Black History Month 2025
As we enter Black History Month, we’re excited to share some stories from the past year that celebrate members of CLA's community who identify as Black, African American, or African and that highlight important work being done in Black studies at UMN.
On this page, you’ll:
- Meet scholars and artists whose work confronts inequities while leaning into hope and joy.
- Learn about figures and events from history through the scholarship of CLA students, alumni, faculty members, and community partners.
- Find resources and opportunities to get involved, find community, and provide support.
Introducing GerShun Avilez, 13th Dean of the College of Liberal Arts
Dean Avilez is a pre-eminent cultural studies scholar who specializes in contemporary African American and Black Diasporic literature and visual culture.
Akeem Anderson is pursuing both a PhD in American studies and a JD. His scholarship focuses on understanding the relationship between jazz, eugenics, and racial violence.
Dr. John S. Wright (MA ‘71, English; PhD ‘77, American studies and Professor Emeritus of African American & African Studies and English) has received the Outstanding Achievement Award, the University’s highest nondegree award for distinguished alumni.
Read “John S. Wright Recognized for Outstanding Achievement”
Last February, the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal commemorated Black History Month by featuring more than 200 Black leaders. Here are the leaders who studied in CLA.
The new postdoc in the Department of History brings expertise on the Horn of Africa and insights into imperialism and law from her Harvard PhD and JD.
Ilhan Adan shares her advice and experience as a to-be developmental psychology graduate student.
Brittany L. Wright (BA ‘14, sociology) is a music lover, a DJ, and a passionate advocate for helping kids and families navigate the government and healthcare systems.
Spotlight on the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Program
Situated in CLA and with all CLA undergraduates eligible to join, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Program specializes in serving students who identify as Black, Indigenous, or students of color (BIPOC). It is both an academic advising community and a social justice education community.
The MLK Program in the news:
Engaged artists and scholars
The two-time Emmy Award-winning recording artist, professor, and cultural diplomat pursued an individualized degree that aligned with his values and community involvement. Today, he encourages current CLA students to consider their own purpose with a singular question: What have you been put on the planet to do?
“I am thrilled and honored to have been named as a fellow,” said Peterson. “During my Guggenheim Fellowship, I will travel to rural Georgia to research and rediscover forgotten Black artists and their artworks. Through collecting oral histories and engaging with communities, my goal is to challenge conventional narratives, honor the resilience of these overlooked artists, and connect with my father's artistic legacy.”
McLendon (BA, art '24) reflects on the exhibition “Art and Artifact,” how Memorialize the Movement led her to curation, and lessons from 2020.
Read “Art Alum Amira McLendon Curates Murals from the Minneapolis Uprising”
Gospel choir director and assistant professor of music education Adrian Davis (PhD '21, music), discusses the choir’s growth since 2018 with the MN Daily.
Lorenzo Fabbri, an associate professor of Italian and Moving Images Studies, and Fred Kudjo Kuwornu, an Afro-Italian filmmaker, activist, and producer teamed up to create the Black Europe Film Festival of Minneapolis/St. Paul.
Seeking for the Lost
“Seeking for the Lost” views the details of often overlooked histories with an artistic lens. Featuring portraiture by contemporary artist Christopher E. Harrison, this exhibition
- Explores the unbreakable familial bonds expressed through ads in the St. Paul newspaper The Appeal.
- Presents the post-Reconstruction goals of Minnesota’s Black press.
- Shows how literacy informed the lives of Black Americans after the Civil War.
On display at the Weisman Art Museum through February 16, 2025
Layers of Joy
From Layers of Joy: “Layers of Joy is an exhibition of Black art, identity, and community in Minneapolis. The exhibition showcases the work of five early and mid-career artists that examine how layered materiality and artistic practice intersect with the multiplicitous nature of existing as Black.”
U of M students learn by doing with new exhibition focused on Black joy (Minn Post)
Courses
- AFRO 1131: Contemporary Issues in Africa
- AFRO 1201: Racial Formation and Transformation in the United States
- AFRO 3016: Africa and African Diaspora Archaeology
- AFRO 3108: Black Music: A History of Jazz
- AFRO 3125W: Black Visions of Liberation: Ella, Martin, Malcolm, and the Radical Transformation of U.S. Democracy
- AFRO 3205: History of South Africa from 1910: Anti-Racism, Youth Politics, Pandemics & Gender (Based Violence)
- AFRO 3433: Economic Development in Contemporary Africa
- AFRO 3435: Political Dynamics in the Horn of Africa
- AFRO 3592W: Introduction to Black Women Writers in the United States
- AFRO 3910: Topics in African American and African Studies
- AFRO 4991W: Thesis Research and Writing
- DNCE 1353: African Diasporic Movement 3
- ENGL 3332: Black Times: Afrofuturism, Afropessimism and the Future (Ends) of the World
- ENGL 3592W: Introduction to Black Women Writers in the United States
- GEOG 3341: Black Geographies
- GWSS 4406: Black Feminist Thought in the American and African Diasporas
- HIST 3812: The Civil War and Reconstruction
- MLK 3000: MLK Immersion Experience
- POL 3435: Political Dynamics in the Horn of Africa
- SMLI 1222: Beginning Somali II
- SMLI 3226: Accelerated Beginning Somali II
- SMLI 3228: Intermediate Somali II
- SMLI 4228: Intermediate Somali for Graduate Research II
- SWAH 1222: Beginning Swahili II
- SWAH 3226: Intermediate Swahili II
- SWAH 4222: Beginning Swahili for Graduate Research II
- SWAH 4226: Intermediate Swahili for Graduate Research II
- AFRO 3910: Topics in African American and African Studies: Accelerated Beginning Oromo I
Department of African American & African Studies
Seeking to understand, explore, and invigorate our cultural heritage, the Department of African American & African Studies aspires to continue interrogating our past, to understand our present, and to promote a better future for humankind.
Degrees offered:
Center for Race, Indigeneity, Disability, Gender & Sexuality Studies
The RIDGS center, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, supports interdisciplinary, intersectional research regarding questions of race, indigeneity, gender, and sexuality.
African Studies Initiative
A Title VI Comprehensive National Resource Center, the African Studies Initiative is changing narratives about Africa through transformative research, teaching, public engagement in African studies University-wide, and providing outreach to K–16 educators and general audiences.
