Course Description:  This course provides an introduction to African American Psychology.  It does so by reviewing the history of psychology from an African American perspective and the major themes and personalities in contemporary African American psychology.  The course emphasizes written and oral production.  On Tuesdays, the class will focus on a critical discussion of the reading material; Thursdays will be devoted to lectures and films.

Texts: Even the rat was white:  A historical view of psychology (2nd Edition) by Robert V. Guthrie (1998).; African psychology in historical perspective and related commentary edited by Daudi Ajani ya Azibo (1996).

Office Hours/Phone & E/mail:  Tu/Th 8:30 – 9:30; Th 2:00 – 3:00 and by appointment.  Phone:  7-3056 (607-3056 from off/campus in the 909 area code).  E/mail:  Hfairchild@pitzer.edu (school) or E2e4mate@aol.com (home).  Home phone:  (323) 734-0809.
 

Date	Topic/Readings
1/20	Course Overview & Introductions
1/22	“What is Black Psychology” by Halford H. Fairchild
1/27	Guthrie Chapter 1:  “The Noble Savage” and Science; Azibo Preface & Chapter 1:  “African psychology in historical perspective and related commentary”; Fairchild; H.H.  (1991).  “Curriculum design in African American (Black) psychology.”; Fairchild; H.H. (1997).  “ABPsi vs. APA”
1/29	“Scientific Racism:  Debunking ‘The Bell Curve’ and other pseudo-nonsense” by Halford H. Fairchild
2/3	Guthrie Chapter 2:  “Brass Instruments and Dark Skin”; Azibo Chapter 2:  “African metapsychology of human personality” by Na’im Akbar; Fairchild; H.H.  (1996).  “Black history; Black psychology and the future of the world”
2/5	“A Perspective on Black Psychology” by Na’im Akbar
2/10	Guthrie Chapter 3:  “Psychometric Scientism”; Azibo Chapter3:  “Mental health defined Africentrically”; Fairchild (1997): “A constant state of rage”
2/12	“Black history:  Lost; stolen or strayed” with Bill Cosby
2/17	Guthrie Chapter 4:  “Psychology and race”; Azibo Chapter 4: “The Africentric paradigm and African-American psychological liberation”by Kobi Kambon; Fairchild; H.H.  (1987):  “The N word should be odious from anyone”
2/19	“A Question of Color”
2/24	Guthrie Chapter 5:  “The psychology of survival and education”; Azibo Chapter 5:  “Mentacide; genocide and national vision: The crossroads for the Blacks of America”; Fairchild (19??):  “Schoolsize; per-pupil expenditures and school achievement”
2/26	“A covenant with destiny”  by Wade Nobles
3/3	Guthrie Chapter 6:  “Black psychologists:  Training, employment, and organizations”; Azibo Chapter 6:  “NTU psychotherapy principlesand processes” by Frederick B. Phillips; Fairchild, H.H.  (1987): “Our ostrich mentality on race”; Fairchild, H.H.  (1991):  “A sad tale of persecuted minorities”
3/5	“On Black families and The ABPsi” by Nancy Boyd-Franklin
3/10	Guthrie Chapter 7:  “Production of Black psychologists inAmerica”; Azibo Chapter 7:  “Melanin; the melanin hypothesis; and development and assessment of African infants” by Neferkare Abena Stewart; Fairchild, H.H.  (1997):  “On Whiteness”; Fairchild, H.H. (1988):  “Glorification of things white”
3/12	“Black psychology in international context” by Randall Robinson
3/17	SPRING BREAK
3/19	SPRING BREAK
3/24	Guthrie Chapter 8:  “Francis Cecil Sumner:  Father of Black American psychologists”; Guthrie Chapter 9: “The past is prologue”; Fairchild, H.H.  (1997).  “The problem of the 21st Century”; Guthrie Book Review Due (no Chapter summaries or reaction statements today)
3/26	“A message to Black psychologists” by Louis Farrakhan
3/31	Azibo Chapter 8:  “Integration:  Dead horse for the race?”by Amani na Uwezo ya Ukombozi (Michael McMillan); Azibo Chapter 9: “Community psychology and systems intervention” by Na’im Akbar; Rashad Saafir; & D. Granberry; Fairchild, H.H.  (1990):  “Overcoming captivity to the worst in us”; Fairchild, H.H.  (1987):  “Is it mirror-image we fear in Farrakhan?”
4/2	“Promoting Sankofa – Reflections on Ghana” by Marimba Ani
4/7	Azibo Chapter 10:  “Science and oppression” by Jacob H. Carruthers; Azibo Chapter 11:  “Towards a cultural science” by Leachim Tufani Semaj; Fairchild, H.H.  (1989):  “A whole community faces a life sentence of neglect”
4/9	“Black psychology:  A psycho-history” by Jacob H. Carruthers
4/14	Film:  Sankofa; Part I
4/16	Film:  Sankofa; Part II
4/21	Azibo Chapter 12:  “Personality; clinical and social psychological research on Blacks:  Appropriate and inappropriate research frameworks”; Fairchild; H.H.  (1993):  “Drip by drip; the indignities go on”; Fairchild, H.H.  (1992):  “Aren’t they really us?”
4/23	“Black students in White colleges & universities” by LaFrances Rodgers-Rose
4/28	Azibo Chapter 13:  “Toward curriculum development in Black psychology” by Charlyn Harper-Browne; Azibo Chapter 14:  “Africentric pedagogy in psychology:  The FAMU model” by Kobi K.K. Kambon; Fairchild, H.H.  (1992).  “Take a chance on hope.”
4/30	“From Lust to Love” by Na’im Akbar
5/5	Azibo Book Review is Due:  Discussion
5/7	Concluding comments; Course Evaluation & Grades

Weekly Papers

Each week, students should prepare brief “thumbnail sketches” and “reaction statements” of the readings and of the previous Thursdays’ lecture or film presentation.  The “thumbnail sketch” should be one paragraph (per reading or lecture/film)—keep the sketch brief—whereas the “reaction statement” may be one or two paragraphs or one or two pages (per reading or lecture/film).  The “reaction statement” should focus on your personal reaction to one or more aspect of the material.  Each of these papers will be subjectively graded on a 100 point scale.  Late papers receive 50% credit.

Book Reviews

The two major writing assignments are reviews of the texts by Guthrie and Azibo.  These book reviews should be written as if being submitted to either The Journal of Black Psychology or Contemporary Psychology.  Both of these journals publish book reviews.  Students should model their reviews on reviews published in recent issues of those journals, or on sample reviews handed out in class.  Best papers may be published in Psych Discourse:  The Monthly Newsjournal of The Association of Black Psychologists.  Each Book Review is worth up to 500 points.  Best papers will cite include citations of related material from other course readings.  Late papers are penalized 50 points a day (up to 100 points).

Grading

There are 12 weekly paper that total 1200 points.  The two book reviews total 1000 points.  Class participation is awarded 800 points (subjectively determined by the instructor; students lose approximately 50 class participation points for each absence).   The total possible points for the semester is thus 3,000.(1)  A:  92% or above; A/B:  88%-91.9%; B:  82%-87.9%; B/C:  78%-81.9%; C:  72%-77.9%; etc.

(1)  Subject to change