Manning, Marable, Dispatches From the Ebony Tower: Intellectuals Confront the African American Experience, New York, Columbia University Press, 2000-written by manning Marable.
Manning -one of the leading scholars of African American history is a professor of political science and history at Columbia University in New York City where he also holds the position of director in the institute for research in Africa American studies. He is considered as one of the America’s most widely convert and influential scholars.
Manning has brought together insightful minds who display a willingness to be outspoken in their criticisms, yet who are without a doubt genuinely invested in the future of African American studies. This book represents a broad range of opinions and ideologies (Manning, 2000).
The content of the book entails the importance of all people being heard and treated as one regardless of their race, religion, color or cultural background. The book is built up of copious voices that express very diverse political, historical, and cultural and educational views that emanates from black conservatives to black who support fundamental democratic transformation. Manning condenses all these voices to an aspect that he sees as the essential chord of the black intellectual custom that describes the knowledge and certainty of black life. He does not fail to critique the detrimental problem that faces many African American –racism and stereotypes (Manning, 2000). He together with other African American intellectuals want this problem to be brought to a halt, and in order to achieve this objective; they have proposed positive steps that when followed, will result to the empowerment of black people and boost their self esteem (Manning, 2000).
The black tradition has always been counteractive and has attempted time and again to critique the stereotypes and racial discrimination that has been in existence, in the mainstream dialogue of white academic institutions. The book disapproves those theories that describe black people as biological, genetic, and cultural inferior through the use of intellectual tradition. It contains valuable quotes from rich legacies of W. E. B. Du Bois, Carter G. Woodson, and Ida B. Wells-Barnett. These African American intellectuals are working to achieve a common goal or objective, and that is freedom for all and the empowerment of the black people-these black intellectuals all shared a fervent dedication to the equality and humanity of individuals of African American descent. The conventional scholarship in the black intellectual custom suggests that knowledge exists to dole out the social wellbeing of black people, but they also recognize the conception of humanity as a whole. What they are fundamentally trying to explain is the fact that knowledge should not be seen as an article of trade ,even in an industrialist community, but it should be made universal where everyone willing to learn can access it.
One of the African American intellectual named Karenga makes a suggestion, regarding the university, that the university is basically not an educational institution, but a political institution that provides purpose, identity, and direction within an American context. Robert. L. Allen an African American intellectual also supported Karenga view, and he is quoted saying that the American university was a political institution that functioned as a servant to the bourgeois order, preparing an educational and specialized elite that can run American on behalf of the white supremacy holding classes. African American intellectuals wanted education to be made pertinent to the black community.
Hare, another African American intellectual, is quoted saying that we must bring education to the community. ‘We must bring the community to the campus and the campus to the community’’. These African American intellectuals argue that the education belongs to the people and the idea is to give it back to them (Manning, 2000).
African American studies are now experiencing a new wave of popularity since most major universities now recommends as part of their curricula –multicultural courses that usually includes black studies. A good example of these world universities that recognize African American studies is Harvard that has a prominent program –Harvard’s W. E. B .Du Bois Institute for afro-American studies. As black studies scholars and programs commemorate three decades of scholarship and teaching, Manning gives us a book that documents the history and intellectual achievements. It gives a systematic fight for recognition of African American studies and the challenges that were experienced by African American student during that time. We find that; the African American students were not much recognized as compared to white students since they were perceived as inferior, and this notion had become a fact to some of the African students. This perception awoke many African American intellectuals which were drove by the objective of empowering African Americans and a push for African American studies to be recognized in all institutions (Manning, 2000).
Owing to the constantly changing world, the African American studies also continue to evolve and in order for this book to remain relevant; the book must be subjected to regular modification.
Works cited
Manning, Marable, Dispatches From The EbonyTower: Intellectuals Confront The African
American Experience, New York, ColumbiaUniversity Press, 2000
