Explore the African Experience

Christina Callagy researched women's land-ownership rights in Uganda with Prof. Rexford Ahene. In this picture, they're standing at the source of the Nile River.

From the study of African religions in the Americas to the critique of protest art, the Africana Studies major provides students with a vast interdisciplinary education that delves into present experiences and the history that has defined them. Students in this major examine the universal black experience, including Africa, its extensions into the United States, the Caribbean, and elsewhere in the world.

You will probe questions such as:

What are the social and political institutions that represent Africa’s contribution to global civilization?

How do race, class, and sex contribute to the dynamics of oppression?

Who are the black leaders that broke through racial barriers and changed the course of history?

What were the effects of the black exodus from Africa resulting in the diaspora of enslavement and the more recent diaspora of colonization?

Through observation and analysis, you will develop a fuller understanding of the problems and the solutions at the heart of the social, cultural, and political thought and actions of people of African heritage. These skills will help you better understand the larger notion of the African world internationally, operate effectively in today’s culturally diverse society, understand how oppression affects your life and that of others, as well as understand how your contributions can play an important role in putting an end to inequity and injustice.