISTORICAL PROCESS KNOWN AS
CREOLIZATION. THIS IS THE BLENDING OF 2 OR MORE OLDER MUSIC TRADITIONS.
- THIS PROCESS BEGAN DURING THE EARLY YEARS OF EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT IN THE
CARIBBEAN
- THERE WERE REPORTS OF SLAVES DANCING (WHETHER ENCOURAGED OR FORCED BY
EUROPEANS) ON BOARD SLAVE SHIPS ENROUTE TO THE CARIBBEAN; THIS DANCING WAS
SOMETIMES BACKED UP BY FIDDLE, AFRICAN PERCUSSIONS OR COMBINATION OF BOTH.
- ON PLANTATIONS, THIS BLENDING OCCURRED NOT ONLY BETWEEN EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN
TRADITIONS, BUT ALSO BETWEEN TRADITIONS OF DIFFERENT AFRICAN ETHNIC GROUPS.
PRIMARY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN POPULAR AND TRADITIONAL CARIBBEAN MUSIC IS IN THE
RELATION ONE HAS TO THE OTHER
- POPULAR MUSIC FORMS CAME OUT OF (EMERGED FROM) MORE TRADITIONAL MUSIC
FORMS.
CHAPTER 15: AFRICAN-AMERICAN MUSIC
2 AFRICAN RETENTIONS IN JAZZ AND BLUES (THESE TYPES WILL BE MENTIONED IN A COUPLE
OF MOMENTS:
1) USE OF CALL AND RESPONSE
2) POLYRHYTHMS (MULTIPLE RHYTHMS)
. 287 – IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY, BRASS BANDS WERE IMPORTANT, AND WERE USED
PRIMARILY IN BUSINESS ADS AND FUNERAL PARADES
TYPES OF JAZZ:
P. 289
SWING – POPULAR FROM THE 20s INTO THE 40s. CALL AND RESPONSE PATTERNS WERE
BETWEEN BRASS AND REED INSTRUMENTS. VOCAL SOLOS WERE ALSO FEATURED. THERE WERE
SEVERAL ‘KINGS OF SWING,’ BUT COUNT BASIE AND DUKE ELLINGTON WERE THE 2 MOST WELL
KNOWN.
BEBOP – IN FULL FORCE BY THE EARLY 40s, BY ‘CREATIVE’ ARTISTS. MOST BEBOP MUSICIANS
WERE EITHER MUSLIM OR SYMPATHETIC TO ISLAM AND WOULD SOMETIMES STOP
PERFORMING, SPREAD THEIR PRAYER RUG, AND PRAYED FACING THE EAST. THEY DID NOT
CATER TO DANCERS OR POPULAR ENTERTAINMENT AS THEY CONSIDERED THEMSELVES
ARTISTS, NOT ENTERTAINERS
HARDBOP – EMERGED FROM BEBOP AND WAS POPULAR IN THE 50s. IT WAS A STYLE WHICH
ADVOCATED RETURN TO BLUES AND GOSPEL ROOTS. IT GRADUALLY EMERGED INTO A MORE
‘FUNKY STYLE,’ WHICH WAS IMPROVISATION, BASED ON BLUES/GOSPEL HARMONIES
THIRD STREAM – SOMEWHERE BETWEEN JAZZ AND CLASSICAL
SOUL-FUSION (MORE FUNKY STYLE, SOMETIMES SONGS PREVIOUSLY MADE BY SOUL MUSIC
ARTISTS
FREE/AVANT GARDE – EXTENDED IMPROVISING, MUSIC NEVER PLAYED THE SAME WAY TWICE.
MANY WHITE ARTISTS PERFORM THIS STYLE
DR. MAULANA KARENGA, AFRO-CENTRIC SCHOLAR FROM CAL STATE LONG BEACH, PRESENTS
WHAT HE CALLS HIS 4 “SCHOOLS” OF RAP. PLEASE REMEMBER, THIS IS STRICTLY FROM A
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.
1)
2)
3)
4)
NATION-CONSCIOUS (INFORMATIVE, TALKS MAINLY ABOUT THE STRUGGLE)
GANGSTA
PLAYER/LOVER RAP
PORNO RAP
FINALLY, KARENGA PRESENTS WHAT HE CALLS RAPs PERCEIVED PROBLEMS:
1) ITS SEXIST CHARACTER (HOW IT DEMEANS BLACK WOMEN)
2) WIDESPREAD VULGAR CHARACTER (GANGSTA & PORNO SCHOOLS)
3) OFTEN PERCEIVED AS TOO VIOLENT
Ch. 16: THE ART OF AFRICA AND THE DIASPORA
P. 307 – Those who had searched for the original art of the world encountered 2 problems
when Egypt, though at the world’s forefront, was seen as a Middle Eastern rather than an
African society:
1) The achievements made in African cultures has been downplayed
2) Connections between Egypt and other African cultures have been ignored
P. 308 – There are 2 major categories of African art:
1) Traditional (includes sculpture, painting, textile, pottery, jewelry, household objects and
architecture) which portrays the ‘cycle of life’ experienced in society (such as transitions youth
to adult, or passing from life to death)
2) Contemporary – the largest number of practicing contemporary artists are historically from
Nigeria. There are 2 factors which inspired the new trends in the artistic development: The
combination of their Nigerian heritage and Western training
SOME OF THE EARLIEST AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARTISTS
1) Josua Johnston – by the late 18th and early 19th centuries, he was the first person of African
descent to gain recognition as a portrait painter in oil
2) Edmonia Lewis – by the mid-1870s, she became the first Black woman to gain recognition as
a sculptor
There were others, of course, but during the 1920s Harlem Renaissance, many Black artists
looked to their African past rather than to European models as their inspiration
P. 320 – JUST A LITTLE ABOUT AFRO-CARIBBEAN ART
Afro-Caribbean art was full of vitality and vigor. Haitians, for example, had their own religion,
oral history and other cultural forms of speech and ideas prior to the arrival of Columbus.
Haitian art, in particular, was closely interwoven with their belief in vudun (voodoo), mixing
African and West African religions. Finally, in Middle America, Mexico has a group of artists in
landscape, portraits and religious paintings
CHAPTER 17 – LITERATURE IN AFRICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
p. 325 – IN MODERN TIMES, LITERATURE HAS BECOME ONE OF AFRICA’S MAJOR
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE INTELLECTUAL WORLD. TWO TYPES OF LITERATURE HAVE GROWN AT
THE SAME TIME: 1) TRADITIONAL ORAL LITERATURE
2) MODERN WRITTEN LITERATURE – WITH THE USE OF ANIMAL CHARACTERS
CONTRASTED WITH WESTERN LITERATURE, AFRICAN LITERATURE IS ‘LIVE,’ WHERE EACH
MOMENT OF A PERFORMANCE HAS A ‘TEXT’ OF ITS OWN
p. 328 – THE FIRST WORK OF WRITTEN AFRICAN LITERATURE, PUBLISHED IN 1789, WAS THE
LIFE OF OLAUDAH EQUIANO, ALSO TITLED GUSTAVAS VASSA: THE AFRICAN. EQUIANO WAS
MENTIONED IN THE MIDDLE PASSAGE HANDOUT I GAVE TO YOU A WHILE BACK.
OF COURSE, TOURISM BRINGS IN MOST OF THE CAPITAL, BUT THE PEOPLE OVERALL ARE
GENERALLY POOR. SO ONE COMMON THEME OR PHENOMENON IN CARIBBEAN LITERATURE IS
EMIGRATION (DEPARTING FOR ELSEWHERE).
p. 341 – THE VERY BEST OF THE SLAVE NARRATIVES WERE WRITTEN BY:
- FREDERICK DOUGLASS IN 1845: NARRATIVE OF THE LIFE OF FREDERICK DOUGLASS: A SLAVE
NARRATIVE
-
HARRIET JACOBS (UNDER THE PSEUDONYM LINDA BRENT): INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF A
SLAVE GIRL – 1845
p. 342 – THE FIRST KNOWN PIECE OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE WAS “BARS FIGHT” A
POEM WRITTEN BY LUCY TERRY. THE POEM, TOLD FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A WHITE GIRL
NAMED EUNICE ALLEN, DESCRIBES A NATIVE AMERICAN ATTACK ON 2 WHITE FAMILIES IN A
SECTION OF DEERFIELD, MA CALLED THE BARS (A COLONIAL WORD FOR MEADOW).
IN THE 1920s DURING THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE ERA, LANGSTON HUGHES BECAME THE
‘POET LAUREATE’ OF THE RENAISSANCE. ALONG WITH HUGHES AND OTHERS WAS CLAUDE
McKAY, WHO WROTE IN HIS POETRY ABOUT THE FAILURES OF DEMOCRACY, LYNCHING, AND
CALLED ON BLACKS TO TAKE UP ARMS AGAINST THOSE WHO WOULD SEEK TO DESTROY THEM
p. 345 – AFRICAN AMERICAN FICTION AND DRAMA MOVED FROM THE SLAVE NARRATIVE AND
LITERATURE IN THE MID 19TH CENTURY TO IMITATING WHITE WRITERS IN THE LATE 19TH
CENTURY, TO AUTOBIOGRAPHIES AND PROTEST NOVELS IN THE 20TH CENTURY
ONE PROBLEM WITH EARLY BLACK NOVELS WAS THAT IN MANY CASES, BLACKS WERE
REPRESENTED IDEALISTICALLY (BETTER THAN HOW THINGS ACTUALLY WERE). AUTHORS FELT
FORCED TO PORTRAY ONLY COMPLEMENTARY (POSITIVE) IMAGES, NOT ALWAYS GIVING AN
ACCURATE REFLECTION OF THEIR IVES
ONE EXCEPTION, BY THE 1940s, WAS RICHARD WRIGHT (AUTHOR OF NATIVE SON AND BIG BOY
LEAVES HOME) WHOSE WRITINGS WERE MORE POLITICALLY MOTIVATED
ONE EXAMPLE CONCERNING THE ABOVE WAS AN EXAMPLE OF A 1979 FILM ENTITLED 10. THE
IDEA WAS THE NUMBER 10 WAS THE HIGHEST BEAUTY RATING GIVEN TO A WOMAN FROM 1 –
10. THE FEMALE CHARACTER IN THE FILM PLAYED BY A WHITE ACTRESS NAMED BO DEREK,
WORE HER HAIR IN CORN ROWS AND BRAIDS
Chapter 18
p. 339 – AFRICAN ORAL CULTURE AND THE SLAVE NARRATIVE HAD ROLES IN FORMING
AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE IN THE 3 FORMS WE’LL BRIEFLY DESCRIBE TODAY: POETRY,
FICTION, AND DRAMA
p. 342 – THE FIRST KNOWN PIECE OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE WAS “BARS FIGHT” A
POEM WRITTEN BY LUCY TERRY. THE POEM, TOLD FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A WHITE GIRL
NAMED EUNICE ALLEN, DESCRIBES A NATIVE AMERICAN ATTACK ON 2 WHITE FAMILIES IN A
SECTION OF DEERFIELD, MA CALLED THE BARS
McKAY, WHO WROTE IN HIS POETRY ABOUT THE FAILURES OF DEMOCRACY, LYNCHING, AND
CALLED ON BLACKS TO TAKE UP ARMS AGAINST THOSE WHO WOULD SEEK TO DESTROY THEM.
McKAY MADE USE OF THE SHAKESPEREAN SONNET (14 LINES) TO COMPOSE HIS POETRY
p. 344 – BROUGHT ABOUT A 2ND HARLEM RENAISSANCE PERIOD, WHERE A NEW ‘BLACK
AESTHETIC’ CAME ABOUT (IN ART, THE WORD AESTHETIC MEANS ANYTHING RELATING TO
BEAUTY AND GOOD TASTE). IT BROUGHT ABOUT A SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS REVOLUTION, WHICH
BROUGHT AMIRI BARAKA, DR. NIKKI GIOVANNI AND OTHERS TO PROMINENCE IN THEIR FIELD
p. 348 – IN 1959, LORRAINE HANSBERRY’S PLAY A RAISIN IN THE SUN OPENED IN
PHILADELPHIA, MOVED TO BROADWAY. HANSBERRY WAS THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO WIN A
TONY AWARD. IN THIS PLAY, ABOUT A POOR BLACK FAMILY WHO BASED THEIR DREAMS AND
FUTURE SUCCESSES ON A $10,000 LIFE INSURANCE CHECK, IS WHERE A NUMBER OF BLACKS
SAW ACCURATE REFLECTIONS OF THEIR OWN LIVES.
CHAPTER 19: CONTRIBUTIONS IN SCIENCE, BUSINESS, FILM AND SPORTS
p. 351 – MOST AFRICAN YOUNGSTERS ONLY KNOW THAT AFRICAN AMERICANS WERE
ENSLAVED, FACE DISCRIMINATION, AND ONLY HAVE SURFACE KNOWLEDGE OF FAMOUS
PEOPLE
p. 352 – SCIENCE
- FOLLOWING THE 14TH AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION, AFRICAN AMERICANS WERE
FINALLY ALLOWED TO REGISTER THEIR INVENTIONS WITH THE GOVERNMENT. PRIOR TO THAT,
THE SLAVE CODES DID NOT ALLOW BLACKS TO MAKE CONTRACTS.
FOLLOWING THE EMANCIPATION OF BLACKS, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON INSPIRED MANY
BUSINESS-MINDED AFRICAN AMERICANS. IN 1900, HE FOUNDED THE NATIONAL NEGRO
BUSINESS LEAGUE. THIS LEAGUE INSPIRED OTHER BLACK INSTITUTIONS. THE LEAGUE HELPED
MADAME C.J. WALKER TO BECOME A MILLIONAIRE HERSELF
p. 357 – THREE TYPES OF AFRICAN AMERICANS BECAME BLACK BUSINESS OWNERS
1) THOSE FRUSTRATED BY RACISM IN LARGE CORPORATIONS
2) THOSE LEAVING THE MILITARY
3) THOSE RETIRING FROM OTHER PROFESSIONS (TEACHING, ETC.)
p. 360, 361 – PRESENCE OF BLACKS IN THE FILM INDUSTRY. THEIR PRESENCE IS NOW TAKEN
FOR GRANTED, BUT HISTORICALLY, THERE WERE 3 FEATURES ABOUT BLACKS IN THE FILM
INDUSTRY:
1) ROLES WERE AS LACKIES (INFERIOR CHARACTERS), TO INCLUDE SLAVES, MAIDS, SERVANTS,
DOORKEEPERS, OR BUFFOON ‘SIDEKICKS’ TO A WHITE CHARACTER
2) SOME BLACKS WENT TO EUROPE, FRUSTRATED BY HOLLYWOOD.
3) FOLLOWING THE INDEPENDENCE OF AFRICAN NATIONS, BLACK FILMS WERE BEING MADE.
BY THE EARLY 1970s, AMERICA LAUNCHED THE ERA OF ‘BLAXPLOITATION’ FILMS, WHICH
STARRED BLACKS, AND WERE PRODUCED BY BLACKS. UNFORTUNATELY, MANY OF THESE FILMS
PROMOTED CRIMINAL CHARACTERS AS HEROES, OR WERE THE BLACK ‘RETELLING’ OF
PREVIOUS WHITE STORIES.
p. 361 – SPORTS: THERE WERE 3 VIEWS BY NOTED BLACK LEADERS, LATE 19TH AND EARLY 20TH
CENTURIES:
1) FREDERICK DOUGLASS: SAW SPORT AS AN OPPRESSIVE INSTRUMENT, OCCUPYING THE
MINDS AND ENERGIES OF BLACKS, KEEPING THEM FROM MORE USEFUL ACTIVITIES
2) BOOKER T. WASHINGTON: THOUGH HE WAS A KEY LEADER AT THE TIME, HE NEVER REALLY
ADDRESSED THE ISSUE; HIS LIFESTYLE HAD NO TIME FOR SPORT OR LEISURE.
3) W.E.B. DuBOIS: AGREED WITH DOUGLASS IN PRINCIPLE THAT SPORT KEPT BLACKS FROM
MORE USEFUL PURSUITS, BUT ALSO FELT THAT SPORT, OR AMUSEMENT AMONG BLACKS WAS
NOT ONE OF THE MOST PRESSING PROBLEMS AT THE TIME; BLACKS HAD MORE IMPORTANT
ISSUES TO DEAL WITH. HOWEVER, HE FELT THAT AS TIME PASSED, IT MAY BECOME MORE OF
AN ISSUE.
p. 362 – IN THE 19TH CENTURY, HUMANS WERE RANKED ON BASIS OF ANATOMICAL, MENTAL,
AND MORAL CRITERIA. THE OPINION WAS THAT BLACKS WERE FOUND LACKING…
BLACK PARTICIPATION IN SPORT (MOST NOTABLY IN BASEBALL) WAS WHAT WHITES ALLOWED;
BLACKS WERE BANNED FROM BASEBALL AND OTHER SPORTS. THIS SENTIMENT WAS UPHELD
IN THE 1896 PLESSY v. FERGUSON CASE WHICH ESTABLISHED LEGAL SEGREGATION
EXCEPTIONS WERE JACK JOHNSON WHO AT THE END OF 1908 BECAME THE FIRST BLACK
HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, AND MARSHALL (MAJOR) TAYLOR, WHO AT THE START OF THE 20TH
CENTURY, WAS A SPEED CYCLIST CONSIDERED THE FASTEST CYCLIST IN THE WORLD
IN 1883-1884, THE TOLEDO BLUE STOCKINGS BELONGED TO THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION,
WHICH LATER BECAME THE AMERICAN LEAGUE. IN THE 1884 SEASON, THE BLUE STOCKINGS’
CATCHER WAS MOSES ‘FLEETWOOD’ WALKER, WHO WAS THE FIRST BLACK PLAYER IN
PROFESSONAL BASEBALL. JACKIE ROBINSON IN 1947 BROKE THE COLOR LINE IN THE MODERN
ERA, AND HIS ENTRY INTO THE MAJOR LEAGUES EVENTUALLY BROUGHT AN END TO THE
NEGRO LEAGUES, ESTABLISHED IN 1910. MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL RECOGNIZED A NUMBER OF
THESE BLACK PLAYERS.
TENNIS: LONG BEFORE THE WILLIAMS SISTER, ALTHEA GIBSON WAS A 2-TIME WIMBLEDON
CHAMPION. IN 1956, SHE WON THE GRAND SLAM TITLE, IN 1957, WIMBLEDON AND THE US
OPEN. SHE ALSO WON THE US OPEN IN 1958. ARTHUR ASHE COMPETED AT WIMBLEDON IN
1968 AND WAS WIMBLEDON CHAMPION IN 1975.
GOLF: BEFORE TIGER WOODS, CHARLIE SIFFORD WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN TO PLAY
ON THE PGA TOUR. HE WON TOURNAMENTS IN 1967 AND 1969. LEE ELDER WAS THE FIRST
BLACK GOLFER TO PLAY IN THE MASTERS TOURNAMENT IN 1975.
CHAPTER 20, THE AFRICAN FAMILY
p. 372 – THERE ARE BASICALLY 2 WIDESPREAD FUNCTIONS AMONG AFRICAN FAMILIES:
1) DEVELOPING AND SOCIALIZING CHILDREN
2) PRODUCING A LIVELIHOOD
p. 372, 373 – 3 BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF AFRICAN MARRIAGE
1) IN EVERY SOCIETY, MARRIAGE IS UNIVERSAL; THE CONCEPT OF THE OLDER BACHELOR OR
OLDER ‘SPINSTER’ (WOMAN WHO NEVER MARRIES) IS ALMOST NON-EXISTENT
2) THE PRACTICE OF POLYGAMY, WHERE SOME SOCIETIES ALLOW A MAN TO HAVE MORE
THAN ONE WIFE
3) THE PROVISION OF BRIDEWEALTH. THIS IS NORMALLY A GIFT BY THE GROOM’S PARENTS TO
THE BRIDE’S FAMILY. IT CAN BE ANYWHERE FROM A SMALL TOKEN GIFT TO SIGNIFICANT
AMOUNTS OF PROPERTY.
ONE OTHER IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTIC: HUSBANDS ARE DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE TO THEIR
IN-LAWS FOR PROPER TREATMENT OF THEIR WIVES.
p. 373, 374 – AFRICAN SOCIETIES TRACE FAMILY MEMBERSHIP EITHER THROUGH THE MALE
LINE (PATRILINEAL DESCENT), THROUGH THE FEMALE LINE (MATRILINEAL DESCENT), OR
THROUGH BOTH EQUALLY (BI-LATERAL OR COGNATIC DESCENT)
- AMERICAN SOCIETY RECOGNIZES KINSHIP EQUALLY THROUGH BOTH PARENTS
p. 374 – IN PATRILINEAL SOCIETIES, THERE ARE 3 LEVELS OF RELATIONSHIP
1) IMMEDIATE FAMILY (HUSBAND, WIFE OR WIVES, AND CHILDREN)
2) LINEAGE (ALL THOSE IN A LOCAL AREA WHO FAN TRACE THEMSELVES TO A COMMON
FOREFATHER)
3) CLAN (ALL THOSE IN A SOCIETY WHO RECOGNIZE THEY BELONG TO A COMMON KIN GROUP,
NO MATTER THAN WHERE THEY LIVE. THIS DIFFERS FROM LINEAGE WHERE ALL THE PEOPLE
LIVE IN ONE LOCAL AREA
p. 376 – IN MATRILINEAL SOCIETIES, THE CHILDREN’S UNCLE (WIFE’S BROTHER) IS THE FAMILY
REPRESENTATIVE IN THE CASE OF ARRANGED MARRIAGES, AND ALSO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE
DISCIPLINE OF THE CHILDREN
p. 377 –
IN PATRILINEAL SOCIETIES, MEN GAIN POWER BY GAINING WEALTH AND USING TO SUPPORT
THEIR FAMILIES AND HEIRS
IN MATRILINEAL SOCIETIES, MEN GAIN POWER THROUGH LEADERSHIP, PROMOTING
TEAMWORK (KEEPING A NUMBER OF PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT INTERESTS WORKING
TOGETHER)
IN BOTH: NO FAMILY IS CONSIDERED TO BE A REAL FAMILY UNTIL AFTER THE BIRTH OF THE
FIRST CHILD, AND NO ONE IS COMPLETELY A MAN OR A WOMAN UNTIL THIS HAPPENS
p. 379 – MODERNIZATION ATTEMPTS TO INVOLVE ALMOST ALL OF RURAL AFRICA INTO THE
WORLDWIDE ECONOMY. THIS CAME ABOUT IN 2 WAYS:
1) WAGE LABOR (WHICH IS ALMOST ALWAYS OUTSIDE OF PEOPLES’ HOME AREAS)
2) EXPANSION OF TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION, WHICH IS THE ADOPTION OF
NEW CULTIVATED PLANTS, GROWN FOR OUTSIDE MARKETS
CHAPTER 21 – THE AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILY
p. 383 – SINCE THE 1940s, DEBATES ON THE STATUS OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILY WERE
SPURRED BASED ON WORKS BY BLACK SOCIAL SCIENTIST E. FRANKLIN FRAZIER AND OTHERS.
THESE STUDIES WERE HIGHLIGHTED BY DANIEL P. MOYNIHAN BY THE MID 1960s. THE
CONCLUSION WAS, THERE WERE 2 EXTREME SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT CONCERNING THE STATUS
OF THE BLACK FAMILY:
1) PATHOLOGICAL/PATHOGENIC SCHOOL (FAMILY VIEWED AS DYSFUNCTIONAL AND ILL WITH
THE KEY CAUSES BEING SLAVERY, RACISM AND OPPRESSION. THESE INTERRUPTED THE
NORMAL FUNCTIONING OF THE FAMILY
2) ADAPTIVE/VITALITY SCHOOL (STRONG AND ADAPTIVE). IN SPITE OF THE CAUSES ABOVE, THE
NORMAL FUNCTIONING OF THE FAMILY WAS DISRUPTED, BUT THE FAMILY ITSELF WAS NOT
DESTROYED. THE FAMILY WAS ABLE TO SURVIVE AND IN CASES, EVEN THRIVE IN SPITE OF
THESE CONDITIONS
p. 384 – THERE WERE 4 FACTS ABOUT BLACK FAMILY STRUCTURE IN THE ‘FROM SLAVERY TO
FREEDOM’ ERA:
1) SLAVES WERE SOLD AS INDIVIDUALS RATHER THAN FAMILIES, BECAUSE RETAILING AS
INDIVIDUALS WAS MORE PROFITABLE
2) MARRIAGE (WHICH WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF FAMILY FORMATION), WAS NOT
TAKEN SERIOUSLY BY SLAVE MASTERS. IT WAS SOMETIMES VIEWED AS THE SEARCH FOR
COMPANIONSHIP TO MAKE PLANTATION LIFE MORE BEARABLE; SOME ACCOUNTS BY
ENSLAVED PEOPLE CONFIRM THAT MOST MARRIAGE CEREMONIES WERE LITTLE MORE THAN
ENTERTAINMENT FOR THE MASTER’S HOUSEHOLD
3) SLAVES WERE SEPARATED DURING SETTLEMENT OF AN ESTATE, EVEN IF FROM THE SAME
HOUSEHOLD
4) PREDOMINANCE OF THE MATRIARCHAL SYSTEM. FRAZIER SUGGESTS THIS CONTRIBUTED TO
THE ‘WEAKNESS’ OF THE FAMILY IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY, CAUSED BY FAMILY SEPARATION
WHERE THE MALE WAS SOLD OFF THE PLANTATION
Bottom of p. 388 – FROM FREEDOM (1865) TO CIVIL RIGHTS (1960S)
THE PUSH THERE WAS FOR BOTH POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC EQUALITY. IN THIS PERIOD
INCLUDED THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, POLITICAL DISCONTENT, THE BLACK POWER
MOVEMENT, WAR ON POVERTY PROGRAMS IN THE 60s, TO THE NUMBER OF BLACKS
BEGINNING TO HOLD POLITCAL OFFICE AT CITY AND STATE LEVELS
IN 1984, THE MEDIAN (DIVIDING LINE) NET WORTH OF BLACK HOUSEHOLDS WAS AROUND
$4000, AROUND 1/10 OF MEDIAN INCOME FOR WHITE (AROUND $40,000)
IN A 2010, STUDY, THE MEDIAN INCOMES FOR:
WHITES - $50,000
LATINOS - $37,000
BLACKS - $34,000
P. 393 – IN DISCUSSING ECONOMIC SURVIVAL OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILIES, THERE ARE 4
THINGS THAT SHOULD BE UNDERSTOOD FIRST:
1) BLACKS OWN OR CONTROL FEW BUSINESS OR OTHER JOB CREATING INSTITUTIONS
2) BLACKS HAVE LITTLE ACCUMULATED WEALTH. THIS IS DIFFERENT FROM DISPOSABLE
WEALTH. BUT USUALLY, DISPOSABLE WEALTH ENDS UP IN OTHER POCKETS OUTSIDE OF BLACK
COMMUNITIES
3) BLACKS HAVE HISTORICALLY EXPERIENCED DISCRIMINATION IN THEIR ATTEMPTS TO GAIN
EQUAL ACCESS TO EDUCATION AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS
4) BLACKS HAVE HAD LOWER LEVELS OF FORMAL TRAINING AND EDUCATION
PRIMARY FUNCTIONS OF THE FAMILY ARE: TO PROVIDE FOR THE BASIC NEEDS OF ITS
MEMBERS AND TO NURTURE THEM
p. 394, 395 – PROBLEMS FAMILIES ARE FACING IN THIS STAGE OF THE 21ST CENTURY:
1) RECESSIONS AND INFLATION. THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC HAS US HEADING IN THE FIRST
CATEGORY. ONCE THE PANDEMIC ENDS, INFLATION OF COURSE WILL REAPPEAR.
2) INDUSTRIAL SHIFTS; AT ONE TIME, JOBS SUCH AS IN FACTORIES AND PLANTS WERE IN INNER
CITIES. THEY HAVE MOVED FROM INNER CITIES TO SUBURBS. AND MANY HAVE MOVED OUT OF
THE COUNTRY). HOW THIS AFFECTED BLACK FAMILIES IN THE PAST WAS, WHEN BLACKS COULD
NOT AFFORD CARS, THEY WALKED TO THOSE JOBS
3) JOB MISMATCHES, DUE TO LACK OF ADEQUATE TRAINING.
CHAPTER 22: RELIGION IN AFRICA
p. 410 – THE SPREAD AND IMPACT OF ISLAM. OUT OF A TOTAL POPULATION OF MORE THAN
900,000,000 PEOPLE, ESTIMATES OF THE MUSLIM POPULATION NUMBER SOMEWHERE
BETWEEN 250 MILLION AND 300 MILLION
-
AROUND 640 CE, ISLAM PENETRATED NORTH AFRICA, AND WITHIN 50 YEARS, WAS
ABLE TO REACH WESTWARD TO THE SHORES OF THE ATLANTIC. USE OF THE JIHAD
(HOLY WAR) WAS EFFECTIVE IN NOT ONLY FINDING NEW CONVERTS, BUT ALSO
CONQUERING THE LANDS AND PEOPLE IN THE NAME OF THE RELIGION
-
THE SPREAD OF ISLAM OVER TIME WAS SLOWED BECAUSE OF THE ABSENCE OF STRONG
SOCIETIES IN LANDS INLAND FROM THE COASTS. IT WAS HARDER TO SPREAD
INFLUENCE WHERE POPULATIONS WERE MORE SCATTERED AND LESS DENSE
-
HOWEVER, AS EUROPEANS ENCROACHED AFRICAN LANDS DUE TO COLONIALISM,
MANY AFRICANS JOINED THE RELIGION OF THE MUSLIM NEIGHBORS TO STEM THE TIDE
OF EUROPEANS COLONISTS PENETRATING THEIR LANDS
p. 404 – THE IMPACT OF CHRISTIANITY
CHRISTIANITY IS ONE OF THE OLDEST RELIGIONS IN AFRICA, WITH THE CHRISTIAN
POPULATION ESTIMATED AT AROUND 380 MILLION. ITS SPREAD COVERED 3 PHASES:
1) ITS ARRIVAL IN NORTH AND NORTHEAST AFRICA IN THE 1ST CENTURY
2) ARRIVAL OF THE PORTUGUESE AROUND 1415
3) CREATION OF LIBERIA IN 1822 WITH A COMBINED AFRICAN, AFRICAN AND WEST
INDIAN POPULATION
THE MOST SEVERE PROBLEM FACING THE CHURCH ON THE CONTINENT WAS THE AFRICAN
PERCEPTION THAT THE CHURCH WORKED WITH THE COLONIAL AUTHORITIES. THIS
BROUGHT THE FEAR THAT THE END OF COLONIALISM MIGHT BRING ABOUT THE END OF
CHRISTIANITY AS WELL
p. 400 – TRADITIONAL AFRICAN RELIGIONS: THE FIRST PART OF THE DEFINITION DEFINES
THEM AS THOSE SUPERNATURAL BELIEFS AND RITUALS WHICH ALWAYS EXISTED ON THE
CONTINENT WITHOUT FOREIGN TAMPERING
P. 401 THRU 403 – COMMON FEATURES OF TRADITIONAL AFRICAN RELIGIONS
1) EXISTENCE OF ONE SUPREME BEING; WORSHIP RESERVED ONLY FOR THIS BEING
2) SACRIFICES AND PRAYERS OFFERED TO THIS BEING (FOR GOOD HEALTH, RAIN, SUCCESS,
PROTECTION AGAINST ELEMENTS)
3) WORSHIP IS AT SPECIFIC PLACES AT SPECIFIC TIMES
4) RITUALS ARE RELATED FROM BIRTH TO DEATH
5) CHILDREN ARE EXPOSED TO RELIGION IN THEIR DAILY LIVES; THIS IS CONTRARY TO
WESTERN OR MIDDLE EASTERN TRADITION. RELGION MAKES UP THEIR ENTIRE LIFE CYCLE
THE OTHER 3 FEATURES ARE NOT IN THE BOOK
6) RESPECT FOR NATURE
7) REVERENCE FOR ANCESTORS
8) BELIEF IN IMMORTALITY
CHAPTER 23: RELIGION IN THE DIASPORA
p. 421 – DEFINITION OF THE BLACK CHURCH: THE GATHERING OF LIKE-MINDED AFRICAN
FAITHFUL WHO ACCEPT AND PROFESS THE PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIANITY
p. 421, 422 – TO UNDERSTAND ANYTHING ABOUT THE BLACK CHURCH, WE FIRST NEED TO
KNOW THE 3 GENERAL TYPES OF CHURCH STRUCTURE:
1) CONGREGATIONALIST: CHURCH OFFICLALS ARE ACCOUNTABLE TO THE MEMBERSHIP,
WHICH HAS COMPLETE AUTHORITY OVER EVERY ASPECT OF CHURCH LIFE
2) EPISCOPALIAN: CONTROL FALLS UNDER EITHER ONE PERSON OR SMALL GROUP OF
PERSONS. THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, FOR EXAMPLE IS UNDER THE CONTROL OF
THE POPE, WHO IS CONSIDERED THE BISHOP OF THE CHURCH
3) PRESBYTERIAN: WHERE THE CONGREGATIONS ELECTS ITS ELDERS (LEADERS
p. 423 – THE BLACK CHURCH AND SLAVERY. IT IS OFTEN SAID THAT THE BLACK CHURCH WAS
FORMED IN PROTEST AGAINST INHUMANE TREATMENT RECEIVED FROM WHITE CHRISTIANS
DURING SLAVERY, ESPECIALLY BEFORE THE MID 18TH CENTURY
2 FEATURES OF THE CHURCH AND SLAVERY:
1) SOME MASTERS ALLOWED SLAVES TO HEAR TRAVELING PREACHERS WHO PREACHED
SUBMISSION DOCTRINES. THESE WERE PASSAGES FROM THE BIBLE THAT WARNED
SLAVES TO OBEY THEIR MASTERS (OF COURSE, THEY OMITTED PASSAGES ABOUT
MASTERS BEING KIND TO THEIR SLAVES)
2) SLAVES HELD THEIR OWN SECRET SERVICES IN THE BRUSH OR IN THE SWAMP; SOME
PLAYED SIGNIFICANT ROLES IN SLAVE REVOLTS, LIKE PROSSER, VESEY AND TURNER
MANY BLACKS BEGAN TO FOLLOW THE METHODIST TRADITION, AS IT WAS THE ONLY
MAINSTREAM DENOMINATION WHICH SPOKE OUT AGAINST SLAVERY.
WITH THIS IN VIEW, RICHARD ALLEN BECAME A PIONEER IN ESTABLISHING AN
INDEPENDENT BLACK CHURCH. OUT OF THE FREE AFRICAN SOCIETY WHICH WAS
ESTABLISHED IN 1787, ALLEN ESTABLISHED THE AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL (AME)
CHURCH IN 1816. METHODIST BECAUSE OF ITS DOCTRINES, AND EPISCOPAL BASED ON
ITS STRUCTURE.
BAPTIST CHURCHES WERE BORN BEGINNING WITH THE SILVER BLUFF CHURCH IN 17731774.
IN 1897, FORMER BAPTIST PREACHERS LED BY BISHOP CHARLES HARRISON MASON
FOUNDED THE CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST. ALTHOUGH IT IS A PREDOMINANTLY BLACK
DENOMINATION, IT DIDN’T START THAT WAY. CONTRIBUTING TO ITS BI-RACIALISM
WAS THE GREAT AZUSA STREET REVIVAL WHICH BEGAN IN LOS ANGELES AT THE TURN
OF THE CENTURY.
p. 428, 429 – THE CHURCH WAS AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT IN THE
SOUTH. THE BLACK POWER MOVEMENT SPAWNED WHAT BECAME KNOWN IN 1966 AS BLACK
LIBERATION THEOLOGY. REV JAMES COMES WAS ITS MAIN INTERPRETER. IT BORROWED FROM
THE MODEL IN THE 50s OF LIBERATION THEOLOGY, LED BY CATHOLIC PRIESTS IN CENTRAL
AMERICA. THE PREMISE WAS THAT GOD SIDED WITH THE OPRRESSED CLASS AGAINST THE
RULING CLASS, AND JESUS WAS A MEMBER OF THAT OPPRESSED CLASS.
BRIEF TIMELINE OF THE BEGINNINGS OF THE BLACK ISLAMIC MOVEMENT IN AMERICA:
1913 – FOUNDING OF THE MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE IN NEWARK, NJ. FOUNDER WAS NOBLE
DREW ALI, WHO BELIEVED BLACKS SHOULD EMBRACE THEIR HERITAGE AS MOORS FROM
NORTH AFRICA. BELIEVED KEY TO LIBERATION FOR BLACKS WAS ACCEPTING ISLAM, WHICH HE
ALSO MIXED WITH EASTERN RELIGIONS AND GARVEYISM
1929 – NOBLE DREW ALI DIES
1930 – SPLIT OCCURS IN THE MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE. SOME REMAIN WITH THE ORIGINAL
GROUP, WHERE OTHERS ACCEPTED A NEW LEADER, W.D. FARD (MUHAMMAD), WHICH
BECAME FOUNDER AND ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF THE NATION OF ISLAM, ALSO CALLED THE
BLACK MUSLIMS
1933/34 – FARD MYSTERIOUSLY DISAPPEARS. NEW LEADER BECAME ONE OF HIS PUPILS, ELIJAH
MUHAMMAD (BORN ELIJAH ROBERT POOLE, SON OF SHARECROPPERS). HE TAUGHT BLACK
SELF SUFFICIENCY, SELF HELP, AND SOCIAL SEGREGATION. CONDEMNED CHRISTIANITY AS THE
RELIGION OF THE OPPRESSOR. ISLAM WAS TAUGHT AS A BLACK RELIGION, AND THAT BLACKS
SHOULD EMBRACE THE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OF THEIR AFRICAN ANCESTORS
1959 – CBS PRODUCED A DOCUMENTARY ON MUHAMMAD AND THE NATION OF ISLAM
ENTITLED ‘THE HATE THAT HATE PRODUCED. THIS IS WHERE AMERICA WAS NOT INTRODUCED
TO THE BLACK MUSLIMS, BUT ALSO TO MALCOLM X
1963 – ON NOV 22, PRESIDENT KENNEDY WAS ASSASSINATED. MALCOLM X WAS SILENCED FOR
90 DAYS FOR MAKING PUBLIC COMMENTS ABOUT THE KENNEDY ASSASSINATION AFTER
MUHAMMAD HAD INSTRUCTED HIS MINISTERS NOT TO MAKE ANY.
UNFORTUNATELY, THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MALCOLM AND MUHAMMAD BECAME
STRAINED WHEN INFORMATION ABOUT MUHAMMAD’S PERSONAL LIFE WERE COMING TO
LIGHT, PARTICULARLY THAT MUHAMMAD HAD FATHER NO LESS THAN 6 CHILDREN BY MUSLIM
SECRETARIES.
FEB 21, 1965 – MALCOLM X WAS ASSASSINATED WHILE BEGINNING A SPEECH PROMOTING HIS
ORGANIZATION, THE ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN UNITY. HE WAS BURIED THE
NEXT DAY, ACCORDING TO MUSLIM TRADITION
1975 – ELIJAH MUHAMMAD DIES, PASSING ON LEADERSHIP TO HIS SON, WALLACE D.
MUHAMMAD. HE BEGAN MAKING CHANGES, TO INCLUDE RENAMING THE ORGANIZATION,
WHICH MANY LOYAL TO ELIJAH MUHAMMAD OPPOSED. LED BY THE FORMER LOUIS X (LOUIS
FARRAKHAN), THE NATION STOOD DIVIDED
1978/9 – A SPLLIT OCCURRED IN THE NATION OF ISLAM. FARRAKHAN BECAME LEADER OF THE
SPLIT, WHICH BECAME THE RECONSTITUTED NATION OF ISLAM WHICH WE KNOW TODAY.
THERE HAD BEEN EFFORTS TO RECONCILE THE TWO GROUPS, BUT THAT HAS NOT OCCURRED.
WALLACE MUHAMMAD (ALSO KNOWN AS WARITH DEEN MUHAMMAD) DIED IN 2008.
‘AFRICAN WOMEN AND WOMEN OF THE CARIBBEAN’
p. 444 – THE TERM KINSHIP MEANS A NETWORK OF RELATIVES (FATHERS, UNCLES, BROTHERS,
NEPHEWS, MOTHERS, SISTERS, ETC.) WHO SHARE A COMMON ANCESTOR
REVIEW: REMEMBER, A MATRILINY (MATRILINEAL SOCIETY) TRACES THE LINEAGE THROUGH
THE FEMALE LINE, BASED ON A COMMON ANCESTRESS
A MATRIARCHY, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS A SYSTEM WHERE WOMEN HOLD FORMAL
AUTHORITY OVER THE FAMILY, STATE, OR NATION
MATRILINY DETERMINES INHERITANCE
THE LINK BETWEEN PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS IS THE ANCESTOR. BACK IN
CHAPTER 22, WE SAID THAT RESPECT FOR ANCESTORS WAS ONE OF THE FEATURES OF
TRADITIONAL AFRICAN RELIGIONS
IN THE ASHANTI TRADITION OF GHANA (A MATRILINEAL SOCIETY), LINEAGE THROUGH THE
MOTHER-CHILD BOND IS THE BASIS OF THE POLITICAL UNIT
- AS THE KING (OR CHIEF) AS A THRONE AS HIS SYMBOL OF AUTHORITY, SO THE QUEEN
MOTHER HAS HER OWN SYMBOL, WHICH IS THE STOOL.
- IN THE ASHANTI TRADITION IN GHANA, EACH VILLAGE HAS A QUEEN MOTHER WHO
PERFORMS WORSHIP RITES, HAS A MAIN ROLE IN SETTLING DIVORCE CASES. SHE ALSO
WATCHES OVER THE MORALS OF THE WOMEN AND GIRLS, AND REPRESENTS WOMEN
IN POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC AFFAIRS
IN SOMALIA (A PATRILINEAL SOCIETY WHERE FAMILY MEMBERSHIP IS TRACED THROUGH THE
MALE), THE CLAN IS THE BASIS FOR THE POLITICAL ORGANIZTION.
- IN POLYGAMOUS MARRIAGES (WHERE MAN HAS MORE THAN ONE WIFE), CHILDREN
MAY LIVE WITH MOTHERS IN SEPARATE COMPOUNDS
p. 451 - IN MOST AFRICAN SOCIETIES, TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE MIGHT NOT BE EXCLUSIVELY
BETWEEN 2 PEOPLE, BUT A LINK IN EXPANDING KINSHIP AND ALLIANCES BETWEEN TWO CLANS
WHICH MIGHT WAGE WAR AGAINST EACH OTHER
p. 453 - IN SOMALIA, 99% OF GIRLS BETWEEN 7 AND 14, AS A FEMALE RITE OF PASSAGE,
UNDERGO FEMALE CIRCUMCISION. OBVIOUSLY, THIS PRACTICE AS AN OVERALL NEGATIVE
IMPACT ON THE ROLD AND WELL-BEING OF WOMEN
p. 468 – DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT ON A DAILY BASIS, WOMEN OFTEN CAUSED MORE TROUBLE
THAN MEN
4 WAYS ENSLAVED AFRO-CARIBBEAN WOMEN RESISTED ENSLAVEMENT ON A DAILY BASIS:
1) FAKING ILLNESS
2) REFUSING TO GO TO WORK
3) LEAVING THE ESTATE WITHOUT PERMISSION
4) USING SLAVE CODES IN THEIR OWN FAVOR, ESPECIALLY MATERNITY RITES
p. 466 – WOMEN IN THE CARIBBEAN DESCENDED FROM A VARIETY OF ETHNIC BACKGROUNDS:
AFRICAN
EUROPEAN
EAST INDIAN
CHINESE
MIDDLE EAST
CHAPTER 25 – BLACK WOMEN IN AMERICA
p. 482 – 3 POINTS ABOUT AFRICAN PEOPLES IN AMERICA STARTING FROM THE YEAR 1620:
1) AFRICA WAS PORTRAYED AS A ‘DARK CONTINENT,’ WITH ITS PEOPLE COMING FROM
NOTHING NOTEWORTHY
2) THE WORD ‘SLAVE’ THROUGHOUT HISTORY IS IMPERSONAL, REPRESENTING ONLY A UNIT OF
PRODUCTION WITHOUT PERSONALITY. THIS IS WHY MOST AFROCENTRIC SCHOLARS USE THE
TERM ‘ENSLAVEMENT’ RATHER THAN ‘SLAVERY.’
3) WHAT BLACK PEOPLE ENDURED IS WHAT HAPPENED TO PEOPLE, AND NOT THINGS (UNITS
OF PRODUCTION)
p. 485 – 2 HISTORICAL POINTS ABOUT AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMEN:
1) THEY CAME FROM CULTURES WITH VALUES AND BELIEF SYSTEMS
2) THEY WERE NOT DESTINED TO LIVE OUT THE DEGRADING EXPERIENCE OF ENSLAVEMENT,
WHICH GREW FROM EUROPEAN SETTLERS’ BELIEFS ABOUT A ‘MASTER RACE’ AND A ‘SERVANT
RACE’
p. 489 – ENSLAVERS DID NOT CARRY OFF OLD, SICK OR DISABLED PEOPLE
- AFRICAN WOMEN WERE VICTIMIZED BOTH CULTURALLY AND SEXUALLY
SINCE 1620, BLACK WOMEN WERE CONSIDERED, LIKE MEN, AS COMMON PROPERTY. THE ONLY
DIFFERENCE WAS THAT COMPARED TO WHITE WOMEN, CONSIDERED THE STANDARDS OF
BEAUTY, PURITY AND WOMANHOOD, BLACK WOMEN WERE DESCRIBES AS PROMISCUOUS,
UGLY AND UNDESIRABLE
ANOTHER POINT TO REMEMBER THAT WOMEN IN AFRICA HAD MALE PROVIDERS AND
PROTECTORS.
p. 492, 493 – AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN SERVED OUT WHAT WAS KNOWN AS THE ‘DOUBLE
DUTY’ DAY, WHERE THEY TOILED UNDER SLAVE MASTERS’ DEMANDS BY DAY, AND BY
EVENING, TOOK CARE OF THE NEEDS OF THEIR FAMILIES AND HOMES
p. 493 – 2 VIEWS OF AFRICAN INFERIORITY AS WRITTEN BY SOME SCHOLARS:
1) WHITE CULTURE ERASED WHATEVER LITTLE OF AFRICA REMAINED IN THE MINDS OF THE
ENSLAVED (CULTURAL GENOCIDE)
2) WHITE AUTHORITY, INSTITUTIONS AND VALUES BECAME AS IMPORTANT TO THE ENSLAVED
AS THEY WERE TO WHITES. THIS IS BASICALLY WHAT ASSIMILATION IS ABOUT. ONE EXAMPLE IS
HOLIDAYS THAT ARE OBSERVED AS WELL AS OTHER CUSTOMS.
p. 495 – 503 – SOME FAMOUS AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN IN HISTORY (NAMING ONLY A
SCANT FEW)
THESE FIRST 3 WOMEN WERE BORN ENSLAVED:
(1820? – 1913) HARRIET TUBMAN (BORN ARAMINTA ROSS) – BACKBONE OF THE
UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, AND SPY FOR THE UNION ARMY
(1797 – 1883) – SOJOURNER TRUTH (BORN ISABELLA BAUMFREE) – ABOLITIONIST AND
WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE ADVOCATE
(1818 -1896) – HARRIET JACOBS (WHO WROTE UNDER THE PSEUDONYM LINDA BRENT) –
ENSLAVED WOMAN WHO ESCAPED THE BRUTALITY DIRECTED AGAINST BLACK FEMALES IN HER
AUTOBIOGRAPHY INCIDENTS IN THE LIFE OF A SLAVE GIRL
THESE WOMEN WERE NOT BORN IN ENSLAVEMENT:
(1862 – 1931) – IDA B. WELLS BARNETT – A JOURNALIST AND LECTURER WHO LED A CRUSADE
AGAINST LYNCHING, PUBLICIZED AND EXPOSED VICIOUS CRIMES AGAINST BLACK PEOPLE IN
THE SOUTH…
(1863 – 1954) – MARY CHURCH TERRELL – COFOUNDER, ALONG WITH WELLS OF A POWERFUL
ORGANIZATION CALLED THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLORED WOMEN. TERRELL SERVED
AS ITS FIRST PRESIDENT
(1875 – 1955) MARY McLEOD BETHUNE – BECAME A TEACHER IN GEORGIA AND SOUTH
CAROLNIA, EVENTUALLY STARTED THE DAYTONA EDUCATIONAL AND INDUSTRIAL INSTITUTE
FOR GIRLS IN FLORIDA IN 1904; BY 1923, HER SCHOOL MERGED WITH THE CO-ED COOKMAN
INSTITUTE IN JACKSONVILLE, BECOMING BETHUNE-COOKMAN COLLEGE IN 1929
9 YEARS PRIOR TO ROSA PARKS STAND IN MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA, IRENE MORGAN SUED A
BUS COMPANY AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA OVER HER RIGHT TO CHALLENGE
SEGREGATION LAWS ON INTERSTATE CARRIERS IN A 1946 SUPREME COURT CASE MORGAN V.
COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
DR. KARENGA ESTABLISHED THE ‘US’ ORGANIZATION IN 1965, WHICH INSISTS THE FIRST
REVOLUTION AMONG BLACK PEOPLE NEEDS TO BE A CULTURAL REVOLUTION. SO
ESTABLISHED KAWAIDA (KUH-WADE-UH) THEORY, WHICH HAS 7 CORE PRINCIPLES, CALLED
NGUZO SABA. THESE FORM THE 7 PRINCIPLES OF KWANZAA, WHICH KARENGA ESTABLISHED
IN 1966 AS AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN CULTURAL HOLIDAY OBSERVANCE. IT IS NOT A RELIGIOUS
HOLIDAY, THOUGH IT TAKES PLACE FROM DECEMBER 26 – JANUARY 1ST.