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A356/H511 African American History II
Section: 27941/21189
Room: Cavanaugh Hall, Rm. 217
Day/time: Tues. – Thurs. 12:00 P.M. – 1:15 P.M.
Instructor: M. H. Little
Office: CA 503C
Office Hours: M-W 10:00 A.M. – 11:00 A.M. M-W 1:30 P.M. - 3:00 P.M. and by appointment
Office Phone: 317-274-0098
Email: Use Oncourse CL to contact me
"White supremacy is the unnamed political system that has made the modern world what it is today.”
Charles W. Mills
Course Description______
This course is designed as the second half of a two course sequence dealing with the history of people of African descent in the United States. This particular course examines the history of Africans in the U. S. from approximately 1863 to the present. The course is topical within a chronological framework. Emphasis is placed on the struggle of Africans in the United States to achieve autonomy and self-determination during emancipation and beyond, although additional issues related to the political, social and economic development of African Americans as a people in a Herrenvolk democracy will also be examined.
Course Objectives ______
The objectives of this course are five-fold. By the end of the semester diligent students should have gained: (1) a deeper knowledge of the history of African-American history since emancipation; (2) a greater understanding of competing political ideologies such as separatism/nationalism, assimilation/integration, socialism, Pan-Africanism, and Marxism in the African American freedom struggle; (3) a superior knowledge of African American efforts to acquire political and economic power; (4) comprehension of the impediments to achieving black power such as the ideology of white supremacy; and (5) a knowledge of and appreciation for a variety of black leaders. This class should be of particular interest to students who are majoring in Africana Studies, Communication Studies, Business, Education, English, History, Political Science, or Sociology. N. B. Please note that the contents of this syllabus are subject to modification or change at any time by the instructor.
Course Requirements______
Course work involves attending weekly lectures and participation in weekly class discussions, three 4-5 page book review essays (graduate students 8-10 pages) or a 12-15 page research paper (graduate students 20-25 pages) and a 5-7 page (graduate students 8-10 pages) take-home midterm examination. There is no final examination scheduled for this course. Prompt, regular attendance at all class meetings, informed participation in discussions (Make certain that you bring the appropriate course text(s) to class.) and the completion of written assignments in a timely manner are absolutelyessential for successful completion of the course. If you cannot attend class for any reason, you must contact the instructor beforehand immediately either by email or telephone. Failure to do so will result in the lowering of your attendance grade. In the event that you are absent from class, you are still responsible for that day’s class material. A detailed explanation of policies concerning class absences and tardiness can be consulted at the Student Responsibilities link on the Indiana University web site. Students’ course grades will be determined on the basis of their performance in the areas of: (a) class attendance--15%; b) participation--15%; (c) book review essays or research paper--35%; and (d) examination(s)--35%. For a more detailed discussion of the learning objectives of this course, please consult IUPUI’s Principles of Undergraduate Learning, which is available on the IUPUI History department’s web page. N. B.Please note that the instructor reserves the right to modify the content of this syllabus, at his discretion at any time, during the semester.
N. B. Graduate students registered in H511 should consult with the instructor for specific academic requirements and assignment options (ie. additional reading) for the course.
Written assignments are assessed for their logic, cogency, and appropriate use of historical perspectives and concepts. When grading papers and/or examinations, comparisons are inevitable. This means that an A paper/examination is qualitatively better than a B paper/examination, which is better than a C paper’examination. The difference may lie in the fact that one paper/examination is more factually comprehensive than another, argues its case more persuasively, is better organized, contains fewer errors of grammar, spelling and punctuation, or is simply a more literate, polished piece of work.
In assessing oral contributions during classroom discussions of assigned course material, I will listen for thoughtful, insightful remarks that occur on a regular basis. Assessment criteria include the abilities to demonstrate mastery of the subject matter, to zero in on the main points and to display a capacity for effective synthesis and analysis.
The following is the grade scale used in the course:
A+ 98, A 93, A- 90, B+ 88, B 83, B- 80, C+ 78, C 73, C- 70, D+ 68, D 63, D- 60.
Academic Dishonesty______
It should be noted that any form of academic dishonesty committed in the course will not be tolerated. This includes obvious types of dishonesty such cheating on examinations and plagiarism on papers/essays as well as downloading papers from the internet or submitting the same paper for credit in more than one course without the prior approval of the instructor(s). Any student who is found guilty of such misconduct will receive an “F” on that particular assignment as well as an “F” in the course and possible expulsion from the University. In addition, a student’s dishonesty will be recorded as a permanent part of their academic record. For a more detailed explanation of the different forms of academic dishonesty, please consult the IU Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct handbook online.
Required Readings______
The following books are required texts for the course. They may be purchased at the IUPUI Bookstore as well as online at either Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.com. Readings marked with an asterisk (*) are available online in the Oncourse CL A356 course website under the “Resources” tab.
Joe William Trotter, Jr., The African American Experience Vol. II
Quintard Taylor, Jr. (ed.) From Timbuktu to Katrina Vol. II
William H. Chafe, et al. Remembering Jim Crow: African Americans Tell About Life in the Segregated South
Peniel E. Joseph (ed.), The Black Power Movement: Rethinking the Civil Rights-Black Power Era
Barbara Diane Savage, Broadcasting Freedom: Radio, War and the Politics of Race, 1938-1948
Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro
Daily Schedule______
Class 1aIntroduction to the Course 12 January
Class 1bIntroduction to the Course 14 January
Read: Arthur A. Schomburg, “The Negro Digs Up His Past.” in
The New Negro. Alain Locke (ed.)*
Read: Colin A. Palmer, “Defining and Studying the African Diaspora,”
Journal of Negro History. Vol. 85 (Winter/Spring, 2000), pp. 27-32*
Class 2a Emancipation and the Challenge to Herrenvolk Democracy 19 January
DVD: “Reconstruction: The Second Civil War”
Read: Trotter, Chapter 11
Class 2bEmancipation and the Challenge to Herrenvolk Democracy 21 January
Listen: Podcast--Eric Foner, “The Significance of
Reconstruction in American History”*
Class 3aThe Quest for Freedom and Economic Well-Being 26 January
Lecture: Efforts at Self-Betterment Among Blacks
Read: Trotter, Chapter 12
Research paper prospectus due
Class 3bThe Quest for Freedom and Economic Well-Being 28 January
Read: Taylor, Chapter 1
Read: Anne R. Hornsby, “The Accumulation of Wealth by
Black Georgians, 1890-1915.” Journal of Negro History.
Vol. 74 (Winter-Autumn, 1989), 11-30*
Class 4aThe Re-emergence of White Supremacy 2 February
Lecture: White Supremacy’s Domestic and Global Implications
Read: Trotter, Chapter 13
First book review essay due
Class 4b The Re-emergence of White Supremacy 4 February
Read: Taylor, Chapter 1; Chafe, Chapters 1 thru 6
Website(s): “The Wilmington Race Riot of 1898” and
“Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America”
Class 5a Efforts at Institutional and Community Development 9 February
Lecture: African Americans, Industrialization and the American West
Read: Trotter, Chapter 14
Preliminary research paper bibliography due
Class 5bEfforts at Institutional and Community Development 11 February
Read: ; Robert E. Weems, Jr. “Robert A. Cole and
the Metropolitan Funeral System Association,” Journal
of Negro History. Vol. 78 (Winter, 1993), pp. 1-15*
Read: Ronald L. Lewis, “From Peasant to Proletarian:
The Migration of Southern Blacks to the Central Appalachian
Coalfields.” Journal of Southern History. Vol. 55 (Feb., 1989),
77-102*
Class 6aThe Great Migration and World War I 16 February
Lecture: Africa and African Americans and World War I
Read: Trotter, Chapter 15
Class 6bThe Great Migration and World War I 18 February
Read: Taylor, Chapter 2
Take-home midterm examination due
Class 7a The 1920s and the Birth of Modern Black America 23 February
Lecture: The Harlem Renaissance and the Rise of the New Negro
Read: Trotter, Chapter 16
Class 7bThe 1920s and the Birth of Modern Black America 25 February
Read: Taylor, Chapter 3 (pp. 37-56); Website, “Harlem:
Mecca of the New Negro”
Class 8aInternational Political and Social Trends 2 March
Lecture: Garvey, DuBois and Modern Pan-Africanism
Read: George Shepperson, “Pan-Africanism and "Pan-
Africanism": Some Historical Notes.” Phylon Vol. 23
(1962), pp. 346-358*
Read: Hakim Adi, “Pan-Africanism and
West African Nationalism in Britain.” African Studies Review
Vol. 43 (April, 200), pp. 69-82*
Class 8bInternational Political and Social Trends 4 March
Read: Woodson, Chapters 1-18
Class 9aThe Great Depression and the New Deal 9 March
Lecture: African Americans, the Great Depression and the New Deal
Read: Trotter, Chapters 17 & 18
Second book review essay due
Class 9bAfrican Americans, the Great Depression and the New Deal 11 March
Read: Taylor, Chapter 3 (pp. 57-62)
Class 10aSpring Break--No Class 16 March
Class 10bSpring Break--No Class 18 March
Class 11aAfrican Americans and World War II 23 March
Lecture: The African American Response to World War II
Read: Trotter, Chapter 19
Class 11bAfrican Americans and World War II 25 March
Read: Taylor, Chapter 4; Savage, Chapters 1-6 and
Conclusion
Class 12aThe Post-WWII Human Rights Struggle 30 March
Lecture: African Americans, McCarthyism and the Cold War
Read: Trotter, Chapter 20
Class 12bThe Post-WWII Human Rights Struggle 1 April
Read: John D. Skrentny, “The Effect of the Cold War On African
American Civil Rights: America and the World Audience, 1945-
1968.” Theory and Society Vol. 27 (April, 1998), pp. 237-285*
Mary L. Dudziak, “Josephine Baker, Racial Protest and the Cold War.” Journal of American History, Vol. 81 (Sept., 1994), pp. 543-570*
Class 13aThe Modern Civil Rights Struggle 6 April
Lecture: Black Political Activism and the U. S. Welfare State
Read: Trotter, Chapter 2
Class 13bThe Modern Civil Rights Struggle8 April
Read: Taylor, Chapter 5
First draft of research paper due
Class 14aFrom Civil Rights to Black Power 13 April
Lecture: From Civil Rights to Black Power
Read: Trotter, Chapter 22
Class 14bFrom Civil Rights to Black Power 15 April
Read: Taylor, Chapter 6
Read, Joseph, Introduction and Chapters 2-3, 5-6, 8-10
Class 15aAfrican Americans in the Post-Civil Rights Era 20 April
Video: “Eyes on the Prize: Back to the Movement”
Read: Trotter, Chapter 23
Third book review essay due
Class 15bAfrican Americans in the Post-Civil Rights Era 22 April
Read: Taylor, Chapter 7
Read: Ta-Nehisi Coates, “‘This Is How We Lost to
the White Man.’” The Atlantic. May, 2008
Class 16a Summing Up
DVD: “Dreams of Obama” 27 April
Read: Hendrik Hertzberg and Henry Louis Gates, Jr. “The African-
American Century.” The New Yorker. April 29, 1996*
Read: Desmond S. King and Rogers M. Smith, “Strange
Bedfellows? Polarized Politics? The Quest for Racial Equity
in Contemporary America.” Political Research Quarterly,
Vol. 61 (Dec., 2008), pp. 686-703
Class 16bSumming Up 29 April
Read: Taylor, Chapter 8
Final draft of research paper due
Last revised 01/10/2010