Consider what we have studied in class. We have covered Africans in Americas Part 1, Africans in Americas Part 2, assigned readings from our text The African American Odyssey and supplemental lectures (on video
and in lecture).
Review the African American philosophies that we learned on
the second day of class. Use one African
American philosophy as a lens for interpreting and understanding the class
content. Choose only one specific topic
or lecture to interpret. Then post in the comments box how you view the African
American philosophy and class content to be conversation with one another.
Essentially, I am asking you to solve a problem. If it were
written out, it might look like this:
African American philosophy + class content = brilliant
insight and comment from student that provides evidence for her/his point.
Example: "The African American philosophy rememory is evident in Sonia
Sanchez’s performance of Middle Passage. In that poem, she uses the repetition
of words and inflections of sounds to articulate the mental anguish associated
with the middle passage."
Post your comments early; each term can only be used
twice. Every member from the class is
required to post.
The African American philosophy cosmopolitanism was evident when we viewed Africans in America part 1.Cosmopolitanism is the ideology that all human beings belong to a single community, based on a shared morality. During this film, we were exposed to the idea that in the early colonies, they operated under English law. This made it illegal for for any Christian to be enslaved for life. So before there was slavery, there was indentured servitude which gave Africans the opportunity to work for their freedom because they were considered actual people, not just commodities.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy of assimilation politics was evident in the Africans in Americas films. Assimilation politics is when an individual or group of people adopt various characteristics of another group. In this particular circumstance, the assimilation was gradual and entailed elements of resistance. For example, in the film African Americans had to assimilate to the "norm" of white colonial society. This included having to reluctantly adopt certain social, political economical, and spiritual beliefs and behaviors. Whether they agreed or not, they had to assimilate to the "politics" of slavery in order to survive. This included following and assimilating to the rules that governed how to achieve freedom. In addition to this, African Americans had to assimilate to the way in which white Christians exercised their religion. This included attending Church services (even if they were corrupt in nature).
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy of assimilation politics was evident in the Africans in America film. Assimilation politics is the process by which a person or a group's language and/or culture come to resemble those of another group. In the films, once an african was finished with his time of being an indentured servant, he had to adjust to the norms of the lives of the other people who lived in the colonies as free men. Also, if you were brought to the Americas as a slave, you had to adjust from the life of a free man in your home country, to being owned by someone else and being forced to work for them until death.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy of respectability was evident during a lot of Africans in America film. An example of this is when Africans were first being brought to America they were respected on the same level once they served their times as indentured servants. They were respected enough to be trusted to be indentured servants and move on from that fairly. It was socially acceptable for them to own land and have their own land. But over time their respectability dropped and they ended up with none leading to slavery. As a people it was discussed how they had no respect and that was obvious.
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ReplyDeleteDuring Dr.Jones' guest lecture, the African American philosophy of respectability saturated most of the class discussion and content covered. (The Politics of) Respectability is a concept used to describe "attempts by marginalized groups to police their own members and show their social values as being continuous and compatible with mainstream values rather than challenging the mainstream for its failure to accept difference." Though the term wasn't actually used during our discussion it can be used to examine why Beyonce's embracement of her sexuality is largely more accepted than Nicki Minaj's. It can also perhaps explain why homosexuality within the African American community was (and arguably still is) largely policed and silenced in order to maintain a status of acceptance within larger societal bounds.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy of Politics of Respectability was evident in the Africans in America film when it discussed the norms of society during that time for the white men and also for the new upcoming slaves. The slaves who had come over from Africa and other parts of the world had to be marginalized into a new societal norm America. The slaves were forced to adjust to understand that they were no longer viewed as people but property, this concept that slavery was forced to become "the norm" to the slaves was the foundation behind what we as a class and the film has talked about constantly throughout class and book.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy of Double consciousness relates directly with the content of the class because it was evident in the Africans in America film. Double consciousnesses was a term coined by W.E.B. Du Bois that refers to the internal conflict that one deals with when trying to identify themselves as one thing in particular and find it very difficult, particularly because of a stunting European upbringing in slavery and education.
ReplyDeleteThe film does a great job in depicting loss, not only of family members and hope, but of heritage, language,customs/traditions that work together to make a person who they are. For example, the film shows how slaves came from various locations across Africa that have different traditions and languages, but when they got on that boat they were nothing more then slaves; property to be bought and sold to the white man, losing all hopes of an identity in the process. White conventions, such as the way of dress, language,food,music, events, and religion which was used to justify slavery were stamped into their minds because if you don't know who you are and where you came from then you do not realize the entirety of what you lost and can be more easily controlled that way by your oppressors.
The African American philosophy post-colonial theory is evident in both Africans in America part one and two. Post-colonial theory studies the aftermath of mass imperialism and colonialism. Specifically how imperialism impacted views of self-identity in different cultures around the world. The movies show how early settlers in the colonies view African Americas and how this view impacted how African Americans began to see themselves. The movies also showed the consequences of controlling a country and establishing settlers for the economic exploitation of the native people and their land. The movie illustrates in great detail how African Americans lives changed once colonies grew larger and became more established.
ReplyDeleteDuring Dr. Jones' lecture the class began to discuss several African Americans that are in the spot light a lot. We talked about Nicki Minaj and how she displays herself out in public. We discussed how her wardrobe is often criticized in the media for being too revealing and that her song lyrics make her seem to fit the role she is portrayed as. The media speaks of how she is not a role model and needs to be an example for the younger generation. People also say that she is just doing what she does because she feels she needs to be free and able to express herself in any way she sees fit. Either way I believe that her behavior is a great example of black existentialism. This is because she does things in ways that are against the grain and not what people thinks she should. She breaks the rules that society has set for women to act.
ReplyDeleteWe talked a little about Freddie Gray and Michael Brown this semester. I believe this is where black liberation theory comes into play. Black liberation theory is a theory that through Christianity African Americans could find their individuality through Jesus Christ. This is based off of the thought that Jesus Christ helped the poor/marginalized classes when he helped people. African Americans see that through white oppression that they have become marginalized. They use Jesus as a symbol of an individual going against a system of oppression. Which African Americans feel is a symbol of a black man facing white oppression. I find this really interesting because Jesus Christ was an individual who fought against a set of rules and oppression of the lower class. He showed the lower class that their rulers don't have the power but that people have the power together to control their own destinies if they stick with one another and work together.That is the same for MLK. He came to a bunch of people and showed them that they had the power. They did the Montgomery bus boycott to disrupt a system. Even right now as I mentioned earlier people are fighting oppression through the black lives matter movement when it comes to Michael Brown and Freddie Gray. I find this theory to be extremely relevant
ReplyDeleteWhen I say oppression I am referring to for profit prison systems that house a majority of black men for non-violent crimes. Once they become felons they lose their rights and freedoms that they had before. Also how congress obliged and passed harder drug laws to fuel for profit prison systems.
DeleteIn our class discussion with Dr. Jennifer Jones we discussed the integrity of Nicki Minaj vs. Kim Kardashian-West. The majority of the class agreed that NIcki Minaj is ,for lack of a better word, a hoe. Our class categorized Nicki as such due to her overly sexual lyrics, her choice of revealing clothes, and her use of cosmetic surgery to obtain a curvy physique. When we were then asked our opinion on Kim Kardashian- West, the class favored Mrs. West over Nicki because she is a mother, wife, and she also presents herself in a classier manner. Although Mrs. Kardashian-West is a mother and wife, let us not forget that she has got famous off of a sex tape, often poses nude, has been married 3 times, and has has multiple plastic surgeries to obtain her famous figure. Despite all these facts we chose Kim over NIcki- a woman who gained her fame by talent, a supporter of education, and a self-proclaimed feminist. Although Nicki is extremely raunchy at times, she would be the lesser of the two evils of this situation. The term that I can relate to this situation would be Post-Colonial theory/ Post-Colonialism. Post-colonial theory examines how mass colonialism and imperialism by European countries impacted the world-especially focusing on how it affected the self-identity of Africans and people of color around the world. I would say post-colonialism relates to this situation because it shows the worldwide view of favoritism of one race over another. After Europe collected land all over the globe, the people in these lands were often forced to assimilate to European standards (religion, government, Beauty). These European standards have been internalized into nearly every society in the world. This situation specifically focuses on how mass imperialism has skewed our standard of beauty. Kim Kardashian and NIcki MInaj both have the same curvy shape; however, one of these women is praised for her beauty and the other is ridiculed. Even though Kim identifies as Armenian, she is a white woman, and her skin will make her more desirable to the masses than a woman of color. Although our society says that we celebrate all beauty, situations like these make me question if that is true.
ReplyDeleteIn the film Africans in America, the African American philosophy Intersectionality was very apparent. It's became more apparent when the woman who just wanted her inheritance from her white father, which was rightfully hers, got denied the opportunity for it to become available all because her mother was black. Then the state turned around and made it a law that stated the race of your mother is what determined your freedom. So if your mother was a black female and her white slave master raped and got her pregnant you would be a slave based on the color of her skin. If the tables were turned and your mother was white and your dad was black you'd be free. I feel the reason that they made this a law because it,s more recurring to see a black woman raped by her slave master than to see a white woman willfully sleep with a black slave. Not only were black women discriminated against for being raped, but the bi-racial children who were forced into slavery because of the color of their mother's skin were discriminated against as well.
ReplyDeleteThe Black Feminist Theory really came into play in our discussion with Dr. Jennifer Jones. We discussed many different types of oppression that African Americans face. Specifically, we talked about Beyonce and Nicki Minaj and how they portray themselves, being black women. The Black Feminist Theory is all about oppression coming from many different angles. For instance, figures like Nicki Minaj and Beyonce face oppression because they are African American. But the oppression is double-layered because they are also women. Being a woman comes with double standards, and certain expectations of sexuality, etc. The same applies for being an African American.
ReplyDeleteAn African American philosophy that helps me understand some the content for the class when discussing slave history is Rememory. Rememory was very evident to me when we viewed those stand up poems in-class. Some poets would re-create the mentality of some slaves back then. There mentality was not very stable because they were mentally traumatized. It just goes to show the some slaves back then were mentally damaged and would continue to experience horrific memories when they were to find something that triggers it. This also helps me to understand that a lot of mental illness became more prevalent due to many slaves being mistreated and experiencing horrible events.
ReplyDeleteThe theory that best helps me understand the content of our class is intersectionality. The idea that race and gender among other factors can work together as a system of oppression helps me to better understand a variety of things such as the feeling behind Sonia Sanchez's poem, which was describing oppression as a black woman, versus Nikki Giovani who was describing more of a shared point of view as a black person. Intersectionality gives perspective to oppression so that it can be better understood. It sheds light on the fact that being a black man, and a black woman have commonalities, but also distinct differences. And it may be able to do away with the notion that when a person of a minority group speaks, they are speaking for that entire group. When it becomes understood that the experience of black people varies based on gender and class, it will broaden the idea of what it means to be black to other people, and possibly reduce the fear of blacks because we won't seem so foreign.
ReplyDeleteOne particular theory that stuck out to me while watching Africans in America was the Black Liberation Theology. This s a theological perspective, found in some black churches in the United States, which contextualizes Christianity in an attempt to help African Americans overcome oppression. Thanks in part to the revivals that were happening in America in the 1800s, many slaves were able to hear the message of salvation and liberation that the gospel of Jesus brings. However, to these African Americans, this liberation was tailored to suit their need for freedom by several black preachers who gained prominence by fusing African rituals and beliefs and spreading the message of freedom from slavery to slaves all over America.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy that became apparent to me was the theory of Respectability. As seen through the videos we watched, the I saw both ends of repeatability. When the slaves first came to America they had to learn that they were no longer seen as people but rather property. This would be a huge culture shock I am sure. I can also see the side of respectability, where the slaves would gain land after finishing the years on the plantation. This is a more positive view of respectability. I feel like this may have a form of respect to the slave. I know this sounds weird because obviously you have no respect for a person if they are you slave. Anyway's this was a kind act that some did, it was not acted on by mist slave owners.
ReplyDeleteThe theory that came to mind when watching and reading the things for class is the Black Liberation Theory. The Black Liberation Theory is a theory that is based on bringing African Americans out of oppression by introducing the power of Christianity. Two scenes from the Africans in America film made me think about this theory, the development of black churches in the south and how slave owners attempted to introduce christianity to their slaves. The development of black churches was talked in the film and this was huge for the African American community because it helped those who were oppressed and gave them something to live for. Another part of the film that can relate to the Black Liberation Theory was the slave owners introducing slaves to the Bible. This was important because it gave the something to believe and it was also an opportunity to for them to learn how to read and educate themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe African American philosophy intersectionality is evident to me a lot through out the entire course. Intersectionality is defined as the study of intersections between forms or systems of oppression, domination or discrimination. Slaves were living life at a disadvantage based off their race, gender or even class. As a slave class really was never considered merely because they were owed by someone and worked for basically nothing. Being an African american slave, you were not even seen as a man or being human. Slaves practically had no rights. One key difference that stands out to me when gender plays a role in intersectionality; would be the punishments a runaway slave would receive. If you were a woman runaway slave you would have your ear removed, but if you were a male runaway slave your genitalia was removed.
ReplyDeleteBlack Liberation comes into play when we discussed the tragic murders of Freddie Grey and Michael Brown. The Black Liberation theory contextualizes Christianity to help African American overcome oppression of the political, social, economical, and religious views. The events that are continuing and have been happening for years is boiling over the top and people are getting tired of it. Situations that happen when the black male is wrong in the world so you lock them away and resistance or hesitation is futile. They always say that a person who does wrong will end up one or two places: prison or the grave. But the system is set up that way, that no matter innocent or guilty if you are a person of color and especially black you are guilty until proven innocent. Most times that innocence is not proven and the guilty sentence comes from the bang of a judge's gavel or the barrel of police guns.
ReplyDeleteIntersectionality is when a person is in two social categorizes of race, class, or gender, that is considered a disadvantage and has increased discrimination within their environment. An example would be an African American homosexual. These are two social categories that are characterized as a disadvantage to an individual. In Jennifer Jones lecture the class was put in an uncomfortable situation to talk about homosexuality throughout the African American culture. Most conclude that the appearance of homosexuality in the African American community is more prevalent nowadays than it was in the past. Jones puts that opinion to the test when she talks about Bessie and other famous African Americans who were not shy in expressing their love for the same sex. Using prior knowledge and Jones lecture, I believe there was a gap. The 20s in America was its prime in culture. I believe during this time; a lot of things that were not accepted before, where now accepted. This was also a time of change in dances and in the way people dressed, and the rise of African American culture not only to blacks but also to whites. Then when the increase of lynching’s, and racism the fight for equal rights among the African American community began. African American’s fight for equality also included acting a certain prestigious ways; which was focusing more on education and politics and less on entertainment and art. They wanted to polish up their look; so that whites would have less to discriminate against. So I believe that made homosexuality among African Americans less acceptable in order to fight against racism. It over flowed to the 21 century; and now nobody really talks about. If it is known; it’s known. Nobody dwells into homosexuality or talks about; it is what it is. `People accept it but they don’t flaunt it as much because of the mold African Americans have to fit in order to avoid as much conflict as possible. That and the fact what is in the household stays in the household. It’s one of those things a lot of ethnic families do in order to protect their loved ones.
ReplyDeleteBlack liberation theory is a theological perspective found in black churches around the United States which contextualizes Christianity in an attempt to overcome oppression.
ReplyDeleteBlack liberation theologists seek to liberate people of color from multiple forms of political, social, economic, and religious views. We watched the short clips in class and saw exactly what happened to the African Americans. African Americans have had a tough, rough history when they were taken from their homes and brought to a foreign country with absolutely no freedom whatsoever. Also they were tortured, families were broken apart because slave were sold separately.
Black liberalists are essentially fighting towards getting rid of stigmas, stereotypes or anything that African Americans may still face in today's society. I thought this topic was very interesting.
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