Somalis in Minnesota

According to December 2010 American Community Survey data released by the U.S. Census Bureau, about 30% of Americans with Somali ancestry live in Minnesota: approximately 25,000 out of about 85,700.

"Wigger" screening and discussion

The movie Wigger will be screened at the University of Minnesota's Coffman Theater on Tuesday, December 7, 2010, 6:30-9:00 pm. This spellbinding urban drama chronicles the life of a young, White male named Brandon who totally emulates and immerses himself in African American life and culture. Shot in North Omaha, Nebraska, Brandon struggles to find a place for himself in a world in which he rejects his Whiteness, but is not always fully embraced by African American culture.

Join us for an evening with Dr. Omowale Akintunde, writer and director of Wigger for the film's premiere in Minnesota, followed by a discussion and Q&A session, facilitated by AA&AS faculty Keith Mayes and Alexs Pate.

The event is free, but registration is required online, or call Thien Nguyen-August at 651-772-4254.

For more information visit http://www.minnesotahumanities.org/wigger, or contact
James Zacchini, 651-772-4249, james@minnesotahumanities.org

The University District

The University District is an alliance established by the Minnesota Legislature in 2007 to define a vision for the future development of four historic neighborhoods surrounding the University of Minnesota. In Voices of the University District residents and business owners describe life near a major urban university.

Nollywood

The blog for Afar magazine has an interesting post about Nollywood, Nigeria's film industry.

NOMMO African American authors series

On Wednesday, November 3, the NOMMO African American Authors series begins its 2010-2011 season. Professor Alexs Pate hosts poet Patricia Smith at 7:00 PM in Cowles Auditorium (located in the Hubert H. Humphrey Center.) Patricia Smith is the author of five acclaimed poetry volumes, including a finalist for the 2008 National Book Award, Blood Dazzler, which chronicles the devastation wreaked by Hurricane Katrina.

African American Family Scholarship Information Night

Have questions about paying for college? Go to African American Family Scholarship Information Night to learn how. Families with children of all ages are welcome to hear useful information from college admission and financial aid people, current college students, and parents.

Date/Time: October 26, 2010, 5-8:30 pm
Place: North Community YMCA Youth & Teen Enrichment Center, 1711 West Broadway, Minneapolis, MN 55411
More information: http://www.mmep.org/mmep_events.html

Continuously Rich: Black Women in Cultural Production

"Continuously Rich: Black Women in Cultural Production," a Symposium
October 21 - 23, 2010

http://www.dance.umn.edu/symposium.php

"Continuously Rich: Black Women in Cultural Production" is a University of Minnesota Dance symposium that features the work of black women choreographers working from different contexts, aesthetics, and thematic foci, and whose work comments back on any stereotypical notions of what "black dance" might be. The symposium will be held from Oct. 21 to Oct. 23, 2010 at the University of Minnesota, and will begin with a keynote lecture by widely renowned performance scholar Awam Ampka entitled "African Bodies as Texts." A second keynote lecture, "Continuously Rich: Legacies of Black Women in American Concert Dance" will be presented by Thomas DeFrantz, the acclaimed scholar and author of Dancing Many Drums: Excavations in African American Dance and Dancing Revelations: Alvin Ailey's Embodiment of African American Culture. Students of the University of Minnesota will also present their research on black women choreographers in a "History Jam" during the symposium. University of Minnesota Dance Program students will perform "Walking with Pearl...Southern Diaries," choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and re-staged by Urban Bush Women Artists, and "Dark Swan" choreographed and re-staged by Nora Chipaumire. The performances will be followed by a panel discussion with artists led by Artistic Director Ananya Chatterjea.

The symposium and the informal performances will take place in Studio 100 in the Barker Center for Dance. This event is free and open to the public. The general public will be able to see ticketed and fully produced performances of "Walking with Pearl Southern Diaries" and "Dark Swan" in the annual University Dance Theatre concert in December 2010.

jazz education classes

The Minneapolis Public Schools' Radio Voice for Jazz and Education (Jazz88 KBEM) is partnering with Minneapolis Community Education to present a series of classes on jazz in October and November, 2010.

Ethnic Studies week

The first Ethnic Studies Week will be October 1-7, 2010. Ethnic Studies Week is a nationally coordinated week of actions to defend ethnic studies programs and academic freedom.

BlackAtlas.com

The new website BlackAtlas.com claims to offer "a unique look at travel from an African-American perspective." The website is sponsored by American Airlines, which raises interesting questions about objectivity.

Communicating with African friends and family

A new undersea fiber-optic cable along the coast of East Africa promises to improve phone and Internet communications between East Africa and the rest of the world. Here in Minnesota, particularly, immigrant and refugee populations from Somalia and Ethiopia anticipate less expensive and more reliable connections.

UROC art exhibit

The University's Urban Research and Outreach/Engagement Center (UROC) is staging its inaugural art exhibit, "Ancestry: Celebrating Diversity and Commonality in Community." Featuring works by Fawzia Khan and Lynn Fellman (created in collaboration with six community organizations), the exhibit can be viewed from 8:30 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. Monday through Thursday, and 8:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on Friday. For additional information, visit www.deepancestryportrait.com.

revised website

The website for the Department of African American & African Sudies has been updated. As part of this process we have a new URL (http://aaas.umn.edu/) and email address (aaas@umn.edu). The old afroam.umn.edu and afroam@umn.edu URL and email address, however, are still in operation, as they get redirected to the new locations.

Presentation on Indigenous Peoples' Rights in Africa

On February 4, 2010, the African Union adopted the decision of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) in the case of Endorois Welfare Council v. Kenya. After more than decade of litigation in front of the Kenyan courts and at the ACHPR, the ruling validated the Endorois' claim that the Kenyan government had removed them from their ancestral land in a manner that violated the community's fundamental rights to practice their culture and religion, to economic development, and to freely dispose of their wealth and natural resources. On Tuesday, June 29, 2010 from
12:00-1:00 P.M. Abraham Korir Sing'Oei will discuss the case and its ramifications based on his experience as a longtime advocate for the Endorois and for indigenous rights in Africa. The presentation will take place at the law offices of Robins, Kaplan, Miller, and Ciresi, 2800 LaSalle Plaza, 800 LaSalle Avenue, Minneapolis, 55402. Lunch and parking validation are provided. R.S.V.P. by Monday, June 28: (612) 341-3302 ext. 128, or lyoung@advrights.org

Abraham Korir Sing'Oei is a Kenyan lawyer and human rights advocate. He is co-founder, former executive director, and current board member of the Center for Minority Rights Development, a non-governmental organization focused on strategic litigation and advocacy to protect the rights of minorities and indigenous peoples across Africa. Sing'Oei was co-counsel for the Endorois Welfare Organization in their 7-year long case before the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. Sing'Oei was a Humphrey Fellow at the University of Minnesota and holds an LLM from the University of Minnesota Law School. Sing'Oei is currently a Democracy and Governance Program Officer with the US Agency for International Development in Nairobi.

Juneteenth 2010

June 19 is Juneteenth (also known as Emancipation Day or Freedom Day), a holiday that commemorates the announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas. The 2010 Twin Cities Juneteenth Celebration and Festival will take place on Saturday, June 19, at North Mississippi Regional Park, 5114 North Mississippi Drive in Minneapolis.

Onishi's Diaspora essay

The journal XCP: Cross Cultural Poetics has launched a new blog in order to reach a broader audience. Assistant Professor Yuichiro Onishi's short essay on Diaspora originally appeared in 2005 (number 15/16 of the print version of the journal).

Mayes' teaching award

Assistant Professor Keith Mayes has received a 2010 College of Liberal Arts Arthur "Red" Motley Exemplary Teaching Award. The Motley Award honors faculty who inspire and care, who make themselves approachable, who show an interest in individual students' well-being and in programs for the benefit of students generally, who give of themselves generously in advising, counseling, and directing projects, and who create an active classroom atmosphere. Such faculty provide a model to undergraduate students through their own research and teaching, and leave an impression by their efforts which alumni recall with appreciation and esteem. Dr. Mayes was also recently awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor (effective August 2010).

African immigration to Minnesota

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune has published a story about African immigration to Minnesota: 2009 marked the first time Africa was the source of a majority of Minnesota's legal immigrants, with Somalia sending the largest number.

Outreach Coordinator in the news

AA&AS Outreach Coordinator Scott Redd has introduced many exciting outreach and engagement activities since joining the department in 2008. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune has published an article about a recent campus visit for Minneapolis' Bryn Mawr Community School fifth-graders, in which Scott played a large role.

China's African Development

The May 2010 issue of The Atlantic magazine has an interesting story about China's development efforts in Africa. Is China "The Next Empire"?

Digital Storytelling research on "Discover CLA" webpage

Professor Walt Jacobs' research on digital storytelling is a featured story on the Discover CLA webpage. Click on the second icon to view a 12.5 minute video: "The Pedagogy of Digital Storytelling in the College Classroom."

Northrop Dance event

Nora Chipaumire with Thomas Mapfumo and The Blacks Unlimited
Lions will roar, swans will fly, angels will wrestle heaven, rains will break: gukurahundi
Thursday, April 29, 7:30pm, Northrop Auditorium


Lions will roar, swans will fly, angels will wrestle heaven, rains will break: gukurahundi is dedicated to the visual, aural, and kinesthetic equivalent of Africa's great cities. Self-exiled artist and Bessie Award winner, Chipaumire is known for her brave, transnational work that investigates cultural, political, economical, and technological identities of African contemporary life. Born in Mutare, Zimbabwe, during the Chipurenga Chechipiri (second war of liberation), Chipaumire probes into the heart of her homeland without restriction. Joining her is dancer Souleymane Badolo and master musician and poet Thomas Mapfumo with his band The Blacks Unlimited. For further information contact the Northrop Box Office (612-625-6600) or visit
www.northrop.umn.edu.

The Prep School Negro

A preliminary version of the documentary The Prep School Negro will be screened and discussed at the Friends School of Minnesota on Sunday, April 18, 6:30 PM.

ASA African Night 2010

Join the African Student Association from 5-7 on Saturday, April 17, 2010 for African Night 2010, their largest event of the year. Join them in Coffman Union's "Great Hall" as they take it "back to our roots" with a night filled with talented performances and a fashion show showcasing the wonderfully diverse cultures of Africa. After the show, enjoy delicious African cuisine! Admission: FREE for all U of M students and $5 for all non-U of M students.

Diversity Through the Disciplines symposium

The Institute for Diversity Equity and Advocacy (IDEA) announces the return of Diversity Through the Disciplines, a day-long symposium showcasing the research of faculty who were awarded the President's Multicultural Faculty Research Award in 2007, 2008, and 2009. The symposium will be held on Friday, April 30th in the President's Room of the Coffman Memorial Union from 9:00 a.m. -3:30 p.m. Seating is limited to 70 participants, so please register at your earliest convenience.

Re-named the IDEA Multicultural Research Award, these research grants exist to encourage and support research by faculty of color and to promote research on issues related to communities of color in the United States as well as abroad. The Luncheon keynote will be provided by Professor Tobin Siebers of the University of Michigan, author of Disability Theory. Lunch is provided. Seating is limited; register for the symposium here: http://www.saa.umn.edu/oed/idea/register

For a full schedule of presenters as well as future updates, check: http://www.academic.umn.edu/equity/institute.html

Please direct any questions or requests for accommodations to oedidea@umn.edu or call 612.624.0594.

Community - University Research Spring Grants

Community groups are invited to join Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives Institute staff at the Urban Research and Outreach Center (UROC) for a question and answer session on our recent Request For Proposals: Community - University Research Spring Grants. Stop by between 9:00 and 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 1st to have your questions answered or to get feedback on your existing project. RSVP is not required, but appreciated in order to gauge the size of the group. Please send RSVP or other inquiries to hfhl@umn.edu. Visit www.hfhl.umn.edu for additional information.

new course: Black Women in Cultural Production

Black Women in Cultural Production

AFRO 5910/DNCE 5500
3 weeks during May Session 2010
May 24 - June 11, M-Th 11:15 - 2:30

Instructors: Rose Marie Brewer and Ananya Chatterjea.

"Black Women in Cultural Production" is a studio/lecture class investigating the history and politics of cultural production in visual and performing arts, by black women in both diasporic locations and transnationally. Examining the work of a select group of artists, the course will propose some core questions about the ways we come to know and value their artistic production.

Some of the questions we will be investigating are: How do we learn to read resistance in such work? How do these histories position us to think about the ideas and aesthetics articulated in the work of contemporary practicing Black women artists? What kinds of epistemological questions, questions about world-making and world-knowing, are proposed by the tropes that inform such cultural production?

The course will conclude with students creating presentations and writing brief papers that they will be invited to present in a History Jam session at a symposium hosted by the Dance Program in October 2010.

From Vices to Verses: A New Era of Hip Hop & Action

From April 9 to April 11, 2010, the University of Minnesota will be hosting "From Vices to Verses," a conference featuring workshops, performances, discussions, and educational events centered around how hip hop pedagogy, activism, and culture can educate, empower and transform communities. The conference will focus on three central themes:

• April 9: "I Used to Love H.E.R.: Bring Back the Love," exploring hip hop feminism and women's roles &mdash past, present and future &mdash in hip hop culture. Keynote speaker: hip hop activist and former Green Party Vice Presidential candidate Rosa Clemente.


• April 10: "Remixing Borders, Transcending Boundaries," focusing on using hip hop as a tool to create unity and move beyond generational, national and cultural boundaries. Keynote speaker: hip hop activist and author Bakari Kitwana.


• April 11: "Us," focusing on hip hop's power to heal and transform individuals and communities through organizing, activism and youth engagement. Keynote speaker: educator and multidisciplinary artist Marc Bamuthi Joseph.

Other presenters include filmmaker Rachel Ramist, Chaka Mkali of the Hope Community Center, Sage Morgan Hubbard of Northwestern University, Ruth Nicole Brown of the University of Illinois, poet and activist Tish Jones, rapper/poet/writer Kyle "Guante" Myhre, photographer B-Fresh and many more.

Workshops on spoken word, breakdancing, drumming, MC-ing and community organizing. Come learn, celebrate and participate in contemporary hip hop culture in the Twin Cities.

On Saturday, April 10, noted Twin Cities performers Toki Wright, Maria Isa, PosNoSys, Ill Chemistry, the Tru Ruts crew and others will take over the Cabooze for a special concert.

For more information please contact Idalia Robles at 612-624-6006. Registration for the conference is free. For updates, see http://vicestoverses.blogspot.com.

Morrill Hall/Rachel Tilsen Social Justice Fund

The Morrill Hall and Rachel Tilsen Social Justice Fund has been created to acknowledge and honor the work of the Afro American Action Committee (AAAC) and Rachel Tilsen. By acknowledging the 1969 Morrill Hall Take-Over at the University of Minnesota Campus (see the award-winning film at www.vimeo.com/6608437) and Rachel Tilsen, we recognize the importance of personal sacrifices as well as organizational efforts in the struggle for social justice. The Afro American Action Committee (AAAC) emerged from a rich tradition of protest, revolt, and resistance to the spirit of racism and ruthless domination. AAAC embraced the "incarnate spirit of justice, hatred of a lie, that willingness to sacrifice money, reputation, education and life itself on the Alter of right." AAAC stood on the shoulders of the NAACP and the Niagara Movement. The members of AAAC believed, they stood and they spoke. In fact the tenacity of the AAAC members transformed the University of Minnesota to become more inclusive, more tolerant, and less separated from the dynamics of the entire community.

Rachel Tilsen epitomized the term Social Justice. Rachel was more than just a mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, friend and wife. She was a fierce freedom fighter and lover of life. In many respects her legacy lies in her courage and the attributes she instilled in every woman that had the opportunity to meet her. She was not only a freedom fighter she was a teacher. Rachel taught others to have respect for self, family, culture and history. She was a morale lifter who believed that you had to let your voice be heard and that you had to follow your words with action. She championed what she believed. Rachel insisted that we have a responsibility to stand up for the people who do not have the strength or the will to stand for themselves. Rachel fought for social justice regardless of race, color, religion or creed.

The Morrill Hall and Rachel Tilsen Social Justice Fund is intended to continue and promote the activism AAAC and Rachel subscribed to: equality and justice for all people, with all people equally valued; vigilant relentless struggle in the fight for justice.

Grants up to $5000 will be awarded to individuals or organizations for projects addressing social justice.

Applications and criteria are available for download. Email questions to mhrtjfquestions@gmail.com

Applications will be accepted up to midnight April 1, 2010.

Awards will be presented on May 1, 2010 at the inaugural Morrill Hall/Rachel Tilsen Social Justice Fund Gala Event.

African Americans in the movies, 2009

2009 had few great roles for African Americans in the movies, according to a February 21, 2010 article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper.

HeLa cell line

In 1951 an African American woman's biopsy cells were made available to biological researchers, without her knowledge or consent. Today her cell line is one of the most powerful ones for scientific research. See a Wired magazine article on Henrietta Lacks for more information.

2010 Martin Luther King Celebration

The University of Minnesota's 2010 Martin Luther King Celebration will honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and commemorate Black History Month with music, song, readings, and spoken word poetry. This year's event takes place from 4:00-5:30 p.m. on February 21, 2010, in the Ted Mann Concert Hall on the West Bank of the University's Twin Cities campus. The event is free and open to the public.

February 3 "coffee hour" presentation

On Wednesday, February 3, Dr. Wendy Thompson will present "Trade: Negotiating Money, Goods, and 'Foreignness' in the Experiences of African Traders in Contemporary Hong Kong and China" from 2:15-4:00 in the Geneva H. Southall Library (Social Sciences Tower 815). [Presentation Abstract]

In July of 2009, Guangzhou police raided the Tangqi Garment Mall, a shopping center predominately frequented by Nigerian traders. The raid led to the critical injury of at least one man who had either jumped or fallen from a building in an attempt to escape. While it wasn't the first time a police raid had targeted the Guangzhou Nigerian community--city police regularly stopped African men in public and searched them without their consent in an attempt to look for "foreigners" who had overstayed their visas and were in China illegally--this particular incident led to a protest against the police in which one- to two-hundred Nigerians gathered outside the Kuangquan Street station and stopped traffic for five hours. The protest would make national and world news as it was the first time in contemporary Chinese history that "foreigners" had staged anything like it publically.
Dr. Thompson's presentation is a preview of her post-protest findings during the three weeks she spent in Hong Kong and Mainland China in late November/early December of 2009. She will be showing a series of photographs and giving personal observations of contact with African men and women in Hong Kong as well as with a small community of Yoruba traders on the Mainland. Dr. Thompson sees this preliminary research as providing new insight to existing knowledge on African Diaspora, contemporary migration, and the impact of globalization on twenty-first century race relations in Asia.

iAfrica at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts

From 6-9 P.M. on Thursday, January 21, 2010 the Minneapolis Institute of Arts presents iAfrica: Connecting with Sub-Saharan Art. Visitors with iPhones can download an application that incorporates detailed information about the objects and themes in the exhibition. The app also has a component that allows visitors to virtually play one of the musical objects in the exhibition. Both the app and the iAfrica event are free.