WHAT ARE NOW MY THOUGHTS ON AFRICAN AMERICAN (BLACK/AFRICANA) STUDIES

What are now my Thoughts on African American (Black/Africana) Studies Student’s Name Institution Course # and Name Professor’s Name Submission Date Introduction The education system in the United States has been ignoring the contributions of Black communities to their historical legacy. African Americans were a topic of learning only when discussing slavery and colonization adventures. African American studies is a socially engaged field that seeks to address systemic misconceptions of African heritage, Black inferiority, and cultural significance. The significance of African American studies lies in its provision of a platform for representation and inclusion, its empowerment of Black communities, and its facilitation of social justice. This paper will delve into the historical background of African American studies, reflect on the themes discussed in class, and offer insights into this field. Historical Background The education system in the United States does not prioritize African American studies in any of its programs. Davidson (2021) states that the only significant piece of history that may be taught in the k-12 system is how black immigrants were enslaved in the past centuries. The last few decades have seen many scholars fighting for the inclusion of Black studies into the education curriculum, but it has been met with obstacles and unending promises that do not materialize into anything significant. However, Black studies were later added to the curriculum in schools, colleges, and universities after years of struggle and peaceful demonstrations (Purnell, 2023). This happened in the 1960s when professors and black students demanded that the education system be friendly and welcoming to Black students. I believe that the fight to include African American studies in the curriculum was not a war against the education system but a war against White supremacy and racial bias. Based on the above discourse, it can be derived that African American studies should be conceptualized as an interdisciplinary education that emphasizes diverse issues including intellectual traditions, politics, cultures, and histories of the Africans in the United States and the world at large. Given the negative history of African American studies as noted above, educational institutions should tailor their curriculum to communicate the need for social justice and achieve a more equitable community via educational discourse. This would help generate innovative paradigms of humanities and social sciences, as students learn to appreciate the issues of Blackness and the African American population generally. As part of the social justice objective, African American studies should be tailor-made to develop global citizen academicians and scholars who are committed to appraising and documenting their lived experiences. Thematic Reflection ...