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The Department of Africana Studies offers two special courses for Winter Session 2023 - AFRA 372: Philosophy of Hip Hop, and AFRA 205: Contemporary African America Issues – Black Delaware.
Philosophy of Hip Hop examines what hip hop is, how and why it arose, and how it shapes our material and intellectual worlds. The course asks and answers the following questions: What does hip hop say about the meaning of life? What does hip hop say about how we should act and how society should be structured?
Black Delaware uses an interdisciplinary approach to examine the history and culture of the lives of Black people in the First State. From Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad to Mary Ann Shadd Cary, the first woman to publish a newspaper in North America, to Bryan Stevenson, founder of a non-profit organization that provides legal representation to those who have been wrongly convicted, Delawareans have made a dramatic impact on the world.
Both courses are offered online. Alan Smith, instructor for both classes, says each will feature dynamic and engaging content. “In addition to scholarly material, music, art, and live voices are an integral part of every course I teach."
“All courses that I teach, and all Africana studies courses in general, not only provide students with vital information, but teach them to think critically about the world and their own place in it. They also arm students with a skill set to effectively deal with the world's most challenging circumstances, ethically," Smith says.
