African and African American Studies (AAS)
AAS 100 INTRODUCTION TO AFRICANA STUDIES
3, 3/0; DI23
Origins of Africana Studies in the social movements of the 1960s. Africans as humanity’s first people and creators of complex civilizations. Exposing white supremacy and anti-Black racism as philosophical pillars of the modern world. Critical review of traditional majors and professions through the lens of Africana Studies. Offered every semester.
AAS 189 TOPICS COURSE
3, 3/0
Offered occasionally.
AAS 200 BLACKS IN BUFFALO
3, 0/0
Prerequisite: AAS 100, or permission of instructor. African-centered, multidisciplinary study of Blacks in Buffalo. Overview of intersections of race, class, and gender, with attention to the perspectives of Black Buffalonians, in understanding the historical forces that shape(d) the experiences of African Americans in Western New York. Contemporary issues central to the life experiences of Blacks in Buffalo. Offered every other fall.
AAS 209 SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN MUSIC AND CULTURES
3, 3/0; GA23
Study of the cultures of sub-Saharan Africa focused on the histories and musics from four specific regions. Two-thirds of class time is in lecture format; one-third is dedicated to learning and performing African rhythms on percussion instruments. Offered annually.
Equivalent Course: MUS 209
AAS 218 AFRICAN AMERICAN POLITICAL CULTURE
3, 3/0
Political beliefs, attitudes, and practices that pertain to African American politics in a cultural context; causality and linkage inherent in the reciprocal relationship between African Americans and the American political system. Offered fall only.
Equivalent Course: PSC 218
AAS 221 THE HISTORY OF BLACK EDUCATION IN AMERICA
3, 3/0
The role of blacks in the American educational system. Changes that have taken place to improve or retard education for blacks. Approaches for providing meaningful education for blacks now and in the future. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: SPF 221
AAS 222 THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN EDUCATION IN AFRICA
3, 3/0
Educational changes in Africa from the colonial era to the present and their effects on social and political issues in Africa and abroad. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: SPF 222
AAS 230 DANCE TECHNIQUES FROM THE AFRICAN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE
3, 2/2
The continuity of African American dance from traditional African to contemporary American through dance technique. Introduction to several dance forms: traditional, modern, and jazz; the cultural history that influenced these dance forms; and the contributions of significant choreographers. Dance performance attendance is required. Offered fall semester.
Equivalent Course: DAN 230
AAS 234 THE POLITICS OF BLACK DANCE IN AMERICA
3, 3/0; DI23
The development of African American dance and the contributions of African American artists through lecture and film. Emphasis on the evolution of traditional African dance forms and their influence on the contemporary dance vernacular. Dance performance attendance is required. Offered as required.
Equivalent Course: DAN 234
AAS 240 AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE TO 1940
3, 3/0; DI23, HU23
African American slave narratives, poetry, fiction, essays, and drama from the eighteenth century to 1940. The influence of spirituals, gospel, the blues, jazz, sermons, and folktales on African American writing; the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s; and the development of African American revolutionary thought. Offered fall only.
Equivalent Course: ENG 240
AAS 241 AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE SINCE 1940
3, 3/0; DI23, HU23
Realism, naturalism, modernism, and postmodernism in African American literature; black revolutionary thought and artistry in the 1960s and 1970s; neo-slave narratives; African American poetry, fiction, essays, and drama from 1940 to the present; influence of spirituals, gospel, the blues, jazz, sermons, and folktales on contemporary African American writing. Offered spring only.
Equivalent Course: ENG 241
AAS 250 JAZZ DANCE TECHNIQUE I
3, 2/2
Technique, studies, and compositional problems illustrating the diverse possibilities of jazz dance, with special attention to the ethnic foundation of this form. Dance performance attendance is required. Offered alternate fall semester.
Equivalent Course: DAN 250
AAS 300 BLACK THOUGHT: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON CONSCIOUSNESS AND LIBERATION
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: AAS 100, or instructor permission. Prepares students to engage with conceptual frameworks within the discipline of Africana Studies. Focuses on works from thinkers from Africa and the African Diaspora, to understand the varied ways African people globally have made sense of and tried to change the world, before and since the holocaust of enslavement. Offered every fall semester.
AAS 304 MODERN JAZZ
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: MUS 206. An explanation of the history and development of modern jazz from 1941 to the present. Offered occasionally.
AAS 305 PEOPLES OF AFRICA
3, 3/0; GA23
Cross-cultural comparisons of indigenous and modern African nations. Emphasis is placed upon regional, linguistic, social, political, religious, economic, and aesthetic characteristics, as well as historical and recent population migrations on the African continent and the surrounding islands. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: ANT 305
AAS 306 AFRICA TO 1800
3, 3/0; GA23
Prerequisite: Upper-division status or instructor permission. African history from the Paleolithic period to 1800. Development of agriculture, ancient civilizations of Africa, iron working societies, the trans-Saharan trade, the impact of Islam and Christianity, traditional African political and social arrangements, the slave trade, and the European presence in early modern Africa. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: HIS 306
AAS 321 THE AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILY
3, 3/0; DI23
The examination of the relationship between American social institutions and the African American family and familial relations within the African American family. Offered fall only.
Equivalent Course: SOC 321
AAS 322 AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY
3, 3/0
Heritage of black Americans; African Americans' existence under slavery; their role in influencing historical events; activity in the Civil War period; the freed men during reconstruction; migration to the north and adjustment to urban life. African American leaders, institutions, and ideas, and their impact on modern America. Offered every semester.
Equivalent Course: HIS 322
AAS 326 BLACK FEMINIST THOUGHT
3, 3/0
This course provides an introduction to Black feminist thought from the 19th century through the present. Topics include the origins and development of intersectional thinking, intersectionality in contemporary social thought, and critical race theory. The course draws from multiple academic disciplines, public intellectualism, and activist work. Offered occasionally.
AAS 333 AFRICAN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
3, 3/0
African international politics vis-à-vis international relations theory, models, and concepts; power; multipolarity; bipolarity; pan-Africanism, North-South debate; approaches to international politics; and state and international organizations as international actors. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: PSC 333
AAS 337 AFRICA SINCE 1800
3, 3/0; GA23
African history since 1800. Abolition of the slave trade, pre-colonial culture and society, partition of Africa by European nations, impact of colonial regimes, African resistance movements, colonial nationalism, world wars and decolonization, Apartheid in South Africa, impact of the Cold War, and neo-colonialism. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: HIS 337
AAS 340 ETHNOMUSICOLOGY
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: MUS 303. Lectures, readings, and recordings introducing principal musical traditions of selected non-Western cultures, such as African, Indic, and Sinitic. Consideration of the African American tradition, including jazz and rock. Includes individual projects of music or cultural analysis. Required for music majors. Offered occasionally.
AAS 341 AFRICAN-AMERICANS AND CIVIL RIGHTS
3, 3/0
History of the landmark court decisions, laws, and governmental policies regarding the civil rights of African Americans. The course examines some of the historic relationships among race, racism, law, and public policy in America. Focuses on resistance, protest, and the quest for equality in America. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: HIS 341
AAS 343 WHY AFRICA MATTERS
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: AAS 100. Introduces students to Black or African Psychology. Focuses on the history of Black Psychology in the context of the turbulent sixties. Explores discipline’s philosophical foundations in African cultures globally. Highlights the theoretical ingenuity and clinical application of the discipline. Offered every spring.
AAS 349 WEST AFRICAN DRUMMING ENSEMBLE
1, 1/0
Prerequisite: Instructor permission. Introduction to traditional West African rhythms on djembes, dundun drums, and iron bells. Students explore cultural contexts and learn to give and respond to rhythmic signals, learn to play different rhythms simultaneously, and learn culturally and rhythmically appropriate improvisation techniques. Offered every semester.
Equivalent Course: MUS 349
AAS 351 SOCIOLOGY OF RACE AND ETHNICITY
3, 3/0; DI23
Prerequisite: SOC 100. The study of racial and ethnic groups in American and other societies; focuses on forms, causes, and effects of prejudice and ethnic conflicts, and the changing relationships of these groups to the larger society. Possible solutions to social problems involving issues of race and ethnicity are also explored. Offered every semester.
Equivalent Course: SOC 351
AAS 354 THE MODERN CARIBBEAN
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: CWP 102 or equivalent. Introduction to the conundrums of freedom, independence, and sovereignty as experienced in the modern Caribbean. Topics will include the Haitian Revolution; abolitionism and emancipation; labor conflicts between freedpeople and planters; race, religion, and imperialism; American expansionism and occupation; decolonization, departmentalization, and independence; globalization and nonsovereignty; contemporary politics and society.
Equivalent Course: HIS 354
AAS 357 BLACKS IN TECHNOLOGY: INNOVATING THE FUTURE
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: AAS 100. Equips students with technical competency in ground-breaking tech and critical understanding of tech segregation that disproportionately affects Black people. Offered every fall.
AAS 360 AFRICANA PHILOSOPHY
3, 3/0
Prerequisites: One PHI or AAS course. Philosophical thought across the African diaspora. Both historic and contemporary responses to issues specific to the Black experience across the globe, such as understanding freedom, rationality, and humanity from the position of the formerly enslaved and/or colonized, and analysis regarding the intersections of race, gender, and white supremacy. Offered every spring.
Equivalent Course: PHI 360
AAS 361 RACE AND PROGRESS
3, 3/0
African American philosophical thought with a specific focus on the concept of progress. Both historic and contemporary responses to issues specific to the African American experience, such as understanding the concepts of race and racism, social and political forces required to generate progress, and the limits of progress within the Black community. Offered fall semester only.
Equivalent Course: PHI 361
AAS 366 AFRICAN AMERICAN ART
3, 3/0
Prerequisites: AAD 251 and AAD 252 or FAR 250 and FAR 251. Survey of African American Art. Examines African American art as well as the relationship of art to politics and the formation of racial/cultural identity. Offered alternate years.
Equivalent Course: FAR 366
AAS 373 "SAVING" AFRICA
3, 3/0
Prerequisite: AAS 100, or upper division standing, or permission of instructor. Examines what Western efforts at foreign development, including contemporary globalization, look like from an African vantage. Incorporates ethnographic case studies, theoretical lenses, and practical implications for doing development work into the examination. Offered every fall semester.
AAS 380 ART OF AFRICA
3, 3/0
The history of art in Africa from prehistory through the twentieth century. Arts from diverse regions of the continent are examined in their cultural context, with an emphasis on local and regional variations in style and iconography in the domestic, sacred, and royal arts. African responses to the development of slavery, imperialism, and other external stimuli are considered in relation to the use and trade of raw materials and the creation of new symbolic forms. Offered alternate years.
Equivalent Course: FAR 380
AAS 389 TOPICS IN AFRICANA STUDIES
1-3, 1/0
Examination of current issues or topics in Africana Studies; offered occasionally.
AAS 421 DRAMA FROM THE AFRICAN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE
3, 3/0
Prerequisites: CWP 102 or equivalent. An exploratory and critical analysis of African-American playwrights (and playwrights of African decent) and their works. Students will participate in play readings and discussions related to the plays’ social and historical context. Offered biennially.
Equivalent Course: THA 421
AAS 425 RACE, ETHNICITY, AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE
3, 3/0
Prerequisites: CRJ 101, CRJ 303 and senior level status or instructor permission. The current state of race relations in society and the criminal justice system; the historical experiences of different racial and ethnic groups in the United States and their relation to law and the criminal justice system as victims, offenders, and officials in criminal justice institutions. Offered every semester.
Equivalent Course: CRJ 425
AAS 468 READINGS IN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY
3, 3/0
The major historical writings on selected periods and topics in African American history. Readings, discussions, and writing book reviews and biographical essays. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: HIS 468
AAS 469 BLACK PROTEST AND LEADERSHIP IN THE U.S. IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
3, 3/0
The black protest movements and leaders in twentieth-century America. Offered occasionally.
Equivalent Course: HIS 469
AAS 485 ADVANCED SEMINAR IN AFRICANA STUDIES
3, 3/0
Prerequisites: 12 credits of AAS and senior standing. Detailed exploration of contemporary issues affecting African and African American peoples. Capstone course that seeks to integrate the knowledge acquired in the interdisciplinary study of African and African American peoples. Emphasis on analysis of issues, evaluation of solutions, and creative problem solving.
AAS 488 INTERNSHIP
1-6, 0/0
Prerequisite AAS 100. Guided, supervised field experiences that complement the academic program. Students must have background of courses or experiences within the area of interest and approval by the program coordinator. Offered occasionally.
AAS 495 SPECIAL PROJECT
1-3, 0/0
AAS 499 INDEPENDENT STUDY
3-9, 0/0
Prerequisite: Faculty adviser permission must be secured prior to registration. Offered occasionally.