Black Studies
Overview
Black Studies at Occidental College is a transnational and interdisciplinary study of the history, scholarship, arts and culture of people of the African diaspora. As a heterogeneous and diverse discipline, Black Studies encourages rigorous critical contemplation and debate. It engages with and expands upon the vibrant intellectual tradition of critical engagement already established at the college. Students of Black Studies learn to examine the world and their local communities with an eye to black people's important and sometimes overlooked contributions, and to understand the ways the experiences of people of African descent have shaped and continue to inform campaigns for human rights.
Courses draw from faculty expertise in the fields of Politics, International Relations, English, American Studies, History, Philosophy, Media Studies, Cultural Studies, and others. The program explores the conditions and experiences of race in the twenty-first century through a historical study of the enduring traditions of scholarship, activism, and community throughout the African diaspora. Students participate in intersectional analysis of black populations, paying close attention to how class, location, gender, sexuality, have shaped black identities, cultural productions and forms of political engagement both past and present.
Students who major in Black Studies will:
- Learn about the history and contemporary culture of people in African descent across the diaspora, including the development of foundational ideas and documents for our contemporary understanding of social justice and human rights;
- Engage in interdisciplinary and intersectional analysis of black communities in the U.S. and abroad, both past and present;
- Contribute to longstanding discussions about the enduring effects of slavery and colonization, the place of race in conceptions of citizenship and justice, the centrality of people of African descent to major developments (social, artistic, political, and scientific) throughout the world;
- Experience black communities outside the United States through study abroad;
- Have the opportunity to get involved in the local community through community-based partnerships in Los Angeles and surrounding communities;
- Graduate prepared for careers in law, medicine, education, entertainment, international business, and several others that involve communicating with and understanding people across difference and within specific communities.
Major Requirements
The Black Studies major consists of a minimum of 40 units, or ten 4-unit courses.
There are two core required courses for the major, BLST 110 and BLST 490.
There are three Interdisciplinary clusters: expressive forms, historical perspectives, and politics and theory. Students are expected to complete six of these, with a minimum of two in each of the three interdisciplinary clusters.
Students must take two additional electives in consultation with the faculty advisor and selected from a list of approved electives or any of the interdisciplinary clusters.
Of the ten required courses, no more than two courses can be at the 100-level, and at least three must be at the 300-level.
No more than two courses taken abroad may count toward the major. Such courses may only fulfill elective requirements and require prior approval from the advisor and department chair.
COURSEWORK
Core Courses
| BLST 110 | Introduction to Black Studies | 4 units |
| BLST 490 | Black Studies Senior Seminar | 4 units |
Interdisciplinary Electives
Students must take two courses from each interdisciplinary cluster (expressive forms, historical perspectives, and politics and theory).
Expressive Forms
Historical Perspectives
| BLST 242/AMST 242 | The Great Migration | 4 units |
| BLST 256/AMST 256 | Race Women: African American Women's Protest Culture | 4 units |
| BLST 268/AMST 268 | Style Politics: Beauty and Fashion in Black Women's History | 4 units |
| BLST 376/AMST 376 | Slavery, Freedom, and American Memory | 4 units |
| AMST 310 | The American South | 4 units |
| HIST 309 | Slavery in the Antebellum South | 4 units |
| HIST 213 | 19th Century Black Activism for Abolition and Equality | 4 units |
| HIST 312 | Race, Rights, and Revolution in the Atlantic World | 4 units |
Politics and Theory
Additional Electives
Students must take two additional electives chosen from the list of approved electives below, or any of the interdisciplinary clusters.
| CTSJ 255 | Women of Color | 4 units |
| CTSJ 261 | Race, Gender, Class, and the Media | 4 units |
| CTSJ 286 | Whiteness | 4 units |
| CTSJ 335 | Queer of Color Critique | 4 units |
| DWA 335 | Junior Seminar: Theories of Revolution from Africa and the African Diaspora | 4 units |
| EDUC 215 | Educating African America | 4 units |
| EDUC 320 | Critical Race Theory in Education | 4 units |
| ENGL 341 | Race, Law, and Literature | 4 units |
| HIST 277 | Women and Community Health | 4 units |
| PHIL 353 | Health and Social Justice | 4 units |
| POLS 206 | Race and American Politics | 4 units |
| SOC 250 | Race and Ethnicity in American Society | 4 units |
SECOND-STAGE WRITING REQUIREMENT
The Second-Stage Writing Requirement may be fulfilled in one of two ways:
Option 1:
A student may complete the Second-Stage Writing Requirement in Black Studies by taking one of the following courses and receiving a grade of B- or better, determined by the instructor of record, on a 15-page final paper focusing on a topic relevant to Black Studies.
Option 2:
By submitting to the chair a portfolio consisting of fifteen pages of writing submitted as a final assignment in a 300-level Black Studies designated course or a course approved by the adviser in which the student has composed a final assignment addressed specifically to the topic of Black Studies. The portfolio may include more than one essay if a single essay is less than fifteen pages in length. The portfolio will be assessed by the adviser in consultation with the chair.
In order to successfully pass the Second-Stage Writing Requirement, submitted essays must exhibit evidence of the following:
- Correct use of the conventions of American academic prose including grammar, punctuation, syntax, and vocabulary
- Proper citation formatting in MLA or Chicago Manual Style, preferably
- Construction of a compelling and clear thesis or argument
- Persuasive use of evidence (secondary sources, data, etc.) to support the thesis and related claims
- Organization of the essay as a whole into a logical sequence with smooth transitions
Essays submitted as part of a portfolio will be assessed against these criteria and graded Acceptable/Unacceptable.
The course or portfolio must be completed by the end of the spring semester during the student's junior year.
Should a student not successfully complete the writing requirement by the end of their Junior year Spring semester, they will be required to submit a revised essay/portfolio to the adviser no later than the fourth week of their senior year fall semester.
COMPREHENSIVE REQUIREMENT
Students will complete their comprehensive requirement by enrolling in the senior seminar (BLST 490) in their senior year and completing a 25-page paper on a topic relevant to Black Studies.
HONORS
To be eligible for honors, a student must have at least a 3.25 GPA overall and a 3.5 GPA in the major. Additionally, the student will be required to enroll in the senior seminar (currently BLST 490) in their senior year and complete a 40-page paper on a topic relevant to Black Studies. The paper must earn a grade of A- or above which is to be determined by the adviser in consultation with readers and the department chair.
Minor Requirements
The Black Studies minor is a five-course, 20-unit program consisting of one required core class (BLST 110); one elective from each interdisciplinary cluster (expressive forms, historical perspectives, and politics and theory (three courses /12 units); and one additional elective chosen from the approved Black Studies courses.
Coursework
Note: No more than three courses from one department can be counted toward the minor.
Required Core Course
| BLST 110 | Introduction to Black Studies | 4 units |
Black Expressive Forms
One course from this category.
Historical Perspectives
One course from this category.
Politics and Theory
One course from this category.
Additional Electives
One course either from this category or the above categories.
| CTSJ 255 | Women of Color | 4 units |
| CTSJ 261 | Race, Gender, Class, and the Media | 4 units |
| CTSJ 286 | Whiteness | 4 units |
| CTSJ 335 | Queer of Color Critique | 4 units |
| DWA 335 | Junior Seminar: Theories of Revolution from Africa and the African Diaspora | 4 units |
| EDUC 215 | Educating African America | 4 units |
| EDUC 320 | Critical Race Theory in Education | 4 units |
| ENGL 341 | Race, Law, and Literature | 4 units |
| HIST 277 | Women and Community Health | 4 units |
| PHIL 353 | Health and Social Justice | 4 units |
| POLS 206 | Race and American Politics | 4 units |
| SOC 250 | Race and Ethnicity in American Society | 4 units |
Courses
Black Studies Courses
Faculty
Advisory Committee
Courtney Baker, chair
Associate Professor, American Studies
B.A., Harvard University; M.A., Ph.D., Duke University
Erica Ball
Professor, American Studies
B.A., Wesleyan University; M.A., Ph.D., The Graduate Center, City University of New York
Sharla Fett
Professor, History ; Advisory Committee, American Studies
B.A., Carleton College; M.A., Stanford University; Ph.D., Rutgers University
James Ford III
Associate Professor, English
B.A., Morehouse College; M.A., Ph.D., University of Notre Dame
Regina Freer
Professor, Politics; Advisory Committee, Urban and Environmental Policy
B.A., University of California, Berkeley; Ph.D., University of Michigan
Ainsley LeSure
Assistant Professor, Politics
B.A., Carleton College; M.A., Ph.D., University of Chicago
Movindri Reddy
Associate Professor, Diplomacy and World Affairs
B.A., University of Natal; M.A., Ph.D., Cambridge University