race, crime, and DNA

The January 2008 issue of Wired magazine contains an interesting article on page 74: "Criminal Code: A new DNA test can ID a suspect's race, but police won't touch it."

graphic design as social commentary

Zimbabwean graphic designer Chaz Maviyane-Davies uses "creative defiance" to "cut through complacency and apathy while trying to raise consciousness about an array of social issues from discrimination and human rights, to health and the environment." His work is very powerful.

Somali Institute for Peace and Justice event

The Somali Institute for Peace and Justice, consisting of a group of Somali intellectuals, scholars, community leaders, and students, is holding the anniversary of Ethiopian Forces Occupation in Somalia on December 28, 2007 at 6:30pm, at the Zuhrah Shrine Center (2540 Park Av. S, Minneapolis, MN). Speakers include:

Professor Peter Erlinder
Professor Ismael Gorse
Professor Hassan Mohamud
Congressman Keith Ellison (Expected)
Professor Ahmed Samatar (Expected)

The Institute promotes an alternative academic and practical approach to Somali social and political problems, and encourages Somali and non-Somali scholars and intellectuals to participate in the search for solutions to problems Somalis face in America and at home. The Institute strives to promote greater education of non-Somalis about Somalia and the Horn of Africa.

what's happening at SCSU?!

In the past few weeks there have been a string of race-related issues at St. Cloud State University. Most recently, a student of color was spat on and shown the Nazi salute. What happened to Minnesota Nice?

film: "War/Dance"

The Shine Global film War/Dance opens at the Lagoon Landmark in Minneapolis on Friday, December 14.

War/Dance is the story of three Acholi children of northern Uganda who have been brutalized not only by a twenty-year civil war, but also by the terrorist organization the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). It follows the historic journey of three children from northern Uganda--Dominic, Rose, and Nancy--and their school in the Patongo refugee camp, the first school from the northern war zone to make it to the finals of Uganda's national music and dance competition.

Amidst unimaginable violence and grief, these children sing and dance: they sing with vitality; they sing without fear; they sing in protest and in celebration.

War/Dance has won more than 20 awards nationally and internationally including "Best Director" at Sundance. The film opened in Los Angeles and New York on November 9, and it was the top ranked film at the Dupont Theater when it premiered in DC on November 16. It is the first documentary made by Shine Global.

Shine Global, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) film production company dedicated to ending the abuse and exploitation of children worldwide through the production of documentary films and other media that raise social awareness and effect political change.

All contributions to Shine are used to produce films. Net profits are returned to the documented children through local non-governmental agencies.

For more information, visit Shine Global or the War/Dance blog.

build the dream

Interested in supporting the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.? Visit the M.L.K. Memorial website.

"What in the World is Social and Cultural Analysis?"

On Monday, December 10, Professor Lisa Duggan (New York University) will present "What in the World is Social and Cultural Analysis? Departmentalization and the Future of Ethnic Studies at NYU." This lecture will be held from 2:00-4:00 in 402 Walter Library. It is the second event in the "Ethnic Studies in the Neo-Liberal University" lecture series.

December 5 "Coffee Hour" presentation

On Wednesday, December 5, Njeri Githire will present "Cannibalism and the Erotics of Domination: Rewriting Imperial Conquest in Caribbean Women's Writings" from 3:00-4:30 in the Geneva H. Southall Library (Social Sciences Tower 815). [Presentation Abstract]


Githire's examination of the trope of cannibalism in selected works by Caribbean women writers situates itself within the wider context of her engagement with metaphors of consumption and incorporation as analytical bases for exploring issues of encounter, gender, and identity in Caribbean and Indian Ocean Women's writings.
Indeed, binary definitions of 'self' and 'other' underpin the representation of cannibalism just as the inside/outside binary plays an important role in the conceptualization of all antitheses. Postcolonial studies especially have suggested that this 'other' so powerfully figured in the cannibal was created to support the cultural cannibalism of colonization. The accusation of cannibalism was merely a projection of imperialist appetites onto the cultures subsequently subsumed. Accordingly, the cannibal may productively be read as a symbol of the permeability or instability of boundaries.
Githire will explore the ways in which selected Caribbean women writers link cannibalism and erotic fascination as different ways of consuming the body to expose the consumptive mentality and violence that underpins the legacy of imperialism.

lecture: Ngugi Wa Thiong'o at Augsburg

Ngugi Wa Thiong'o, a renowned Kenyan novelist, playwright, and essayist, and the current Director of the International Centre for Writing and Translation, University of California at Irvine, will give a public lecture and read from his latest novel, Wizard of the Crow, at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 27, in the Hoversten Chapel of Augsburg College.

Are Universities Liberal Places?

On Thursday, November 29, Professor David Roediger (U. of Illinois) will present "Are Universities Liberal Places?" This lecture will be held from 2:00-4:00 in 101 Walter Library. It is the first event in the "Ethnic Studies in the Neo-Liberal University" lecture series.

21st Century Ethnic Studies

Along with American Indian Studies, Asian American Studies, and Chicano Studies, the department is sponsoring a lecture series:Ethnic Studies in the Neo-Liberal University: Institutionalizing New Critical Paradigms. Public lectures are free and open to the public.

"People of Color in the Media" class

Professor Catherine Squires is offering a new course in the spring:
People of Color in the Media.

eNow! presentation: "Weird" Englishes

November 19, 2:30 PM, 207A Lind Hall

eNow! presents "Weird" Englishes:

English associate professor Evelyn Ch'ien will address the question "Is English Getting Weirder?" with special reference to novelist Junot Diaz. Visiting professor Steven Winduo will read his poems in the Tokpisin Pidgin language. And Linguistics and Cognitive Science graduate student Ellen Lucast will present "What Do You Know? Theory of Mind in Communication."

Professor Ch'ien is the author of Weird English (Harvard, 2004). She is working on another book linking contemporary forms of artistic expression such as hip hop with the evolution of language. Winduo lectures in literature and language at the University of Papua New Guinea. He has published two poetry collections: Lomo'ha I am, In Sprit's Voice I Call(1991), and Hembemba: Rivers of the Forest(2000). Lucast's research interests range from patterns in linguistic sound systems to the theories behind conversational interaction.

Refreshments will be seved!

movie premiere

The Research and Training Center on Community Living at the Institute on Community Integration will premiere the movie Higher Ground, from award-winning film producer, Jerry Smith.

Date: Thursday, November 15
Place: Mary McEvoy Room (325 Education Sciences Building)
Time: 2:30 p.m.

Synopis: When Hurricane Katrina struck the city of New Orleans on August 29, 2005, hundreds of people with developmental disabilities were displaced. Roads were severely crowded or impassable. Cell phones didn't work. Many didn't know where their family members were. And yet direct support professionals stayed with those they supported and made sure everyone evacuated to higher ground. For months, these dedicated women and men, working long hours for low pay, put others before themselves, providing care and support with improvised resources.

For more information about Jerry Smith and The Research and Training Center on Community Living, visit RTC Media.

November 14 "Coffee Hour" presentation

On Wednesday, November 14, Alexs Pate will present "Ya Feel Me?: The Meaning and Nature of Saturation in Rap/Poetry" from 2:00-3:00 in the Geneva H. Southall Library (Social Sciences Tower 815). [Presentation Abstract]



It is Pate's contention that rap/poetry is the emergent African American literary form of the postmodern age. A close review of the poems themselves will reveal an incredible sophistication, knowledge, understanding, and compassion present in this expression. It will, of course, also engage the ignorant, profane, obscene, misogynist, violent, and angry nature of the "I" in the "I am" of the poetry. That part is sad, but real.
In Black Noise, Tricia Rose defines rap as "a black cultural expression that prioritizes black voices from the margins of urban America." Pate adds that rap privileges those who are not black with an honest and intimate exchange of cultural information about black people. He hastens to say that by honest, he does not mean that it is always accurate.
When anyone raps, regardless of race or nationality, we hear them but we also hear the poetic history of Black America. We understand that it is derivative of black culture. You can hear it in rap that comes from Korea, Germany, Palestine or Cuba. It is the literary beat of blackness. It is also saturated.

Hip Hop Live! tour

The "Hip Hop Live!" tour is coming to Minneapolis on Sunday, November 11. It will feature "living legend Rakim, future legend Ghostface Killah and hometown hero Brother Ali." More information is available on the Hip Hop Live! website.

2007 or 1907?

Reports have recently surfaced about parties with celebrants wearing blackface, such as at Homeland Security and Hamline University. Are we living in 2007 or 1907?

BSU Black Heritage Festival

The following message is from the Black Student Union.

Every year the Black Student Union (BSU), in partnership with AA&AS and the African Student Association, hosts The Unity Dinner. It is an event open to the public, with a dinner portion, a few speakers, and a discussion. This year we are stepping up the event and redefining its focus. The event is now known as the Black Heritage Festival, and we are hoping that this is something that can be built upon annualy. Event details:

• Theme this year: "Defining Diaspora." We felt that with this being the first time this event is being held, it would ideal to analyze and understand the cultures and peoples who make up the African Diaspora.



• Dinner portion: The foods have been narrowed down to represent regions of the United States, parts of Africa, and the Caribbean/South American regions. Dinner will be accompanied by jazz music and a PowerPoint presentation: "Images of the Diaspora."



• African drumming.



• A Jazz band (The band leader is also a lecturer, and will be speaking on music of the diaspora).



• Two poets.



• Two traditional African dance teams.



• An African American dance act.



• Diaspora documentary filmed by BSU students, documenting the diversity among our community, as well as the various cultural influences that make up the Diaspora. The video is composed of student and faculty interviews.

The event is being run on an RSVP format, and we are encouraging semi-formal/business casual/evening wear.

The event will be held in the Great Hall of Coffman Memorial Union on Sunday, November 18, 2007. The doors open at 5:30PM; the event starts at 6:00PM, and is tentatively schceduled to end at 8:30PM.

Thank you in advance for your support!

Wilfried S. Zehourou
President of the Black Student Union
E-mail: Zeho0002@umn.edu

Black Student Union
CMU Room 209
300 Washington Ave S.E.
Minneapolis, MN 55455
612-624-8938

"Black Student Union Board 2007-2008, Always At Your Service."

new spring 2008 courses

Professor Yuichiro Onishi is offering a new course in the spring: Black Internationalism. Professor Fernando Arenas is also teaching a new course, Portuguese-Speaking Cultures in Translation: Lusophone Africa. Both will be fascinating courses!

Halloween and race

According to an Associated Press poll, parents of color are les likely than Whites to allow their children to go trick-or-treating on Halloween.

African American class differences

The Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder has posted an interesting article about socio-economic class differences within the Twin Cities African American community.

UMore Park campus forums

The university community is invited to upcoming campus forums on November 8 and 9 to discuss a University of Minnesota vision for a vibrant, culturally rich, sustainable community of 20,000 to 30,000 people that leverages the University's academic mission strengths. Consider ways that research, teaching and learning, and public engagement -- especially as they relate to education, energy, the environment, transportation, health and interdisciplinary opportunities, such as arts and culture, housing and other issues -- can improve quality of life for citizens, the new community and the broader region.

The University has initiated a concept master planning process to guide the development of a new community on 5,000 acres of University-owned property in Dakota County. Currently called the University of Minnesota Outreach, Research and Education (UMore) Park, the new community is being developed through a charge by the University's Board of Regents. Development will occur over 25 to 30 years. See the UMore Park website for information on the vision and planning process.

Campus forum dates/places:

• Thursday, Nov. 8, 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., North Star Ballroom, 2nd Floor, St. Paul Campus Student Center, St. Paul campus.


• Friday, Nov. 9, 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., The Theater, 1st Floor, Coffman Memorial Union, Minneapolis campus.

Please confirm your attendance by registering on the website at the campus forums website. Forum agendas, drafts of the six task force reports, and related information can also be viewed at this site.

Ellen Ndeshi Namhila lecture

On Tuesday, October 23 Ellen Ndeshi Namhila will present "Memories of the Struggle Against Apartheid" at 3:15 in the Ford Room (710 Social Sciences Tower).

Ellen Ndeshi Namhila is the author of The Price of Freedom, her autobiography which was published in 1997. This autobiography is based on Ellen's experiences during Namibia's struggle for freedom and independence from the South African apartheid regime. She left Namibia in 1976 at the age of 12 to join the liberation struggle in exile.

In her talk, Ellen will relate to us part of her story as a refugee, living in exile, and what it meant to her. She will share with the audience some of her reasons for writing the Price of Freedom, the questions the book is asking, and whether she would ask the same questions if she were to write this book today, 10 years later. She will also discuss what writing this book has meant for her, the impact of the book, and how she dealt with public response. Lastly, Ellen will talk about her work in progress about the role of women in the liberation struggle of Namibia, based on oral history research.

For more information contact the Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change at 612-624-0832 or icgc@umn.edu.

10/24 film event: The Devil Came on Horseback

Film Event: The Devil Came on Horseback
With author Brian Steidle

Date: October 24, 2007
Place: Room 25, University of Minnesota Law School
Time: 6:30PM (reception), 7:00PM (film)

Marine Captain Brian Steidle is an unlikely hero. Not because he isn't brave; he has shown courage under fire. But Steidle's accomplishment is entirely unexpected; he is a soldier who is learning to change the world through peaceful means.

The subject is Darfur. The journey takes places over the course of 18 months. Steidle went to Sudan as an unarmed military observer working for the African Union. He left as a witness to what many believe is genocide in the western Darfur region, a conflict that has claimed 400,000 lives and displaced 2.5 million people. In the transformation from soldier to observer to witness and activist, we see a man at first confounded by his naivete and the confronted by the urgency of a humanitarian catastrophe that he sees unfolding firsthand.

An everyman figure, Steidle is initially unequipped to absorb the horror around him. Like many, he would rather not engage with something so incomprehensible and terrible. But he does, and Annie Sundberg and Ricki Stern's (co-directors of the award winning documentary The Trials of Darryl Hunt) astonishing film journeys from Darfur to the United States, then to Chad, Rwanda, and finally the United States again. His odyssey becomes ours as the more than 1,000 photographs he took become evidence of a crisis that cannot be denied.

The Law School is located at 229 19th Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55455. This event is sponsored by the Human Rights Center, Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies and the Minnesota International Center. For more information please contact the Human Rights Center at humanrts@umn.edu or 612-626-0041.

A history of rope

Leonard Pitts' Miami Herald op-ed piece on "A history of rope" is being widely posted to the Net, such as on TheState.com. Pitts argues, "you might say the country has changed since [the early 1900s], and it has. The problem is, it's changing again." Indeed.

AA&AS Outreach Coordinator

The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities seeks outstanding candidates for a community outreach coordinator. The community outreach coordinator will enhance the department and college's role and profile as a partner with communities of color in Minnesota, particularly with African American and immigrant African communities, and serve as a liaison connecting the community to the department and college's teaching, service, and research resources. The coordinator will also create and nurture a network of relationships that link the department and college to the community by providing internship and service learning opportunities for CLA students as well as research and service opportunities to our faculty. The coordinator will establish relationships with schools, workplaces, after-school programs, service agencies, and local community colleges to increase awareness of the University's commitment to diversity. Other roles and duties may also be assigned.

Required qualifications: a bachelor's degree; three years relevant experience in program or project coordination; demonstrated written and oral communication skills; demonstrated success working in a team setting; experience with African and/or African American communities; and proficient computer skills (word processing, email, and web searching). Must be able to travel using own transportation.

Desired qualifications: master's degree; knowledge of K-12 school demographics and issues impacting Minnesota communities of color; demonstrated ability to prioritize and balance multiple tasks and responsibilities; ability to work well and communicate effectively (both verbally and in writing) with diverse populations, including students, members of the faculty, and community members; knowledge and experience with higher education structures, policies, and procedures; demonstrated ability to learn and disseminate detailed information using a high level of interpersonal skills; demonstrated ability to work independently, collaboratively, and under supervision; familiarity with liberal arts programs and with university-wide student support services; and strong writing skills to include editing and presentation layout.

Applications (resume, cover letter, and 3 references) will be accepted online.

October 17 "Coffee Hour" presentation

On Wednesday, October 17, Keith Mayes will present "'To Put Down Crazy Cracker Celebrations': Toward a Theory of Black Holidays and the Logic of Holiday Placement and Calendar Protest" from 2-3:30 in the Geneva H. Southall Library (Social Sciences Tower 815). [Presentation Abstract]


Mayes will examine the black attempt to de-center white holidays from the American calendar and create a distinctly African American one. His talk will explore the politics of calendar space and how African-Americans attempted to perennialize their struggle. Holidays and the calendar that annually present them to the public are not solely times of leisure and celebration, of gaiety and frivolity. Holidays are political, and the calendar represents a site of struggle, of contestation and defeat, sometimes victory and triumph. Hence, the American calendar is worth exploring. Deconstructing the calendar allows us to enlarge our understanding of the spatial arrangements of social movements, to take our eye off of the street, the legislature, and the judiciary for a moment and to discover other "spaces" of political activity. If we understand the calendar not as a series of days but as spaces to be filled up and occupied by groups in society, then the calendar takes on new meaning. Days on the calendar are manifestations of power; they represent a form of cultural and community property. Claimants to the calendar have been both dominant and subordinate groups who have "filled up," or to use a more apt term, "politicized" the calendar through the creation of their holidays. Though the holidays of subordinate groups have been initiated, developed, and in many cases, sustained throughout the years, the acceptance of some holidays and the rejection of others speak to who really owns and controls calendar space in American life and culture.

Jena 6 protest planning meeting

On Saturday, October 13, a statewide protest planning meeting about Jena 6 injustices will be held from 1:00-4:00 PM at the Minneapolis Urban League, 2100 Plymouth Ave. N.

guest speaker in SWAH 3225/4225

On Thursday, October 11, a guest speaker will visit the department's Intermediate Swahili class (SWAH 3225/4225). The speaker will present a general talk on poverty in Kenya and Uganda, as noted below. All are welcome to attend.

Speaker: Mary Whelan
Topic: Issues of poverty in Kenya and Uganda
Date: Thursday, October 11, 2007
Place: Bell Museum Auditorium
Time: 2:10 p.m.

a distraction from real issues

A cross-burning hoax has fueled misconceptions that there are no significant race problems in Minnesota, which may cause people enduring legitimate racial discrimination to become more reluctant to report it to the police.

"The World Is My Home-The Life Of Paul Robeson"

On October 3, 2007 the Black Student Union is hosting a play. Here is an announcement:

Theatre enthusiasts, history buffs, faculty, staff, students and community members, The University of Minnesota Black Student Union would like to remind you and cordially invite you to Stogie Kenyatta's Acclaimed One Man Show, "The World Is My Home-The Life Of Paul Robeson." The play is (Today) Wednesday October 3rd at 7:00PM in Coffman Theatre and it is totally free.

Paul Robeson was a multi-lingual American actor, athlete, Socialist, bass-baritone concert singer, writer, civil rights activist, Fellow traveler, Spingarn Medal winner, a Brother of Alpha Phi Alpha, and a Stalin Peace Prize laureate. Kenyatta travels all across the country doing this show about the life of the great Paul Robeson. This event is completely FREE and you will leave amazed. Don't pass up this FREE grade A performance!!!

Please let your students, colleagues, and friends know about tonight's performance as it is a chance to learn about American History and enjoy fine theatre.

Swahil Teaching Specialist/Lecturer

The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities seeks outstanding candidates for a Teaching Specialist/Lecturer position in Swahili for the Spring Semester 2008 and thereafter in the Department of African American & African Studies. The candidate selected will teach up to six courses annually: Beginning Swahili (I and II), Intermediate Swahili (I and II), and possibly two courses that focus on African Studies in those regions where Swahili is spoken. In addition, the candidate selected will advise students and hold office hours. Other Responsibilities might include providing service to the department, College, and University. This is a 9 month annual renewable position.

Required Qualifications: Masters Degree in relevant field or equivalent, two years of foreign language teaching experience, native or near-native fluency in Swahili and English, and a background in foreign language pedagogy.

Preferred Qualifications: Ph.D. candidates (or equivalent) in Swahili, Linguistics, Foreign Language Education or another relevant field; expertise teaching multiple sections of Swahili in a large public American University; background in second language acquisition, proficiency-based teaching, or computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and other technological applications; and a record of research publication. Any further questions please call African American & African Studies, College of Liberal Arts, 612-624-9847. To apply visit the U of M employment website and search for requisition # 151276, or send resume, cover letter, and list of 3 references to African American & African Studies, 267 19th Avenue South, 808 Social Sciences Bldg., Minneapolis, MN 55455. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.

Sino-African solidarity

At 3:30 on Wednesday, October 3, 2007, Vera Fennell (Humphrey Institute, University of Minnesota) will present "Preliminary Thoughts on Race and Foreign Policy: Sino-African Solidarity in Three Keys" in room 308 of the Andersen Library.

North Star STEM Alliance

An alliance of several Minnesota institutions will use a $2.45 million National Science Foundation grant in an attempt to attract more under-represented minorities to science and engineering programs.

Little Rock 9

The blog Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast has an interesting post about the Little Rock 9.

September 26 "Coffee Hour" presentation

On Wednesday, September 26, Yuichiro Onishi will present "The Ring Shout as the Modalities of Afro-Asian Solidarities" from 2-3:30 in the Geneva H. Southall Library (Social Sciences Tower 815). [Presentation Abstract]


Abstract:

My presentation will explore the shaping of Afro-Asian solidarities by considering the centrality of what historian Sterling Stuckey calls a “circle of culture,� a dynamic feature of African heritage and Black nationalism. In Slave Culture: Nationalist Theory and the Foundations of Black America (1988), Stuckey explains that Africans of diverse ethnic backgrounds, such as Angolans, Akans, and Ibos, began cultivating their shared sense of identity from the moment they were placed on slave ships to be sold as chattel in the New World. Stuckey calls this shared sense Africanity. Central to the carving of a “circle of culture,� and thus the articulation of Africanity, was a ring shout, a dance ceremony that was carried out by moving in a circle to honor the ancestors. In the New World, it functioned as a language, with which Africans and peoples of African descent could reach across linguistic, cultural, and ethnic boundaries to forge racial and pan-African solidarity. In my current book project titled Transpacific Racial Strivings: How Black Americans, the Japanese, and Okinawans Found Solidarities, I locate the presence of such a circle of culture, or what George Lipsitz calls “the semiotics of the circle,� in Afro-Asian solidarities. While most recent scholarship relies on such alternative formulations as “polyculturalism� or “Afro-Orientalism,� to interpret Afro-Asian unities, I regard the circle of culture that Black nationalism engenders as the mainspring of Afro-Asian solidarities. Far from being an essentialist or a separatist discourse, Black nationalism has exhibited remarkable flexibility and heterogeneity.

Jena 6 activism

The Jena 6 case is presenting many African American college students with opportunities to study and engage social change activism.

memorial to genocide victim

Germany has created the first memorial of a Black victim of Nazi genocide.

fall "Coffee Hour" presentations

From 2-3:30 on a Wednesday of each month of the fall semester the department's Assistant Professors will present their research during the departmental "Coffee Hour." The schedule:

Yuichiro Onishi, September 26: "The Ring Shout as the Modalities of Afro-Asian Solidarities."

Keith Mayes, October 17: "To Put Down Crazy Cracker Celebrations: Toward a Theory of Black Holidays and the Logic of Holiday Placement and Calendar Protest."

Alexs Pate, November 14: "Ya Feel Me?: The Meaning and Nature of Saturation in Rap/Poetry."

Njeri Githire, December 5: "Victor Hugo, Captain Bligh & Caribbean Women Writers: Imperial History, Nation and Gender in the Works of Gisele Pineau (France/Guadeloupe) & Andrea Levy (England/Jamaica)."

Come hear about exciting work in progress!

The Jena 6

The "Jena 6" are six African-American teens facing jail time after racial unrest in Jena, LA. For information, see stories on Wikipedia, NPR,
the Color of Change, and YouTube.

African history search

The History Department has a faculty position open in African history. More information and application instructions can be found at the top of the History Department faculty searches page.

Liberians in Minnesota

On September 16, 2007, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune published a story about the reactions of Minnesota's Liberians to an 18-month reprieve from deportation.

American Legacy Magazine

American Legacy Magazine "publishes African-American history and culture, factually and positively; material that is both informative and inspirational." Check out their web page for more details.

African immigrants in Minnesota

On September 12, 2007, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune posted a story about Minnesota's African immigrants.

faculty meeting

The department will hold a faculty meeting on Wednesday, September 12, 2-3:30 in the Geneva Southall Library (Social Sciences 815).

first week of classes

Have a question while walking around campus during the first week of classes (September 4-7)? Stop a person wearing an "Ask Me!" sticker or button! If you are a campus veteran, pick up a sticker at one of three locations:

• Coffman Union - Gopher Express and Student Activities Office


• St. Paul Student Center - Information Desk


• West Bank Skyway - Information Desk/Postal Station

New Student Convocation

Today (Tuesday, September 4, 2007) is the first day of classes! If you are new to the university, check out the New Student Convocation at 4:30 in the Northrop Auditorium.

new website design

On August 31 a moderately redesigned department website was launched. Over the 2007-2008 academic year a major redesign will be conducted. Let us know your ideas!

50 important African artists

The Utne Reader has compiled a list of 50 top African artists.

all instructor meeting (reminder)

Everyone who is teaching an AA&AS class during the 2007-2008 year should attend the all instructor meeting on Wednesday, August 29, 2007, 3:30-4:30 in the Southall Library (815 Social Sciences). We will review information related to creating powerful learning experiences for students.

Afrifest

The first Afrifest was held August 18-19, 2007. Hopefully it will be back next year!

Mike Vick

The president of the Atlanta NAACP believes that NFL quarterback Michael Vick should be allowed to return to the NFL after his release from prison for participating in a dogfighting operation. What do you think?

K-12 outreach

CLA's Spring 2007 Reach magazine features a story about AA&AS students and faculty involved in K-12 outreach.

Zakes Mda reading

At 7:00 PM on Tuesday, November 6, 2007, South African author Zakes Mda will read from his new book Cion. This event will take place in the Target Performance Hall of the Loft Literary Center.

all instructor meeting

Everyone who is teaching an AA&AS class during the 2007-2008 year should attend the all instructor meeting on Wednesday, August 29, 2007, 3:30-4:30 in the Southall Library (815 Social Sciences). We will review information related to creating powerful learning experiences for students.

MOAD in San Francisco

If ever in San Francisco, make a plan to visit the Museum of the African Diaspora.

affirmative action and education

On August 13, 2007 there was an interesting article in InsideHigherEd.com about the state of affirmative action and education. Check it out!

Walt Jacobs

Hello everyone, I'm Walt Jacobs, the interim chair of the department for 2007-2008. I'll try to post at least one entry per week to this blog that may be of interest to the AA&AS community: information about the department, campus events, news about African and African American peoples and organizations, etc. Please contact me with any ideas and comments! My email address is wrjacobs@umn.edu and my office phone number is 612.624.8012.

new blog

Welcome to the chair's blog for the Department of African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota! The chair of the department will post information that may be of interest to our community.