AFAM to House New Minor in Anti-Black Racism

The five-course, multidisciplinary program will equip interested undergraduates with skills to identify, combat anti-Black racism in their intended career fields 

No matter their major, University of Maryland undergraduates who are interested in learning about anti-Black racism and its impact on their potential career field will soon have the option of doing so as part of their academic studies.

This fall, undergraduates will be able to choose to enroll in ABRM 330, “Introduction to Anti-Black Racism.” The new course is a kickoff to a new Anti-Black Racism Minor, which is housed in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences’ Department of African American Studies, and collaboratively taught with faculty from four other colleges: the College of Arts and Humanities, College of Education, School of Public Health, and School of Public Policy.

“I think increasingly all across the world, people of all races are starting to fully understand the extent of racism and prejudice and discrimination that African American people are facing,” said Rhiley Jones, a sophomore Government and Politics major and nonprofit leadership and social innovation minor who is considering enrolling in the Anti-Black Racism minor next year. “I think this minor is really progressive and really cool, especially because I think students are realizing that conducting research on racism, and using data to implement techniques to help African Americans and other minorities achieve their fullest potential, are useful skills for all majors as there's a lot of intersectionality to it.”

What sets this new minor apart from related academic programs is its specific focus on the racism experienced by the Black community, and how that permeates many different elements of today’s society. 

"The creation of an anti-Black racism minor is in response to our students who have advocated for ways to educate our community to foster a more inclusive environment,” said University of Maryland President Darryll J. Pines. 

The minor’s introductory course will define Anti-Black Racism, and also get students thinking about how Anti-Black Racism appears in different industries by having faculty from each collaborating college lead the class for approximately two weeks. Undergraduates interested in pursuing the minor will then be asked to complete a disciplinary course and two additional three-credit elective courses in alignment with their career pursuits.

“The Anti-Black Racism Minor at the University of Maryland, which is one of the first of-its-kind at any university across the country, will expose students to scholarly research from different disciplines, help them develop new ways of processing and interpreting information, and set them apart on the job market by obtaining a credential that employers should value," explained Department of Sociology Professor Rashawn Ray.

To further prepare interested students for the workforce, completion of the minor will depend upon their completion of a capstone course and research project, directed by Department of African American Studies Lecturer, and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Ashley Newby. The project will require students to work with a faculty mentor in one of the five colleges to conduct Anti-Black Racism research that is of interest to them personally or professionally, thereby getting them in the practice of asking questions and working collaboratively to find answers to those questions.

“We're really excited about the innovative component of our capstone course,” said Jeanette Snider, an Assistant Research Professor in Social Justice and Anti-Black Racism who teaches in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences and the Robert H. Smith School of Business. “The capstone will be about students conducting research and really engaging in this work by trying to find out what’s happening within certain policies, practices, and institutions; learning about all that they can; and then figuring out what we can do to work through some of these issues that have been in existence for centuries in our country.”

Through a new Grand Challenges Team Project Grant, Snider and the rest of the cross-campus Anti-Black Racism Minor team will also work to position UMD as an institution standing in opposition to anti-Black racism by developing and executing anti-Black racism teach-in workshops for faculty, staff, students, and community members, and by presenting research findings to the wider campus and local community through an annual symposia and networking event.

“We want to help folks gain an awareness of Anti-Black Racism and be able to enter into their respective fields and recognize when concerning things are being said, when concerning actions are being done, and when concerning policies and practices are put into place,” said Snider. “We want to help them not just to accept these things as they are, but be able to have an orientation to disrupt Anti-Black Racism and, of course, eradicate it at some point in our lives.”

Photo of Frederick Douglass Square and Hornbake Plaza from the steps of Hornbake Library by John T. Consoli

Published on Fri, Apr 28, 2023 - 8:34AM