Thursday, April 14, 2022
Thursday, March 31, 2022
Class Meeting, March 31, 2022
1. Today your first argument is due. We will use the breakout rooms for private meetings to answer questions and review your essays. You can revise them, so don't worry.
I sent you an email with a link to online writing support at Purdue OWL. I hope some of you took advantage of the resource and can tell us what your experience was.
Here it is again:
"Greetings Everyone:
There were a few grammatical errors common in most essays: MLA and grammatically, sentence fragments.
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/
If you use the free editing help at Purdue OWL, let us know in class, your experience."
2. Homework due tonight was to revise or complete WA7 and read TMCCT pp. 7-23.
Critical Thinkers (9-10), Intellectual Standards (12), Character (13), Elements or Thought (14-15), Reasoning Checklist (16-17), The Figuring Mind (18); Universl Intellectual Standards (19-22).
Essential Intellectual Traits and Virtues (23-24-26, 27).
Homework:
Read each section and find an example for egocentric, sociocentric thinking.
Template for analyzing the Logic of an Article (29).
Criteria for Evaluating Reasoning (30). Peer to Peer.
A Template for Problem Solving (31).
The Problem with Egocentric Thinking (39).
Feelings that accompany ego-centric thinking (40).
The Problem of Sociocentric Thinking (41).
Primary forms of Sociocentric Thought (42-43).
Read:
1. Unethical Pursuit of Group Agendas (44).
2. Watch this video with Senator Booker with Hon. Does it illustrate unethical group agenda? Why or why not?
Read:
Envisoning Critical Societies (45-48). What is the authors point here in this small volumn? Please put a few of the aguments (3-5) into Standard Form.
Thursday, March 3, 2022
Critical Thinking @ LIAT March 3, 2022 (3/3/22)
Happy Thursday!
A lot has happened since we last met. The State of the Union Address is high on my list, not to mention the nomination of a Black woman judge for the Supreme Court. Did you watch the address, read it later of even know it happened?
I watched it and wondered how much promised was expected to pass given the Republican mood for all things Democratic. I liked the bills to reduce perscription drug costs, lower child care costs, increase the length of time children can benefit from parental medical coverage which now ends at age 26. I liked the plan to put money into research for cancer, alheimers and one other disease that kills lots of Americans. However, I got lost in the legislation. What is proposed and what is fact and what can the president do without a vote.
He spent a lot of time on Ukraine and I hear the Africans who are trying to leave are not getting a lot of assistance from ally forces on the ground. I wondered what was going on with Russian citizens who like all people on the ground during a war, get lost in the politics of oligarts who rail and rant and think of the nation as if the living breathing people do not matter more.
If the nation does not want to be a part of the former USSR, why force it? I think the president even commited resources in the millions. Where is this coming from when Americans are without shelter? Did he commit military support? Can someone help me here?
I couldn't believe when he endorsed more funding for police. I mean really with not acknowledgment of the abuse of force that continues to threaten the lives of Black people. He should watch the film: "Who Are We in America."
I did like seeing the two women in charge. They were looking good, strong, yet unfortunately silenced. I wonder what the VP thought about funding the police?
If you watched, what did you think of the faces of democracy highlighted as he spoke, the child with diabetes, etc. I thought it quite effective even though my screen didn't keep up with the cameos. I also liked the captioned spotlights-- I didn't know everyone's name.
I wonder where Congressman Clyburn is re: a National hymn, "Lift Ev'ry Voice?
I also liked the fact that the government is commited to using products made here and that manufacturers in technology and commerce -- electric cars, are being developed in the midwest and areas like Michigan again.
These are just my thought. What are yours?
Here are links to recaps and transcripts:
BLM Response: https://www.theblaze.com/news/blm-biden-sotu-police-defund#toggle-gdpr
Newsone on Biden's State of the Union re: Black People: https://newsone.com/4297594/biden-state-of-the-union-black-america/
Pew Research: How Americans Weigh National Issues
State of the Union "Full Transcript", "Highlights", "Takeaways", "GOP Response" from NY Times
Newshour: 7 Key Takeaways:
Watch the Address on PBS Newshour:
The Plan this evening:
1. Freewrite on the topic "power" what it means, who has it, how do you get more, do you have any to spare? Is it visible? Where can I pick up some? How do you take it away from those people or institutions that abuse it? When is power dangerous or is it always dangerous? Is it something you grow, like hair? What happens when you are bald? Are there power wigs?
Think about Mrs. Jarena Lee, a woman called to preach, did she have power? How do you know? If you have power, how do you use it? Do you share your power with others tangibly? How?
Is powerlessness a form of paralysis? Is being a woman seen as weakness? Is weakness and powerlessness seen as the same thing?
2. Summary practice with instruction (WLTC)
3. Standard Form (WLTC)
4. Homework: Read Religious Experience and Journal of Mrs. Jarena Lee Introduction, My Call to Preach the Gospel, My Marriage, The Subject of My Call to Preach Renewed p. 62
or (April, 1827. My health having been bad, I have not traveled. . . Hymn book poetry . . . 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 And far exceed your hope.")
Much of this section ends up being stories of her gospel travels, contention with men who do not believe a woman should preach and with layity who are not according to her familiar with her lord. She travels a lot and sometimes I am confused with who she is preaching too. There is slavery and though Black people in some places are free; I think her congregation in many cases is white.
I find it interesting that she is pastoring to people who do not see her people as human beings. She clearly identifies her people by name and description. In this section she also pastors to Indigenous people. I wonder about her son whom she left with her mother and how he is faring.
There are no paragraphs used, so the text is dense. I think the impact and import of this work is her dedication and faith. I love the stories of her dreams and wrestling with the devil and how she finds comfort and strength in her faith. It is tangible. ?
I look forward to hearing what you think.
Watch:
Listen is you like to the recitation of her work.
Writing Logically, Thinking Critically Reading and Writing Chapter 4 Recap:
From WLTC: Read the Chapter. Pay attention to the parts of an argument: "Issue" (72); "The Question at Issue" (72); "The Thesis" (73-74). Complete Ex. 4A.
Pay attention to the parts of the essay: The Introduction or how to frame your issue (76) and The Development of Your Argument (76). Read the examples of a single and multiple premise paragraph (77).
What is a dialectic approach to argument? (79). When you think of Mrs. Lee's conversion, calling and reception in the Methodist church there were counterarguments or contrasting views to her acceptance into the clergy. What were some of these reasons or viewpoints?
She was called, yet was stopped by internal naysayers. What were some of these voices saying to her?
Look at Refutation and Concession (80-82), then look at Rogerian Strategy (81-82). The key to the Rogerian Argument is establishing "empathy." The goal in such negotiations is not to "win" rather to reach a compromise, a place where the interested parties can find common ground , so that the discourse or comunication remains open.
Complete exercises: 4B, 4C, Read 4D (we will complete in class). Read the article in pp. 87-88.
WA 6 is not due nor is WA 7. If you do not understand Key Terms (93), ask.
Other Videos on Mrs. Jarena Lee. Women of Faith: Jarena Lee. This one is a nice biography. It was featured during International Women's Day.
PBS Portrait of Jarena Lee. Click the links to scholarly commentary. It is quite enlightening and expansive on the courageous work of this woman of God.
God In America link (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/godinamerica/people/jarena-lee.html)
Jarena Lee was likely one of the first African American female preachers in America. Born in February 1783 to free but poor black parents, she was sent to work as a live-in servant at the age of 7. After hearing a sermon by Richard Allen, the founder of the African Methodist Church (AME), Lee underwent an intense and protracted conversion. Yet she had doubts. She later wrote:
But to my utter surprise there seemed to sound a voice which I thought I distinctly heard, and most certainly understand, which said to me, "Go preach the Gospel!" I immediately replied aloud, "No one will believe me." Again I listened and again the same voice seemed to say "Preach the Gospel; I will put words in your mouth and will turn your enemies to become your friends."
But women weren't allowed to preach. Lee sought permission from Allen to preach. First he refused, then changed his mind, granting her permission to preach on an itinerary circuit and to hold prayer meetings in her own home. For a woman of any race to be granted such authority was highly unusual.
Accompanied by a female companion, Lee later wrote that she "traveled two thousand three hundred and twenty-five miles, and preached one hundred and seventy-eight sermons" to mixed gatherings of blacks and whites. Vulnerable and subject to danger, she seemed confident that God was with her. That confidence took her to Maryland, a slave state. Her diary records one camp meeting where slaves had walked 20 miles and more to hear her preach.
For Lee, slavery was a sin -- one that God would one day punish. In the years leading up to the Civil War, she seemed to share the apocalyptic hope of Nat Turner and Frederick Douglass.
Her date and place of death is unknown, but her spiritual autobiography remains an important record of a woman whose faith allowed her to break and defy the social conventions and racial barriers of her day.
Africans in America Part 3 (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3h91.html). Again read the linked comments below the opening narrative on Mrs. Lee.
| Historical Documents Portrait of Jarena Lee 1844 | Resource Bank Contents |
click image for close-upA portrait of Jarena Lee, the first woman to preach from the pulpit of Richard Allen's Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, was painted from life for the frontispiece of her autobiographical book, Religious Experience and Journal of Mrs. Jarena Lee...
The portrait shows Lee seated and simply dressed, with a quill in her hand and papers and books, including the Holy Bible, on the table before her. The composition of the image was meant to convey that Lee was not only a religious woman, but a literate one as well. The caption below reads: "Mrs. Jarena Lee. Preacher of the A,M,E, Church. Aged 60 years on the 11th day of the 2nd month 1844. Philad 1844."
Image Credit: From the collections of the Library of Congress
Related Entries:
• Religious Experience and Journal of Mrs. Jarena Lee
• Catherine Brekus on Jarena Lee
• Margaret Washington on Jarena Lee's conversion
• Albert Raboteau on Jarena Lee's conversion
Thursday, February 24, 2022
LIAT Feb. 24, 2022
The Plan
1. Freewrite:
Topic: Listen to an except from Cicely Tyson's Just as I Am from Part One: "Planted" (3-9). When did you know what your life's purpose was?
2. Excerpt from book (https://www.google.com/books/edition/Just_as_I_Am/qzzLDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&printsec=frontcover)
3. From WLTC: Review key terms: Critical Thinking; Analogy; World view; Ethos; Freewriting; Brainstorming; Logos; Pathos; Ethos (21)
Explicit; Facts; Implicit; Inference; Judgement (49)
3. Homework preview
Homework for next week: Do exercises for Chapter 3 (50). Do not do WA4 (56).
Again, if there are questions, text me. Great class. Everyone is doing well.
4. bell hooks essay, "Love as the Practice of Freedom-- claims, support, summary (didn't get to)
Topic, audience, purpose, question at issue, rhetorical moves
We will read the essay and get into pairs and analyze and write a brief summary analysis
More Cicely Tyson . . . an interview with Tyler Perry
Saturday, February 12, 2022
Recap for first meeting
Introductions
Preview Syllabus
Course materials: text books
Questions
Homework: Read chapter 1 in WLTC. Complete all the exercises. We will complete all the writing assignments.
We will go over the exercises in class. You can share all in our email list, then everyone will benefit from each other's scholarship. If you want specific help you can ask me for feedback. I will grade all the essays and give you credit for the exercises.
Mastery of concepts is demonstrated in the writing.
See p. 29 in Minature Guide: Template for Analyzing the Logic of an Article (29)
https://www.criticalthinking.org/files/Concepts_Tools.pdf
We will read bell hooks essay "Love as a Practice of Freedom"
Here is a link to a conversation between bell hooks and Dr. Cornell West, "The topic Beloved Community": https://www.cambridgeforum.org/?p=7718
BELOVED COMMUNITY: CORNEL WEST & BELL HOOKS
Can America ever become such a beloved community as Martin Luther King Jr. imagined it, a society free of prejudice where racial differences would be erased and forgotten?
Cornel West, Professor of Religion and Afro-American Studies, Harvard University and bell hooks, Professor of English, City University of New York reflect on the Beloved Community.
Author, philosopher and activist Cornel West is a prominent and provocative democratic intellectual. He is Professor of the Practice of Public Philosophy at Harvard University. He has written 20 books but is best known for his classics, Race Matters and Democracy Matters, and for his memoir, Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud. His most recent book, Black Prophetic Fire, looks at nineteenth and twentieth-century African American leaders and their visionary legacies.
bell hooks is an American author, professor, feminist, and social activist. Her writing has been focussed on the intersectionality of race, capitalism, and gender, and what she describes as their ability to produce and perpetuate systems of oppression and class domination. She has published more than 30 books that address race, class, and gender in education, art, history, sexuality, mass media, and feminism. In 2014, she founded the bell hooks Institute at Berea College in Berea, Kentucky.
Recorded in 1996 at Cambridge Forum
Here is a link to the complete series:Cambridge Forum
Syllabus, Critical Thinking @LIAT Spring 2022
Syllabus for Virtual Critical Thinking at Leadership Institute @Allen Temple Spring 2022
Dates: Thursday, Feb. 10-May 5, 2022,
8:15-9:45 p.m.
Location: Online in Zoom
Teacher: Professor Wanda Sabir
Contact: professorwandasposse@gmail.com
Student hours: By appointment Monday
after class (send an email request)
Important Dates:
Late Registration February 14‐22, 2022
Presidents
Day (No Classes) February 21, 2022
Last Day to
Drop Classes February 22, 2022
Spring Break
(Holy Week) April 11 – April 16, 2022
Last Day of
Classes May 5, 2022 (Final)
LIAT
Zoom Meeting ID and Password:
Meeting ID: 831 2404
4904
Passcode: 247020
Course
Description:
Critical thinking looks at the relationship between language and logic, introduces
rhetoric or persuasive writing and tools students can use to evaluate
information based on facts, perceptions, assumptions, evidence, reasons,
inferences, judgments, induction, deduction and conclusions. Vocabulary is
introduced so that students have the proper tools to discuss faulty thinking or
flaws in the reasoning process and name the more common fallacies.
This level composition assumes competency in prose writing and
reading ability so that more attention can be devoted to ideas rather than to
grammar and mechanics. Students who will most likely succeed in this course if
said student is familiar with essay writing and academic research. These topics
covered in first year college level English often referred to as Freshman Comp.
We will look at the role of language and semantics in critical
thinking, social communications and propaganda. Students will also look at the
fundamentals of problem solving, including considering and evaluating
alternative solutions and perspectives. We will write a series of four (4)
arguments – 2-4 page essays which are on one topic or theme, yet utilizes a
variety of argumentative styles. The final essay will on a current issue of the
student’s choice in an argumentative form of the student’s choosing.
Each of the core
assignments will use one argument style: Rogerian, Definition, Aristotelian and
Toulmin. For the fifth essay, students have
an opportunity to write about a topic that interests them in whatever argument
style they chose. Students will also complete a number of exercises from our
text: Writing Logically, Thinking
Critically (Eighth Edition) by Sheila Cooper and Rosemary Patton. We will also
use The Miniature
Guide to Critical Thinking: Concepts and Tools (Eighth Edition) by Rowman & Littlefield (links to an external
site) which looks at the
genre philosophically as a practice, for class warm-ups, discussion and some
homework.
Course Rationale:
Everyone thinks, yet how many of us takes the time to access why she or he hold
such information as true? What does it mean to withhold judgement? Can a person
hold multiple truths at the same time? How can a person love her or his enemy?
When we think about ideas and how our world view affects our thinking we can
then act with moral deliberation. I do not think any of us is unbiased. It is
hard to take oneself out of any discourse; however, we can cultivate empathy.
Thinking can determine our actions. If we act without thinking, harm is
possible. Some harm is irreversible. Critical thinking gives persons a set of
tools applicable to all circumstances and with these tools we can be better
human beings and better citizens and better neighbors.
Prerequisites:
English 1A or Freshman Composition from an accredited institution. High School
Honors English can also suffice. An Entry Essay Exam can suffice as well.
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)
Apply tools of understand inferences to community, workplace and
family situations.
Evaluate materials/data in terms of accuracy as well as
relevance to home and workplace situations.
Identify logical fallacies in communication.
Conduct research identifying relevant and accurate materials
from a variety of sources, including databases, professional publications, and
other applicable materials.
Identify personal bias and other filters in order to evaluate
community, family and professional materials objectively.
Required Texts and materials:
Cooper, Sheila and Rosemary Patton. Writing
Logically, Thinking Critically. Eighth Edition. New York: Longman,
2015.
Elder, Linda and Richard Paul. The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking: Concepts and
Tools. Eighth Edition. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield,
2020.
Digital Books by Black Women Spiritualists Mrs. Jarena
Lee;
Harriet Wilson; Sojourner
Truth
or another 19th Century Black Woman preacher.
Grading Policy and evaluation procedures:
Credit hours: 3 units
Grading scale: Standard Letter Grades (A, B, C, D, F). Pass/Fail (Speak to
Dean). Incomplete (this teacher does not generally give Incomplete grade, so
plan to attend and do the work.
Requirements and Assignment
Written Arguments (30%), textbook assignments and
other readings, etc. (25%); the research process: reflections, participation
with peers, preparation, presentations, thoughtful reflection – (25%), the
course portfolio (15%); final exam (15%).
Classroom policies
Attendance policy
Attend all the Zoom sessions. There are no make-up assignments for missed
in-class assignments.
Absences
Plan to attend all the class sessions, if an unavoidable class is to be missed,
let the teacher know in advance and we might be able to record the class to
watch before the next meeting. We could also ask one of your classmates to take
notes and share with you outside of class before the next meeting.
Any work completed in class, cannot be made up.
Tardiness
Be on time. The class will be open about 15 minutes before starting just in
case a student wants to pop in early with a question.
Late Work and make up assignments
You have about a week to get all assignments in, this includes peer responses.
Everyone will have to respond to 2-3 classmates on all assignments. We will use
an unpublished blog to post assignments.
If a student needs more time on an assignment, do not wait until it is due.
Each assignment builds on previous work. The brick you skip is the one keeping the
structure from falling. All assignments are to be typed, 12-pt. font,
double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the
written work typical MLA format for an academic essay. Perfect MLA.
MLA Sample Paper (Links to an external site). Again
look at the headings in the margin and bookmark those you might need often such
as Cite your source automatically in MLA., For a refresher, see MLA Overview and Workshop (Links to an
external site.)
Late assignments (1-2) are accepted if notified in
advance; however, with penalty. Late assignments are not allowed revision
unless (to pass the assignment or exercise). The grade is a C. If this is habitual, that is, more than twice
or consecutively, we will have to talk. If you’d like an A in the course, turn
your assignments in on time.
Academic Honesty
The goal of this syllabus is to be student
centered; however, the institution requires that I give a statement regarding
academic honesty, which means that students submit original work and do not
borrow or take another person's intellectual property without giving
attribution or credit.
Why not? Your work is your intellectual
property whether or not it is copyrighted is beside the point. Sometimes researchers,
especially novices, forget where their information was found. You get 1 pass on
this; however, if you intentionally take authorship of another thinker’s work,
this is unacceptable (you will earn a failing grade) and such behavior can ruin
your reputation perhaps forever. Remember
“The Boy Who Cried Wolf”? See CoolSchools (links to an external site) version
of this classic.
Be careful in the research process; make sure you know where the information is
obtained. A name for such intentional dishonesty is plagiarism.
See Purdue OWL for a discussion on plagiarism
(links to an external site) and how to avoid it.
Technology Policy
Cell phones as phones: All cell phones are expected to be silenced or on
vibrate in class. Any use of cell phone
for texting should be discrete and unobtrusive to the learning experience of
other classmates. If a student needs to excuse herself or himself from class,
you can drop a private message in the chat to the teacher. However, if a
student is noticed inattentive, the student will be marked absent, so when you
are in class this means both mind and body, not just body.
Cell phones as recording devices: At
no point should a phone be used to capture the class via audio or video without
prior consent of students and teacher. The sensitive nature of class
discussions requires trust, sensitivity and freedom of expression which can be
compromised when a recording device is used. If a student wants to record a
class, prior conversation with the professor is necessary.
Zoom Class Policy
Students taking this class for credit are required to use a computer camera revealing
your face during class sessions. The use of virtual backgrounds are acceptable.
To be excused from this requirement, you must get clearance from the teacher.
It is important to be respectful of all students and their viewpoints,
especially when the opinions expressed are at variance with your own, that is,
you disagree. We are not monolithic and differing opinions and views are
encouraged.
Course Calendar (subject to change or adjustment)
Week 1 Thinking and Writing—A Critical Connection. What is a Critical Thinker?
(WLTC pp. 1-22)
Review essay writing, MLA, Academic Writing Style and Formatting (WLTC p. 191)
Week 2 – Critical Societies (The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking:
Chapter 7-8)
Week 3 Critical Thought (WLTC) Chapter 2 pp. 22-49
Week 4 The Structure of Argument (WLTC) p. 50
Week 5 Written Argument (WLTC) p. 70
Week 6 The Language of Argument – Definition (WLTC) p. 94; MGCT Chapter 10
& 11
Week 7 Midterm essay. Aristotelian Argumentation; Fallacious Arguments (WLTC)
p. 122
Week 8 Deductive and Inductive Reasoning
(WLTC) p. 148
Week 9 Toulmin Argument
Week 10 Wrapping Up- Questions. MGCT Chapter 12 & 13
Week 11 Final Argument poster presentation
Week 12 Final Exam essay due in class for discussion; plus teaching
demonstration.
How to study for this course
Do not skip the readings in either textbook. Read with a pencil in your hand.
Writing Logically, Thinking Critically (WLTC) has a summary at the end of each
chapter and a glossary of key terms. Read this first. As you then read the
chapter from the beginning to the end, note concepts you are not aware of.
There are exercises throughout each chapter, complete the Writing Assignments
(WA); on the exercises, complete at least half if you understand the concept.
How to be successful in this
course
Ask
questions in class if you do not understand the readings or lecture. You can
use the icons and raise your hand and drop questions into the chat.
All essays will be due in class. We will also do as much planning for these
essays in class as we can. Students will be assigned to groups beginning Week
1-2. Students will be asked to form a discussion group in an online discussion
platform or list-serve to stay in touch.
Computer literacy
If there are technology challenges, plan to meet with me outside class to
work through problems. All work is to be typed and submitted electronically.
Video and photos of assignments are also acceptable when access is a
challenge. You can write in the textbook
where possible. Let me know early in the class so that we can locate resources
and or peer support.
More on Goals and Objectives
This intention of this course is to offer an invigorating discourse or dialogue
for those students who love a challenge and approach the writing task eager,
prepared and ready for what the course requires: English language fluency in
writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence
and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing,
plus familiarity, if not mastery, of the rhetorical styles used in
argumentation, exposition and narration.
We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what
we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the
perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority
populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let
us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity
and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an
intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.
This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process -
critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without
chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with
bigotry; it is easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more
just, alternative protocol.
Disclaimer: I noticed in rereading the text the language in
certain examples is not always socially relevant or politically conscious (WLTC
p. 6) considering the authors are at San Francisco State University; however,
that’s my assumption. Overall, the authors do a pretty good job in presenting
the topic concisely and with humor.
Audience
The hope is that when you leave the course, you will be a
stronger writer than when you arrived, have a better grasp of what is meant by
rhetoric or the art of persuasion. We will be honest with one another.
Grades are not necessarily a complete assessment of one’s work; grades do not
take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students
can demonstrate mastery of a skill – in this case: essay writing. Grades are an
approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to
put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will
illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or
failure this semester in meeting your goal.
Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in
order of importance.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
First Assignment due Wed., Feb. 9-Sunday, Feb. 13 (12 noon)
Email a note to me about yourself via professorwandasposse@gmail.com:
Share: where you were born, who you are responsible for, what languages you
speak/write, your strengths, what you bring to the class, what you'd like to
leave with and what if anything I need to know to facilitate your success. Use
as many words as you need (smile). Don’t submit a book please: 100-250 words
should suffice.
Before completing the assignment read one of these two articles
on the topic: https://academicpositions.com/career-advice/how-to-email-a-professor
or https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/email_etiquette.html
What is the poem’s argument? Be prepared
to talk about it in class. Keep a notebook. It can be electronic.
There But for the
Grace
It could have
happened.
It had to happen.
It happened sooner.
Later.
Nearer. Farther.
It happened not to
you.
You survived because
you were the first.
You survived because
you were the last.
Because you were
alone. Because of people.
Because you turned
left. Because you turned right.
Because rain fell.
Because a shadow fell.
Because sunny
weather prevailed.
Luckily, there was a
wood.
Luckily there were
no trees.
Luckily there was a
rail, a hook, a beam, a brake,
a frame, a bend, a
millimeter, a second.
Luckily a straw was
floating on the surface.
Thanks to, because,
and yet, in spite of.
What would have
happened had not a hand, a foot,
by a step, a
hairsbreadth
by sheer
coincidence.
So you’re here?
Straight from a moment still ajar?
The net had one
eyehole, and you got through it?
There’s no end to my
wonder, my silence.
Listen
how fast your heart
beats in me.
Letter to Students, Spring 2022
2 February 2022
Dear Students:
I hope you have had a good start to this New Year. Hope you are also staying
warm. Today is Groundhog Day. Did the Groundhog see its shadow? Is spring near?
I have been reading 19th Century Black Women Writers—a Schomburg
Library and Oxford University Press collaboration. Henry Louis Gates Jr. edited
the series. Since the books were all published 100 or more years ago, the
copyright has expired and we can find many of the books online. One of the
authors we will read in class is Mrs. Jarena Lee. She was a Black woman preacher, the
first, I think in Richard Allen’s AME church.
Here is a link to Mrs. Lee’s (Feb. 11, 1783 – 1855/7) narrative.[1]
It is available at the Internet Archive.
19th century women, especially Black women, were discriminated
against because they were Black. This was the time when slavery was not over,
so these free women, led tough lives—and suffered greatly from poverty and
sexual violence. Even highly educated women did not do much better
economically. Unless they wanted to work cleaning houses for white women for
pennies, women like Mrs. Lee had to think of creative ways to earn wages.
One of these strategies was to write. Most of the women noted here wrote their
stories or as in Sojourner Truth’s case, told her story to another for
publishing. The women had there books published and sold copies.
Mrs. Jarena Lee published her sermons too.
Harriet E. Wilson was the first published Black novelist: Our Nig. I bring your attention to Ms. Wilson’s work
because she was a spiritualist – and has a fascinating story. Dr. Gates in the appendices in the Penguin
Random House edition speaks about her life and struggle. Check it out from the library. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/191882/our-nig-by-harriet-e-wilson/
There are a number of Black women spiritualists profiled in one of the volumes
in the Schomburg 19th Century Black Women Writer’s series. Sojourner Truth’s Narrative
and Book of Life is published in a
separate volume. I am sure everyone
knows Truth was a preacher too. I found the stories of these Black women who
wanted to preach, who were called to preach and were discouraged, yet answered
the call nonetheless, fascinating. I hope you do as well.
Most if not all of you are aware of the marvelous Black
Church Series Dr. Gates produced last year. We will watch the
episode on Black women clergy. Perhaps the pastor at Allen Temple, might be
persuaded to join us one evening. Here is a link to a PBS hosted discussion with Gates last year.
I have also been watching quite a few films over the past couple months: Passing based on Nella Larsen’s
novel by the same title is about a Black woman, who pretends to be white and
misses her other life when she runs into a childhood friend; The Harder They Fall is a Black western with a twist. All the
characters were real people, but the story is fictional. I read a collection of
early 19th century biographies, My Soul Has
Grown Deep, edited by John Edgar Wideman. One of the narratives
was by Nat Love, a cowboy. It was really good. He is in Harder. For anyone who is working with
populations who are struggling with addiction or are Adult Children of
Alcoholics, this narrative fiction for them.
Wideman’s collection also includes Jarena Lee’s story. Check his book out from
the library. I really like his introductions which include biographical
sketches of the writers. I have linked to Nat Love and Mrs. Jarena Lee’s books
in this letter. All these writers in Wideman’s book tell compelling stories.
Don’t Look Up was also great. A
meteor the size of the Empire State Building is headed for Earth and the
president tells the public: “Don’t look up,” as she plans her escape. There are
multiple ethical dilemmas to explore here and in the other films too.
Back to films (smile).
Lastly, Jeffrey Robinson’s Who We Are: A Chronicle of Race in America, directed by Emily and Sarah
Kunstler opens this week in theatres. As the directors weave Civil Rights
Lawyer, Jeffrey Robinson’s lectures, personal anecdotes, and interviews with
perpetrators, survivors and victims of racial terror violence – we are left
with a modern myth of a post-racial America. It does not exist. Completely
factual, the numbers don’t lie, yet there is blood dripping from every
documents from the Bill of Rights to the US Constitution that legalized the
sale and purchase and free labor from African people. It’s the kind of film you
should not see alone.
We will be exploring these kinds of documents as well as current events to see
what evidence is used to make an argument.
In Robinson’s film, you will note that logic doesn’t matter when someone
wants to make a point in his or her favor. In this case, a person stated that
slavery had nothing to do with the Civil War. He also said that the Confederate
Flag was not a symbol of Black oppression and systemic racial injustice then
and now. Facts are often a matter of opinion. I am sure you can think of lots
of examples where the lie carries the day, even when people know the truth.
Opinions are welcome here and please bring all of your experience too. Living
certainly counts in this class. Your lives are libraries too.
Think whatever you like. Debate is healthy. However, we lead with evidence,
facts not fancy. Agreeing with me will not get you a pass or an A, so speak
from your heart. Challenge yourself to walk for a moment in another person’s
life or situation. Our personal biases stunt our emotional growth and what is
egregious about such maligned lives is that we don’t even know we aren’t whole.
We can visit spaces and have difficult conversation, yet if this internal excavation
is not happening 24/7 for the rest of our lives we will not move past our own
surrender to a lower self.
Our humanity is actively challenged all the time and to live fully we have to
stay awake and not slip into routine or practices that make other people’s
lives harder than they already are. Some people have to work harder to get to
the same place other people accept as their birthright. This is why the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is such an important document. Ironically, the idea of a UDHR was
first introduced by the Hon. Marcus Mosiah Garvey in August 1920 in a document:
Declaration of the Rights of Negro People of the World. The United Nations refused to adopt it; however, in 1948, 28
years later, we see unattributed familiar language.
UDHR takes the racial and national specificity away from what all human beings
are entitled to like shelter, safety, education and food—a livelihood. There is
no reason why people have to work sick and others are losing their homes. This pandemic makes human rights issues even
more important. (Oh one more film, The First Wave,
which looks at who is dying when the pandemic first hit US cities in
2020). If other countries can provide
everyone wages so that everyone can stay home and stay safe, why can’t this
nation do more than eke out meager stimulus checks that help, but don’t solve
systemic economic disparities between the “essential workers” and everyone
else?
You are here at the Leadership Institute at Allen Temple, taking Critical
Thinking because ideas are interesting to you. That’s what we do in these
spaces—interrogate knowledge. Well you are probably taking these classes
because the academic guided pathway you tread placed you here.
Nonetheless, scholars play with ideas.
Scholars think. They think a lot. I remember when I was an undergrad at
Holy Names College (now university), I’d think so much in my philosophy
classes, I’d get a headache. I was
hungry. Thinking burns calories.
How do we know what we know? Why do I believe what I believe? What didn’t I
question this person when he or she said something I now know is untrue?
What is my worldview? What kind
of thinker am I: a hedgehog or a fox?
Buckle your seatbelts and get ready for an engaging ride. This semester we will
look at the concept “empathy” as well query one of the UDHR from the
perspective or point of view not our own. We will squeeze our feet into shoes
that don’t feel as comfortable as the ones we wear presently.
I hope you find the class engaging and fun. I can stay a few minutes after class
if anyone has a question. You can also email me before class and we can arrange
a time to talk. I encourage students to create study groups and help one
another.
I have taught at the LIAT two times now. This semester makes three. It was an
engaging and fun workshop last January. I am not sure if there are academic
resources for students like tutors, but I will ask.
Peace and Blessings,
Professor Sabir
[1]
Other women writers in Spiritual
Narratives (The Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women
Writers) are: Maria W. Stewart (Author), Jarena Lee (Author), Julia A. J. Foote
(Author), Virginia W. Broughton (Author), S. E. Houchins (Introduction). (If
you are interested in reading other authors, search for these women’s work
separately.