Black Diaspora Studies

The Black Diaspora Studies minor is built around a core of courses that systematically document critical aspects of African and African American experiences from antecedents in antiquity to the present day. The minor aims to provide students with an interdisciplinary study of the historical and contemporary lived experiences of continental African nations and their peoples as well as African descendants around the world. The Caribbean, the United States, and Latin America are regions some courses will highlight. The minor also prepares students for possible graduate-level work in African American or African Diaspora Studies.

The minor in Black Diaspora Studies is designed to:

• increase students’ historical knowledge of Africa and the African diaspora.
• expose students to the academic research practices necessary for an informed analysis of the African diaspora.
• build students’ critical thinking skills as they analyze definitions, constructions, and representations of Black identity in various disciplines, cultures, and media forms.
• provide students with the critical tools required to understand continental African and African American experiences today.

For more information email the Director: melisa.klimaszewski@drake.edu