Africana Studies Courses | 2024-2025 Academic Catalog | SIU

A survey course designed to expose the student to various aspects of the black experience. Aspects included are history, literature, theology, the arts, etc. The textbook is a collection of essays designed to use especially in this course and is supplemented by guest lecturers and audiovisual materials.

Credit Hours: 3

Study of Third World through a focus on Africa as a model; emphasis on the cultural traditions, impact of the West, and the problems facing Third World nations today.

Credit Hours: 3

Insights into the black American experience. Concepts including race, ethnicity, class, caste, minorities, prejudice, discrimination will be analyzed. Main focus is on exploration of critical socio-economic, political, and cultural themes such as demographic trends; migration and urbanization, political participation and strategies, income and employment, housing, health, education, black family, black religion, law, and justice. Prerequisite: AFR 109 recommended but not required.

Credit Hours: 3

(University Core Curriculum) A study and understanding of the evolution of issues of pluralism in contemporary African American society. This course provides an interdisciplinary analysis of ideological and practical problems of racism, integration, class, equity, social institutions as they relate to the Black American experience.

Credit Hours: 3

Examination of the interplay between tradition and modernity in an effort to understand the new Africa. Some of the forces of social change are analyzed. Other topics include African women and the family structure in change and the problems of African development.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as AD 227) (University Core Curriculum Course) A history of African American visual arts, with a brief examination of the arts of various nations of Africa and how they affected art in America. Craft arts, architecture, painting and sculpture will be considered from the slave trade era to the Civil War era; the Harlem Renaissance and other 20th Century movements to the present day.

Credit Hours: 3

An introductory course that focuses on the concepts of black sociology in order to fill the gaps of traditional sociology pertaining to the black experience. Designed to heighten the student's awareness of the black identity and the sociological phenomena, which affect it and acquaints the student with specific sociological problems in the study of Afro-Americans.

Credit Hours: 3

Special approval needed from the instructor.

Credit Hours: 1

(Same as MUS 303I, WGSS 303I) (University Core Curriculum) Explores traditional aesthetic processes of the blues as a mode of self expression. Examines the images/voices projected by vaudeville blues women (1920s/30s), along with various manifestations/extensions-instrumental and vocal, musical and literary-from fiction and poetry to jazz, R&B, and rap. In-depth analysis of blues music and literature.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as ANTH 310A) Introduction to the prehistory, cultural history, and modern cultures of people of Africa.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 362A) Black American History to 1865. The role of blacks and contribution in the building of America and the ongoing fight for equality. Required for the minor.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 362B) The role of blacks and contribution in the building of America and the ongoing fight for equality. Required for the minor.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 387A) A chronological study of African peoples from earliest times to the present, including ancient Egypt, Ethiopia, the Era of the African Kingdoms, the role of Islam, the slave trade, African-European relations, colonialism, African nationalism and independence.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 387B) A chronological study of African peoples from earliest times to the present, including ancient Egypt, Ethiopia, the Era of the African Kingdoms, the role of Islam, the slave trade, African-European relations, colonialism, African nationalism and independence.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as AD 320) Covers a broad range of the arts primarily of west and central Africa, as well as north, south, and east Africa. Includes sculpture, masking and performance, body decoration and textiles, and architecture. Shows how arts are used in the daily life of traditional village societies in these areas.

Credit Hours: 3

A study of black rulers; governmental representatives; activists; and thinkers; both past and present; in Africa; the West Indies; and the United States, with emphasis on the effects of their philosophies on the black world.

Credit Hours: 3

(University Core Curriculum course) (Same as ENGL 325) (IAI Course: H3 910D] Poetry, drama, and fiction by Black American writers. Satisfies the University Core Curriculum Multicultural requirements in lieu of English 205.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as POLS 326) Designed to familiarize students with the role of African-Americans in American politics. An emphasis is placed on describing and analyzing how the structure of the American political system affects efforts by African-Americans in gaining the full benefits of the American political system. It will also address contentious sociopolitical issues that affect how African-Americans are treated in the context of the larger society.

Credit Hours: 3

Comparative study of the social problems which afflict black Americans and other minorities and their consequences; including crime and delinquency, mental and emotional disorders, drug addiction, housing conditions, poverty and unemployment, and labor conditions. Special approval needed from the instructor.

Credit Hours: 3

(formerly BAS 332) Investigates the long and complex relationship of U.S. Law and African Americans, from the Colonial Period through the Civil Rights era and more recently as issues such as mandatory sentencing and the expansion of offenses punishable by law have become widespread in U.S. society.

Credit Hours: 3

Exploring the myths and realities of the black family from sociological and psychological perspectives through a critical examination of scholarly controversies and research. Restricted to junior standing.

Credit Hours: 4

(Same as PSYC 334) Examines psychological characteristics of African descent, using an Africentric conceptual model. Theoretical models will be critiqued and empirical data will be examined. Selected issues include: critiques of research methodologies involving African descended populations; African American identities and personality development, psychopathology and cognitive development issues (i.e., language).

Credit Hours: 4

Analysis of selected topics: the prison community and the black inmate; correction education and the black inmate; and the black professional.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 351) This course explores the ways that African-Atlantic societies have expressed the interaction of people in the visible world with the spiritual powers of the invisible world. The course begins with the ancient foundations of these spiritual systems and then examines the historical transformation of these systems in West Africa, Central Africa, and the Americas into the twentieth century.

Credit Hours: 3

The black American novel and its major themes since Richard Wright's Native Son. Includes such authors as Baldwin, Petry, Williams, etc.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as ENGL 355A) Course traces evolution African American Literature from roots in such Afri-based secular and sacred oral texts as folk tales, work songs, the Spirituals, Blues and other verbal forms, through the emergence of written texts, the eighteenth century up to the end of the Harlem Renaissance in 1940. Among these concerns are the continuing quest for freedom, identity, protest against oppression, and writers' interpretation of enduring African American spiritual and cultural values.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as ENGL 355B) Examination of literary texts, voices and movements in the USA from 1940 to present. Among these concerns are the continuing quest for freedom, identity, protest against oppression, and writers' interpretation of the enduring African American spiritual and cultural values. Focus on the major developments in African American literature after the Harlem Renaissance and its impact on the contemporary literature of African Americans.

Credit Hours: 3

History of the role of blacks in the performing arts covering dance companies, ballet, folk dance and black dramatists; cinema, in all its forms; radio and television; and music (spirituals, jazz, opera, classics, etc.)

Credit Hours: 3

Why does race still matter in America? Beginning with the Declaration of Independence, we will explore how the histories of racism and antiracism help us understand the United States' claim to be a melting pot. Although we will primarily focus on African American history, we will also consider a range of other topics (federal Indian policies, Latin American and Asian immigration, etc.) to provide broader social and cultural contexts for our examination of topics such as racial mixture, racial integration, civil rights, racial pride, cultural appropriation, and colorblindness.

Credit Hours: 3

Course will investigate theories of African art, especially music, dance, sculpture, textile design and adornment styles of cultural groups in West Africa. Cultural transferences and continuities of African art as found in the African diaspora (with special attention to African American art production) will also be studied. Students will be expected to develop a philosophy of art.

Credit Hours: 3-6

(Same as HIST 388) An account of the world wars in African history. Topics to be covered include an examination of the spilling of European conflicts over into Africa, the battle grounds, manpower and resource mobilization with an emphasis on the role of women, the social, economic, and political impacts of the wars on African societies and African combatants, the role of non-European powers (South Africa and the United States), and how the wars enhanced political awareness of Africans in their struggles for independence, particularly after World War II.

Credit Hours: 3

Independent study, which examines problems and issues not covered in a specific course. Hours and subject matter decided during consultation with a faculty member. Special approval needed from the instructor and director of program.

Credit Hours: 1-6

(Same as HIST 401) This course examines the origins and development of the Atlantic basin as an intercommunication zone for African, European and American societies from the mid-15th century through the early-19th century. Themes include transformation of environments, forced and voluntary migrations, emergence of distinct Atlantic culture communities, development of Atlantic economics and formulation and implementation of Atlantic revolutionary ideologies.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as ANTH 410H) This course examines aspects of African expressive culture including the visual arts, music, dance, orature, cinema, drama, and ceremony from an anthropological perspective. Particular attention is given to analysis of African expressive culture in social context and the role of the arts in the practice of politics, religion, medicine, and other aspects of African life. Many of the expressive genres examined deal with historical representation and political resistance. Therefore, this course provides insights into African history and politics through the creation of African artists.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as ANTH 413) This course examines the history and social significance of African film from cultural, aesthetic, political, and economic perspectives.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as CMST 416 and WGSS 416) Explore the roots, contemporary manifestations, and current embodiments of Black feminist thought. Explore the works of Black women to engage in critical thinking and thoughtful dialogue that positions the valuable knowledge, experiences and perspectives of women of color at the center of inquiry while simultaneously discovering spaces for multicultural alliances.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as THEA 460) Explores significant themes in African and African American drama, with special attention to performance styles and cultural issues.

Credit Hours: 3

Definitive approach to how people learn about politics focusing on blacks because of their unique experience; i.e., prolonged minority group status. Research oriented, in that, it takes an explanative and predictive approach to produce models of political learning. Not for graduate credit. Restricted to junior or senior standing, or consent of department.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as CMST 447) Via intercultural theories and methods, this course explores histories, relationships, interactions and recent events by positioning racial and ethnic perspectives at the center of inquiry. The course critically examines the complexities of race, racism and ethnicity by focusing on how people communicate across racial and ethnic differences in different contexts.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as MUS 452A, WGSS 452A) Examines the tradition of "uppity" women's blues from the so-called "classic" blues singers of the 19th century (Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Bessie Smith, Ida Cox, etc.) to the contemporary blues of Saffire, Denise LaSalle and others. Explores ways blues women challenge conventions of gender and sexuality, racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia. Restricted to junior/senior/graduate music major or consent of instructor.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as MUS 452B) Traces the history, culture, and stylistic developments of blues and boogie woogie piano. Explores socio-cultural contexts and examines key players, pieces, and musical styles. Restricted to junior/senior/graduate music major or consent of instructor.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 460) This course examines slavery and southern distinctiveness from the colonial period to 1861. Discussion topics include the plantation system, race relations, women and slavery, and southern nationalism.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 461) This course examines the history of African Americans in the American West. Taking both a chronological and thematic approach, it begins with a discussion of early black explores in the age of encounter, and ends with a focus on black western towns established in the United States by the 1880's.

Credit Hours: 3

An examination of the impact of western colonial rule on the societies and politics of Africa, the method by which these colonial areas became sovereign states in the post-World War II era, the role of domestic political institutions, African political thought and behavior, and the development of foreign policies regarding relations with other African states, continental and international organizations, and international organizations, and non-African states.

Credit Hours: 3

This course reviews the history and evolution of the construct of race as a psychological phenomenon. While the course will be largely psychological in nature, the pervasiveness of race in practically every sphere of life necessitates a multidisciplinary approach. The course will emphasize a theoretical and conceptual approach toward understanding the psychology of racialized thinking. Prerequisite: PSYC 211. Crosslisted with PSYC 470.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 473) A comparative study of slavery from antiquity to its abolition in the 19th century with the differing socio-cultural, political and economic contexts; organized chronologically, regionally, and thematically.

Credit Hours: 3

This course uses the best scholarship of cultural anthropology and social studies to look at the history of education in the African American community; how public education affects African American families; how school shape cultural change and how racial, ethnic peer group, and gender issues help determine curriculum issues. For graduate credit.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 478) An examination of Southern African history with emphasis on South Africa from 1652 to 1994. Topics to be covered include conflicts and wars, migrations and state formations, the economics of minerals, industrialization and the Anglo-Boer War, intertwined histories of race relations, the politics of exclusion and apartheid, and the making of modern South Africa.

Credit Hours: 3

Special topics, focused on research needs of students who are regularly enrolled in upper-division courses, especially graduate students doing research in Africana related topics in other departments and programs. May be repeated for up to six credit hours. Special approval needed from the director of the AFR program.

Credit Hours: 3

This course provides the theoretical framework for research in the field of Africana Studies. Students will investigate the foundations of the field of Black Studies, from the arguments of Maulena Karenga and Molefi Asante, to the challenges of scholars such as Manning Marable, James Turner and other recent scholars. Students will pursue individual research projects appropriate to various academic disciplines which constitute the field of Africana Studies. May be taken for graduate credit.

Credit Hours: 3

Study abroad 4-6 week program is designed to introduce similarities in culture (food, dance, music, family traditions, religion) of people in Ghana and in the cultures of people in the African diaspora. Class begins on the SIUC campus and will relocate to Elmina and Cape Coast, Ghana, during the first year of a three-year sequence. Other years will locate in areas of the West Indies, Caribbean & Central America. May be taken for graduate credit. Special approval needed from the instructor.

Credit Hours: 3-9

Using compilations of the 19th and early 20th century body of work known as "Slave Narratives", students will organize research projects that discover selected major themes of Africana Studies. The course will be useful to students from various academic disciplines (such as Psychology; Music; Sociology; History; Philosophy; Education; Literature; and Theology, among others) as they place Slave Narratives in the center of Africana and American Studies scholarship. May be taken for graduate credit.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as HIST 487) This course provides an overview of the history of the Civil Rights Movement while engaging major debates in the field of Black Freedom Studies. Central themes will include the impact of the Cold War, the roles of women, and the relationship of civil rights to black power. We will also discuss the difference between popular memory and historical scholarship as well as the meaning of such discussions for contemporary issues of racial and economic justice.

Credit Hours: 3

Topics vary and are announced in advance. May be repeated as the topic varies. No prerequisites.

Credit Hours: 3-9

(Same as PHIL 451) A survey of major thinkers and themes in the history of African American Philosophy from colonial times to the 20th century.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as PHIL 455) A survey of critical examination of a range of theories on the nature and meaning of "race", the intersection of race with class and gender, and the promotion of racial progress. Such theories include racial realism and idealism, racial biologism, cultural race theory, social constructivist theory, integrationism, separatism, racial eliminativism, cosmopolotianism, and especially critical race theory.

Credit Hours: 3

(Same as PHIL 459) A seminar on varying topics, themes, and figures in African, African American, and/or Caribbean Philosophy, e.g., "W.E.B. Du Bois and His Contemporaries," "Pan Africanism," "Philosophies of Liberation," "Black Feminism," " Contemporary African Philosophy," "Philosophies of the Caribbean.

Credit Hours: 1-6