ENROLL

Ahmed S Ibrahim

This course will introduce students to key trends and moments in Islamic thought and activism in Africa and the black diaspora. It explores the historical construction of the categories of “race” and “religion” through a focus on Islam and blackness. We will analyze how blackness and Islam, and their relationship, has been conceptualized and presented by non-Africans, as well as the history of Islam in Africa and in the black diaspora. We will explore the construction of blackness within Islamic history and cultures, highlighting the notion of the Moor in medieval times and the Nation of Islam in U.S. history.

Mike E Jirik

The development of the modern world through the lens of Black revolutions is the analytical focus of this class. This course challenges eurocentric narratives of the development of the modern world and instead centers critiques of western civilization from what Cedric Robinson calls the Black Radical tradition and its liberatory project. Black resistance to the development of the Americas and the system of racial capitalism was continuous and evolved over time. Using a series of Black revolutions in the Atlantic World during the age of slavery as case studies, we will study historical manifestations of Black radicalism and use them to theorize new forms of knowledge, history, philosophy, and culture.

Thabiti Willis

This course deepens understanding of the causes, manifestations, and implications of warfare in modern Africa by highlighting African perspectives on colonialism's legacies. Drawing from cases in South Africa, Uganda, Kenya, Algeria, and Sudan, the course questions whether Britain's policy of indirect rule, France's direct rule, and South Africa's apartheid rule were variants of despotism and how colonial rule shaped possibilities of resistance, reform, and repression. Students also will learn how different historical actors participated in and experienced war as well as produce an original research paper that thoughtfully uses primary and secondary resources.