My last word:

What a journey it has been. This year has been a learning experience indeed. For some reason, this semester was a lot harder than last semester. AFAM although tedious, really made my semester. I did not have the opportunity to have any type of AFAM class at my high school- which I’m sure many people did not either. My school did not even recognize February as Black History Month. They were so caught up in selling candy that it seemed as if they tried to avoid the publicity of the month. It’s really upsetting and infuriating to me when I think about it- but hence this class was available to take to make up for it. I STILL TRULY BELIEVE THAT Black Studies is indeed relevant within today’s society and within the African American culture. I think that it should be more relevant actually. Schools should press Black Studies as a pre-requisite to graduate alongside with the European History that most are familiar with. See when you disregard something for so long you become ignorant and immune to it. You start to conform to society and neglect the other history- the relevant history that went on. AFAM was a good class because it smoothed away all of the rough edges and opened the minds and news of not only African Americans but other races as well. We got to experience the good the bad and the ugly associated with Black Studies and relive the defining moments in history that never get old. It’s very relevant, my fellow ancestors overcame a lot and endured too much for us not to discuss it and push it to the side- no they deserve recognition every day. As far as the group project goes- I enjoyed it. I usually work alone and avoid group projects but I really though the group projects taught us in a sense how to collaborate with other people who have different backgrounds, different views and different opinions to interact with one another and collaborate our ideas to come to a conclusion. Groups help you learn what your strengths are, your weaknesses are and they help your interpersonal skills, your ability to work cooperatively with a team, to network to present an argument effectively in front of your peers and to gain confidence in your abilities. One particular thing that I liked about Group projects was the vast differences and diversity within the groups. I really like my group- Individual Sense(Group 9) because everyone was strong in their own way and it helped prepare us for what prospective employers will be looking for- the ability to communicate effectively and the ability to work cooperatively in groups. I feel like I probably would have never gotten to know my peers personally on my own if I was not put in a group with them and they could probably agree with me simply because people tend to stick with their own group of people because of their comfort zone. But I really learned a lot working in groups especially within the last Group project with the yearbook- just listening to my group speak on topics while at meetings or discuss research they found or were laughing over with me just listening and observing I learned more than speaking. In all the groups were significant and effective. Lastly the blogs- ahhh yes the blogs. Honestly- I liked them. They were sometimes given at times that were insignificant for me but I liked them nevertheless. I liked the topics and I like conveying my thoughts on paper rather than verbally anyway. The blogs were significant because they influenced me to stay potent and attentive. It made me check my emails and follow my syllabus and just stay on track and with the blogs it was a fun way to do work instead of the usual bland routine. I like different abstract creative assignments that I can sink my teeth into. They grab my attention more. It gave me chances to put my creativity on the worldwide web and preview and comment on my classmate’s blogs because usually you won’t get a chance to see your peer’s say-so which is always fun. The blogs were a creative innovative strategy that I recommend keeping. All in all I liked AFAM and will definitely put more of an effort to research and tap into my past. Thank you Mrs. Wynn for the experience.

Exra Credit

I was glad to have had the opportunity to attend the presentation regarding Aids/HIV Awareness. The organization that was presenting was called Guiding Right. It is directly funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. This program offers many outreach services such as SISTA & Between Brothers, Disk Reduction Counseling, Street Outreach, W.I.C. Support Groups for HIV Victims & families & free confidential HIV Testing and Counseling. The purpose of Guiding Right’s presentation was to provide an overview of media representation of blacks & H.I.V Epidemic. There were some bewildering results and statistics. Statistics show that there are over 40 million persons with A.I.D.S. Pandemic worldwide –North America consists of 890,000. What’s even more frightening and disturbing is that A.I.D.S killed more than 25 million peoples since 1981. Did you know that of 2004, 4,883, young people received a diagnosis of H.I.V. infection. Around this time to lighten up the mood Nina Johnson the H.I.V. coordinator suggested to use condoms without oil. She gave a brief overview of the dos and don’ts of condoms which was quite interesting. Now back to the point. In the 1980’s before many of us were born –H.I.V. was known as “the gay white man’s disease”. Media showed victims of the emerging epidemic as white men who were deteriorating. So in response African Americans thought: Oh, I’m not white or gay so this has nothing to do with me and so they kept finding excuses but by that time it was too late and H.I.V. had taken a stronghold in the African American community but it was not reported in the media. What was interesting but not surprising was the fact that people kept their mouths shut because they didn’t want to get stigmatized people were not talking about it-especially if someone died from it. Quick fact: Robert Wagner –Poppa Brady of Brandy has A.I.D.S. There were movies that include A.I.D.S .In 1998 “An Early Frost” was the first televised movie about H.I.CV. But the sex was implied- there was not that much of the background info they had the opportunity to educate but denied it. Media needs to stop sugar coding this issue and address it wholeheartedly. Because people especially my people are dying from this disease. I was glad I attended the presentation it was indeed informative, and an eye opener, hopefully you learned something to.