The Devaluation of Africana Studies
Black people have always been devalued and disregarded in the United States of America. It should come as no surprise that the history, culture and politics of Black people have also been devalued.
In fact, If we conduct a survey of American film, newspapers, cartoons, board games, postcards, greeting cards, nursery rhymes, and music between the 19th and 20th centuries, we will find ample and irrefutable evidence for this claim.
It was during the Black Power Movement – largely inspired by the ideas and analysis of Malcolm X[1] – that an informal nationwide “alliance” of Black college students, community activists and Black intellectuals launched the Black Studies Movement. This Black Nationalist/Pan African Movement led to an uncompromising nationwide demand for liberatory and relevant Black Studies courses, departments, and even colleges, again inspired by the ideology/analysis of Malcolm X. According to Robert H. Brisbane,
"Malcolm X was the first to generate real interest among black students in black history and culture. He linked his demands for black liberation to the claim that black people possessed a dazzling and glamorous heritage and that they had been tricked into slavery three centuries ago by the ‘white devil….’
Largely as a result of the influence of Malcolm X militant black students and intellectuals began to conclude that the propagation of black history and culture was necessary to the success of the black liberation movement."[2]
The Black Power Movement’s Black Nationalist orientation and emphasis on self-determination, creation of independent Black institutions, and rejection of white normative values, did not sit well with certain segments of the American population. Integrationist Black civil rights leaders, along with many Black and white intellectuals rejected these ideals and political sensibilities just as they rejected Malcolm X, who had personified and popularized them.
Civil Rights leaders like Bayard Rustin and Roy Wilkins, and integrationist intellectuals like Kenneth Clarke, publicly expressed harsh criticisms of Black Studies.[3] Typically, these criticisms argued that:
Black Studies constituted “political indoctrination”
The proposed discipline was “intellectually bankrupt”
It was a form of “reverse racism”
Its focus on ancient history and culture would not equip Black students with marketable skills or useful information.
NAACP leader Roy Wilkins, who was particularly vocal in his opposition to the creation of Black Studies Departments on college campuses, famously noted that the proposed discipline represented little more than a Black self-congratulatory narrative of history, or in his exact words, “racial breast-beating.”
Civil rights tactician Bayard Rustin, employing an argument which has now become cliché when discussing Black Studies, reasoned that the discipline simply would not prepare Black college students with the academic competence or skill sets they needed to succeed in college or the working world: “What in the hell are soul courses worth in the real world? No one gives a damn if you’ve taken soul courses. They want to know if you can do math and write a sentence.”[4]
Black economist W. Arthur Lewis joined the attack on Black Studies when he suggested that the field of study lacked intellectual/academic rigor, was irrelevant to Black student empowerment, and that its study would actually be more beneficial to white students:
"Let the clever young black go to a university to study engineering, medicine, chemistry, economics, law, agriculture and other subjects which are going to be of value to him and his people. And let the clever white go to college to read Black novels, to learn Swahili, and to record the exploits of Negro heroes of the past."[5]
As reductionist and insulting as such commentary is to the author and his fellow Africana Studies scholars and activists, it is nevertheless understandable, coming as it did from the paradigm of Black integrationists. Such individuals sought white validation and social mobility. Black integrationists yearned to prove Blacks’ humanity and value to the white social order. Their ultimate objective was to attain social, political, and economic “equality” and unrestrained entry to traditionally white sites of societal power and status.[6] From their ideological vantage point, Black Studies represented a mockery, a step backwards, and an embarrassing diversion from the “true prize” – acquiring the white defined and widely accepted “American Dream.”Their negative perception and devaluation of Black Studies – given these sociopolitical motivations – was not shocking or puzzling whatsoever.
But imagine if you will, how disturbing it would be to hear such arguments emanating from the minds and mouths of people like Malcolm X, Queen Mother Moore, Stokely Carmichael ( Kwame Ture), or Dr. John Henrik Clarke. Such intellectual debauchery concerning the importance of Black or Africana Studies coming from Pan Africans and Black Nationalists like those cited would be unfathomable. Upon witnessing this, we might pinch ourselves to determine if we are awake or experiencing a nightmare or cruel and unappreciated joke.
Yet this is precisely the reaction this author and others had upon hearing Dr. Wesley Muhammad’s disquieting comments about Africana Studies during his interview on “The Breakfast Club” radio show. His claims that Africana Studies was a “BS degree,” that earning an Africana Studies degree incurs essentially foolish "debt," or that Africana Studies does not provide Black students with “Nation Building skills,” was strikingly similar to statements made by Roy Wilkins, Kenneth Clarke, Bayard Rustin, and prominent white intellectuals in the 1960s.
Unlike those individuals however, Dr. Wesley Muhammad is not a Negro integrationist leader or a white intellectual, beholden to traditional (and often racist) white sensibilities, values or standards.
Unlike them, Dr. Muhammad does not find Black Nationalism reprehensible. In fact, he promotes themes which stem directly from the Black Nationalist tradition as expressed through his organization, the Nation of Islam. For the past 8 decades the NOI has promoted classic Black Nationalist ideals like self-defense, self-determination, rejection of white values/standards, independent Black nationhood and an education that prepares us to be a liberated and independent people.
Far from being obscure, the NOI’s thoughts on this last issue are a matter of public record. The organization’s patriarch, The Honorable Elijah Muhammad himself, asked, “How long shall we seek the white men’s education to become their servants instead of becoming builders of a progressive nation of our own on some of this earth that we can call our own?”[7] Point 9 of the “What Do the Muslims Want,”section (printed on the back page of the NOI’s newspaper “The Final Call”) asserts in part, “We want equal education… We want all black children educated, taught and trained by their own teachers.”
Curtis Alexander, who acknowledged Muhammad’s role in envisioning alternative, independent and liberatory education, wrote:
"…The pedagogical implications of the educational ideas of Muhammad will in large measure determine the significance of existing African and Black Studies Programs throughout the country. Elijah Muhammad, a leading developer of Black educational institutions, educator and exemplar in self-education, self-help, and self-reliance, has left a legacy worthy of emulation. When all is said and done, Muhammad’s name will be among those who will have laid the foundation for black education in the twenty-first century."[8].
Wesley Muhammad’s perception of Africana Studies is clearly at odds with the significance accorded it by his own organization. Given Muhammad’s prominence as a nationally known and respected scholar, public speaker and voice of Black resistance and independence, the views he expressed concerning Africana Studies are not only disappointing and contradictory, but dangerous for the following reasons:
They possibly dismiss and devalue the tireless work and vision of early and later Africana Studies pioneers. This includes people like George Washington Williams, Arturo Schomburg, Carter G. Woodson, W.E.B. DuBois, Leo Hansberry, J.A. Rogers, Chancellor Williams, John Henrik Clark, John G. Jackson, and so many of their contemporaries. This also includes those Africana Studies scholars that emerged during the Black Power Movement and those students and activists that fought for Black Studies departments.
They might discourage young Black collegians from pursuing Africana Studies as an academic discipline and career at a time when we desperately need younger scholars to continue the legacy of their predecessors.
Instead of opposing our enemy’s view of Africana Studies (and the culture history and politics of our people throughout the world) his views corroborate theirs, and may well be used to justify the nationwide attack on such departments around the country.
It adds to a vulgar careerist and materialistic narrative that the “value” of knowledge can or should be determined by the salary, status or position it yields to those possessing it.
The author realizes that Dr. Wesley Muhammad, for various reasons, may never apologize for his statements. He may never acknowledge the negative impact or significance of his words in this interview. He might even interpret this essay as adversarial or disparaging to his character and credibility. The first two points are completely immaterial. Muhammad is not the target audience of this essay, and he has the right to his opinions, however objectionable they are. We understand that we cannot force anyone to experience a paradigm shift. This is a self-conscious act requiring maturity, honesty and self reflection. Concerning the last point, the author respects Dr. Muhammad’s work on behalf of Black people. This is not an attack of Wesley Muhammad, this is an attempt to defend and explain the significance and value of Africana Studies, and to correct any mischaracterization of this important nation building discipline.
In conclusion, let us briefly define and describe the significance of Africana Studies to eliminate any present or future confusion:
Africana Studies involves the study of the history, culture and politics of African people and members of the African Diaspora regardless of “their land, label or language.” It therefore has a Pan African foundation and sensibility.
Africana Studies is multidisciplinary. This means that its scope is wider than ancient African or even modern history. Africana Studies embraces psychology, education, economics, art, law, politics, literature, spirituality, women’s studies, and just several other disciplines. Africana studies seeks to understand and interpret our experience in all of its dimensions from a Black perspective and in Black people’s interests.
Unlike most other academic disciplines, Africana Studies has a mandate to be relevant and utilitarian. This discipline fuses research and theory with action plans, sociopolitical critique, correctives and prescriptions for Black people. Africana Studies scholars and activists see themselves as providing clarity, service and solution to Black people.
Africana Studies supports many occupations including professors, pastors, social workers, politicians, authors/journalists, office workers, librarians, counselors, business owners, community organizers, school principals and teachers, consultants, public speakers, playwrights, filmmakers, choreographers, lawyers, and much more.
There are many dedicated and competent leaders, scholars and activists who have not earned a college degree in Africana Studies, but have read and implemented the research and analysis of such individuals (including Wesley Muhammad).
Africana Studies through its research, training of future Black scholars and activists, advocacy for Black people, critique of our oppression and oppressors, creation of liberation theory and independent Black institutions, efforts to raise consciousness and empower Black people, and positive influence on so many Black leaders and problem solvers, it is in fact, a primary foundation of nation building for Black people.
[1] William L. Van De Burg, on page 2 of his book New Day in Babylon, notes, “He (Malcolm X) became a Black Power Paradigm – the archetype, reference point, and spiritual adviser in absentia for a generation of Afro-American activists. Although diverse in manner and mode of expression, it was the collective thrust of these activists toward racial pride, strength, and self-definition that came to be called the Black Power Movement.
[2] Robert H. Brisbane, Black Activism: Racial Revolution in the United States 1954-1974, (Valley Forge: Judson Press, 1974). 224. We should also note that Frederick Harper devotes an entire essay to exploring the influence of Malcolm X on Black Power activists: Frederick D. Harper, “The Influence of Malcolm X on Black Militancy,” Journal of Black Studies, Vol 1, No. 4 (June 1971):400
[3] Michael Thelwell, “Black Studies: A Political Perspective.” In Duties, Pleasures and Conflicts: Essays in
Struggle, (Amherst: The university of Massachusetts Press, 1987), 130-131
[4] Quoted in James Cass, “Can the University Survive the Black Challenge?” Saturday Review, June 21, 1969, pp. 70
[5] W. Arthur Lewis, “Black Power and the American University,” Africa Report, 14 (May-June 1969).
[6] Manning Marable, Race, Reform and Rebellion: The Second Reconstruction in Black America, 1945-1982, (Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 1984), 96
[7] Elijah Muhammad, Message to the Blackman in America. (Chicago: Muhammad’s Mosque of Islam No. 2, 1965), 221
[8] Curtis E. Alexander, Elijah Muhammad on African American Education: A Guide for African and Black Studies Programs. (New York: ECA Associates, 1981), 96
Agyei Tyehimba is an educator, activist and author from Harlem, N.Y. Agyei is a former NYC public schoolteacher, co-founder of KAPPA Middle School 215 in the Bronx, NY, and co-author of the Essence Bestselling book, Game Over: The Rise and Transformation of a Harlem Hustler, published in 2007 by Simon & Schuster. In 2013, he wrote The Blueprint: A BSU Handbook, teaching Black student activists how to organize and lead. In April of 2014, he released Truth for our Youth: A Self-Empowerment Book for Teens. Agyei has appeared on C-Span, NY1 News, and most recently on the A&E documentary, “The Mayor of Harlem: Alberto ‘Alpo’ Martinez.” Currently, Agyei is a member of the Black Power Cypher, five Black Nationalist men with organizing backgrounds, who host a monthly internet show addressing issues and proposing solutions. He runs his own business publishing books, public speaking, and teaching Black people how to organize and fight for empowerment.
Agyei earned his Bachelor's Degree in sociology from Syracuse University, his Master's Degree in Africana Studies from Cornell University, and his Master's Degree in Afro-American Studies from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
If you are interested in bringing Agyei to speak or provide consultation for your organization, please contact him at truself143@gmail.com.
