Introduction to Black Epistemologies

In this class we will explore the rich traditions of black thought and aesthetics in the post-colonial Atlantic world. Using Stuart Hall’s views on diaspora, we will survey various black ontologies from the Haitian Revolution to Black Lives Matter, from jazz and candomblé to junkanoo. We will study different strategies that African descendants such as Claude McKay, Arturo Schomburg, Zora Neal Hurston, Abdias do Nascimento, and Manuel Mendive utilized to document black struggle, solidarity, justice and beauty. Steve McQueen, Francoise Ega, Sidney Poitier, Audre Lorde, Maryse Condé and Solange will provide insights on black emancipation and joy. We will necessarily consider the tensions between creolization and decolonization to gain an appreciation of embodied black knowledge sui generis.