The Power of the Young People

This lecture begins with the naming of various famous sit ins from the past, when the integration of schools were still in effect but the segregation of blacks and whites were still clearly evident. These sit ins, were of basic importance because as an African American, you would not be served if you came and sat down in a "white" restaurant. Back then when things were segregated this was not necessary illegal back then but in today's world this is in some way a racist/hate crime and people can now sue for unjust service if it had anything to do with their race. The most popular sit ins named in this lecture were; the Nashville Sit In, the Greensboro Sit In,Wichita, and the Kansas Sit In.

It is also mentioned the elders of our African American past that were apart of the Civil Rights movement, significant and prominent activists named were ; Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. , Ella Baker, Septima Clark, Fannie Lou Hamer, Myrlie Evers, Betty Shabazz( Malcolm X's wife) ,Rosa Parks, Joann Robinson, Coretta Scott King(MLK's wife), Queen Mother Audley Moore, and lastly Malcolm X. Additionally to the African American elders of the past, African Independence Leaders were also named such as Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta,Julius Nyerere,Patrice Lumumba, and most popularly know Nelson Mandela.

As the Civil Rights movement continued on throughout time we encounter the "Black Power" activists; Angela Davis, Eldridge Cleaver, Kathleen Cleaver, Huey Newton, Erika Huggins, Frances Beal, and Assata Shakur. Aside from the "Black Power" activists, there were also Africana Scholars who were not neccesarily all about violence or fighting the power but more about the education of Black people as a whole.

These important names of the Africana Scholars would be; Frantz Fanon , Cheikh Anta Diop, Chancellor Williams, and John Henrik Clarke. Often Africana Scholars and the poets fall into a similar categorory of trying to educate the people, not neccesary in the same manor but often trying to reach the similar goal of educating people. These poets are named as such ; Mari Evans, Ed Bullins, Askia M. Toure, June Jordan, Haki Madhubuti, Amiri Baraka, Nikki Giovanni, Carolyn Rodgers, and lastly Gwendolyn Brooks and Muhammad Ali.

One of the most influentalie parts of our past and present is the music. Soul music, hip hop, R & B and jazz ; singers such as Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Mahaila Jackson, John Coltrane, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Nina Simone, and Bob Marley and the Wailers. Most reveleant in today's African American Culuture is hip hop or R&B. Hip Hop artists popularly known for their extreme influence are Chuck D. , KRS One, Tupac, Notorious B.I.G, Salt N Pepa, Queen Latifah (cerca 1990's) , Missy Elliot, The Poor Righteous Teachers, Lauryn Hill, Common, De La Soul, The Roots, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, Brand Nubian, Nas, Tribe Called Quest, and The Fugees. Influential R & B artists include; Mary J. Blige, Angie Stone, again Lauryn hill, Erykah Badu, Kem, Lalah Hathaway, John Legend, Bilal, Me’Shell NdegeOcello, India Arie, Amel Lauriexx, Arrested Development, Anthony Hamilton, Jill Scott, Ledisi, Maxwell, mostly recently Eric Roberson.

Jahmonni Long

Eloquence of the Scribes

This lecture spoke of how the building on Howard University's campus, received their names and how significant the names of the building are. It begins with how Howard University was named after its founder General Oliver Otis Howard, a Civil war hero, at the time Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau and later the president of Howard University. Throughout this lecture its spoken that Howard's Administration building was named after Mordecai Wyatt Johnson, and shows a thorough picture of Johnson standing at the main gate on Howard University campus. Inabel Burns Lindsay established the School of Social Work, also known as Inabel Burns Lindsay Hall, on Howard University's campus, and became it's first dean in 1945 until 1967. This lecture also names very common building on campus like Founder's Library and Carnegie Building.

Also speaking of how the building known for the College of Arts and Sciences, the Alaine Leroy Locke Hal, named after Alaine Leroy Locke. This lecture also speaks of Zora Neale Hurston studying her undergrad at Howard University and where she became one of the earliest initiates of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority and co-founded The Hilltop, the University's student newspaper. The lecture also spoke of how Howard University's Fine Arts building was named after Lulu Vere Childers.

Douglass Memorial Hall was named after the civil rights, a leader of the abolishment movement, Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, also known as Frederick Douglass. This lecture spoke of how Mary McLeod Bethune Annex,Lucy Diggs Slowe Hall,Charles R. Drew Hall ,George Washington Carver Hall, and Earnest Everett Just Hall (Biology), received their named and the significance of the people they were named after. Lastly this lecture tells of the schools that Alumni Scribes have graduated in Howard's 143 year history.

Jahmonni Long

Age of Human Genome Knowledge

This lecture was mainly focused on the history and legacy of Howard University in the pursuit of wisdom of the 21st century. The broad question of this lecture was "In what ways is KNOWLEDGE generated by various fields of study used to develop solutions to human social problems and challenges?" It was stated within out knowledge of biology, life and human identity, the substructure of the genome was the main focus point. Our genome holds deeply within itself our human identity and collectively our individual and collective inheritance.

Every individual shares the same genome of being 99.9% the same, while the lastly .1% is responsible for all genetic diversity within these individuals. In 2007 scientists began to respect the fact that genomes differentiate each individual from another and how genomes lead to our self discovery of our culture and our past genealogy of experiences. The NHGC Molecular Genetics Motto is “ We use human genome variation for gene and self-discovery”.

This lecture mainly instituted the pursuit of knowledge of the genome and to make the students of Howard University to explore their genome and that this is the "TIME for RESEARCH" among Howard University students. This lecture also encourages among all African American people to benefit from the "KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY" of the 21st century and for the students of Howard University to participate in the information necessary to continue the vitality of our people. This lecture lastly encourages us to begin researching our genome based on the energy it is made from to figure out who we are, who we were, where we are, and where we came from once we figure out our genome from the past then we can continue to figure out who we are within this century and this life. As stated by T.S. Eliot, "At the end of all our exploring,we shall arrive where we began, and know the place for the first time..."

Jahmonni Long

Continuing the Legacy of Howard University

Although we walk across the yard almost every day, many of us do not know all the rich history behind Howard's campus. Dr. Benjamin spoke today about the history of Howard University and the meaning behind the names of some of its main buildings. She also posed a very important question: How will today's knowledge be used to solve tomorrow's problems?

Howard was founded in the 1800s by 17 people, including General Oliver Otis Howard, who was a civil war general who promoted education for former slaves. He was such an key figure in the history of this school that it was named in his honor.

Another important person whose name is common around campus is Frederick Douglass. The building Douglass Hall is named after him. He was the voice of the abolitionist movement and worked hard for equality and justice for all. He broke down barriers by persisting to be taught how to read and write, and eventually published many writings which were and are still highly regarded by blacks and whites alike.

Another historic person honored in a Howard building is Harriet Tubman. The freshman all-girls dorm is named after her. This is the dorm that I stayed in last year, and its name was such an important part of living there. Every time there was a meeting, our RAs and the other staff members were constantly reminding us that we should be the best women that we could be, and that we should live up to the standards of our dorm's namesake.

It is obvious that the founders gave the buildings the names they did because they wanted us to be inspired. Each time we pass the Tubman Quad, Douglass Hall or any of Howard's other majestic buildings, we are reminded of the people who sacrificed so much and worked so hard for equality and justice for us. These people created the framework for our success, but they do not, by any means, complete it. It is up to us to continue to learn from the voices of our past and use today's knowledge to create a better tomorrow, both for us and for the generations to come.



Erika Meijer

Genomes: The Blueprint for our Futures

This week's speaker was Dr. Georgia Dunston, a scientist specializing in genomes. She started her lecture by defining a genome as something that every living organism has. A genome contains information needed to create the blueprint for that organism. In short, a genome is information that is carried through our bodies from previous generations, and continues on to future generations. This relates to us in so many different ways. In the literal sense, genomes pass on our physical traits and characteristics: things such as height, hair color, face shape, skin color, etc. But on a pyschological level, Dr. Dunston was trying to convey that genomes represent things from our past that are preserved through many years and generations. An example of this is education. Our ancestors created education. They were eager to discover the mysteries of the world around them through mathematics, writing, astronomy and many other means of education. That thirst for knowledge that the ancient Egyptians had is still with us today. We, as students of Howard University, live out that genome every day by proving that we still have a passion for the acquisition of knowledge. This also reminds me of something that Dr. Carr said in his lecture a week ago. He said that it was no coincidence that black people often respond to each other by saying "word". Although it is easy to brush this off as meaningless slang, it actually holds a deep cultural significance. Our African ancestors created language and writing, and everytime we use the phrase "word" we are reminding ourselves of our history. Dr. Dunston used a biological term to relate to our world on a more insightful level.



Erika Meijer

Learning, Wisdom and the African World Experience: An Mbongi

During Dr. Carr's lecture he introduced the objectives of Howard's main mission of education; to sketch an outline that traces the connection between learning and wisdom, and to open your personal pathway for engagement and renewal. Some Africana teachings and learnings were also introduced; the word "Sedi", meaning educate in the English language, was a key term of the Africana teachings that was a main focus point. It was also discussed that this lecture examined the contributions of international traditions and teachings and learnings of the African experience. Within our discussion we all uncovered the goals, that are champions to African Deep Thought, these goals are stated as : to recover African Deep Thought from it's historical African background, and to show that such deep thought serves as a basis of what we refer to now as "academic". It was also discussed of how African culture brought about the basic structure of most living civilizations.

Jahmonni Long

Dr. Dunston’s lecture

Every organism has a genome that contains all biological information needed to classify an organism as an organism. In saying that, identity is what determines our purpose. When defining our identity we must think about what we are and who we are created to be. We all possess an energy field and our genome is what defines that energy field. We have the power to obtain and share knowledge and our genome is a record book for all of human history. Our way of thinking is a biological process and as we learn more about life and learn everyday lessons we are establishing a knowledge revolution. With knowledge we have the power to prevent, promote, and eliminate. Knowledge is a spoken word and with knowledge comes power. Depending on how much energy we are willing to give out we are able to increase the energy field of others. In doing that we engage others in the learning process and it becomes a continuous cycle. Another component that contributes to attain knowledge is our biophysics. Biophysics regulates and controls bodily functions. This is what allows us to retain knowledge and execute tasks to our best ability. Without it we cannot be classified as human beings. Every living organism radiates energy and either its positive or negative energy. Only with positive energy can we really become more developed human beings. Our genomes are what determine how far we go in life and without them we would just be taking up space in the world.

The Importance of Unity Within a Group

"I am because we are." This is an ancient Zulu quote that Dr. Carr mentioned in his Monday lecture. This particular quote really stuck with me because I feel that it embodies not only African culture but also our own culture at Howard University. Dr. Carr started off by saying that Egyptians were the creators of mathematics, science, astronomy, writing, and many other important educational advances. In addition to this, they also built the pyramids, which took a great deal of teamwork and unity. I think that this quote is saying that one individual is nothing without the support of the group that they were brought up in. This group could be a tribe, a neighborhood, a family, or a school. I feel that Dr. Carr shared this quote with the class because he wants us to know that unity is important in our group at Howard University. Our university accomplishes so much: each year we educate thousands of promising black scholars. However, without teachers, these scholars would be nothing. In addition, without students, the teachers would have no purpose. The importance of group collaboration is shown in this quote and is an inspiration to us as a class because most of us are just beginning our transition into Howard University. We came here as individuals, leaving our parents, siblings and friends back at home. But we will not be leaving the same way that we came. We will leave with valuable educations and priceless connections to help us build our futures. We will leave as members of the Howard family, and wherever we go, whatever we accomplish, we will be leaving the Howard University name along with it. Dr. Carr introduced several African words and phrases into his lecture, one of them being the word "sankofa". This means "go and get it". The theme that I interpreted from this lecture was that we as Howard University students can accomplish anything we set our minds to, as long as we remember that we ourselves are only humble individuals, and we must use the help and wisdom of others to improve ourselves and achieve our goals.



Erika Meijer

Learning, Wisdom, and the African World Experience: An Mbongi (Part 1)

Fruitful learning is more than trying to retain academic knowledge. Fruitful learning is about gaining knowledge and applying that knowledge to everyday situations. During the lecture Dr.Carr introduced some basic key terms in Africana Teaching and Learning. One term that stuck with me, because of the description given, was the word Sedjem. Sedjem means “listen” but listening is not just sitting in a classroom and hearing what is being taught. Listening is “being present”. By being present we mean that we are not simply just hearing what is being said we are absorbing the information and comprehending it and therefore that is where learning truly takes place. When it comes to who developed the learning process we have been under the impression that Europeans brought learning to America. However, Africans were actually the ones to develop writing, counting, sciences, arts, spiritual systems and formal teaching. Dating back to the reign of Askia Muhammand from 1493 to 1529 Sudanese literature was emerging. Timbuktu, Gao, Walata, and Jeene were intellectual centers for learning where studies in grammar, geography, law, literature, and surgery were offered. Africans created a foundation for learning to begin and they set their axis of learning around excellence. E. Franklin Frazier compared intellectual Africans from the Continent and the Caribbean to those from the U.S. and stated that “the Negro intellectual is unconscious of the extent to which his thinking is restricted to sterile repetition of the safe conventional ideas current to American society…” Although Africans had great impacts on education American society has taken credit for the accomplishments of Africans and has cast out the genuine and unconventional ideas of African thought.

Katelynn Pruitt