Clones

The further we get into these presentations the deeper each topic gets. This past week’s group presented on the topic of cloning and whether or not we should be for it. They researched several laws and studies concerning the topic of cloning humans. I thought this was a peculiar topic because I never really thought about whether or not, we, as human beings, would consider accepting the practice of cloning. However based on this groups presentation there were attempts to get laws to approve of cloning but this have yet to happen. This topic was a wake-up call to me because sometimes I forget how much technology has advanced and how much more it will advance in the future. I never thought that there were would be a day, at least any time soon, where I would have to think about the possibilities of myself or others being cloned. This to me is very disturbing and I would agree with the faculty member they interviewed, who said that it was an act of God in a sense. I just think that this should be where the line is crossed. What’s the purpose of us being able to reproduce if scientists are just going to take a copy of our DNA and try to reproduce humans themselves? As our professor said after their presentation was given, this is something that we really should think about because technology is advancing rapidly and it’s only a matter when we will be faced with this issue.

-Ramona Williams

The Image of the Present Black Marriages

During the first week of group presentations there were several research topics that were very interesting. I chose to discuss the group presentation with the topic of the image of black marriages. This presentation focused specifically on how we could change the image of black marriages. With some statistics of the number of successful marriages and divorces amongst the black race, this group also entailed some interviews from our peers asking whether or not they had the desire to get married in the future. Surprisingly there were a few that had stated that they did not wish to get married because they have yet to see a successful marriage. Granting the fact that I’m studying to become a family and marriage counselor I found this group presentation very interesting and exciting because I wasn’t quite sure whether or not if marriage was a major concern within our student body. I feel like one way that we could change the image of black marriages or marriages regardless of race is to understand the value of family and the meaning behind marriage. Many of us fail to realize it was the support of family that helped our ancestors push through slavery and survive it. I think that if people had a foundation before deciding to get married it could possibly increase the number of successful marriages. I personally believe that the image of black marriages and family is a major concern, especially in this generation because many of us are not fortunate to having a two parent household. I think if the image of our family and marriages improved maybe our children of the present and future would have some sense of hope and success.

-Ramona Williams

Child Soldiers

As we continue our group projects in Freshmen Seminar, I am finding them more intriguing. Today a group presented on the topic of “Child Soldiers” and what we can do to help them. Child Soldiers are displaced children who are brainwashed by radical groups in order to make them kill and fight in their wars. The Child Soldiers that this group focused on African children. The group’s visual aid was a video of a documentary done on Child Soldiers entitled “Invisible Children”. The video was shot by three young American boys, who went to Sudan in order to capture what was taking place during the genocide. In their video they were able to capture the heart ache, pain, and fear that each child went through while struggling to survive during genocide. There were small huts, and tents set up so that the children could sleep at night, sometimes hundreds in one tent alone. The children had to eat what they could, and had to move forward on their own. Most had lost their entire families to the genocide. The documentary was very touching and profound. It shows the truly reality of what is taking place over seas and the necessity of their need. The group who presented also showed celebrities who are doing their part to donate to the cause such as George Clooney. I believe that of all the issues that have been discussed in Freshmen Seminar this one is the most serious and needs the most attention. I say this because this is the most difficult issue to stop, and one that has hundreds of children’s lives in danger. The documentary that was shown in their presentation, I have seen it in high school and I would recommend anyone that is truly interested in the cause to watch it. Once again I really believe that this was a good topic to present to our class to make us aware of the issue, as well as a good way to bring this issue to our HBCU so that we can help our people.

Safisha Seifullah

Black Marriages Today

We just recently started our group presentations in Freshmen Seminar. Each group has picked a topic/question to research that relates to the broad question of the class. One of the presentations that I really liked was one on black marriages. The presentation was about the decline in black marriages and how it is affecting women and men. The group that presented this also compared black marriages to white marriages, showing that white marriages usually last longer than black marriages do. Through research this group was able to show the affect that the decline in black marriages is causing. They were also able to show how significantly the number of black marriages has changed since the 1950’s to the present day. I found this presentation to very interesting and informative because today the black family is rarely seen. Though “black marriage” is not typically seen as a controversial issue that needs attention, it is in reality. The institution of marriage is a necessity in today’s world because it was what forms a true family which many young black people are lacking. In a family there is someone there to protect, to love, and to look up to. For many black people most have only had one parent to do all those jobs. I think that more black people should come together and try to understand each other so that the possibility of an increase in black marriages could seem possible. Overall the group presentation on ‘Black Marriage’ was really good, and I thought that they had a great question, however I feel that the group could have had more energy when presenting because it would have made the presentation more engaging.

Safisha Seifullah

African Burial Ground Trip

The first thing that I thought when I heard about the African Burial Ground was, “I never heard anyone talk about an African burial site here in America before, and this is new to my ears." I found the location of the African Burial Ground interesting because of the current geographical settings; you wouldn't guess that something so ancient and sacred would found in lower Manhattan of New York. It’s ironic how the African Burial site is located in the same area of the economic trade center of the world.

When we arrived in New York at the African Burial Ground National Monument, Dr. Carr led us into an African ceremony called libation. The term libation refers to the pouring of liquid as a religious offering or in honor of those who are deceased. In urban areas it is common for people to pour out liquor in remembrance of a family member who has passed away or been killed. I was not aware that this practice was an African tradition.

After the libation had taken place we watched a dramatic document on the history of the African Burial Ground and the ceremony that the Africans held for the deceased. During the efforts of citizens, politicians, anthropologists, scientists and historians, there were many people who did respect the rediscovery of the African Burial site and looked at it as if it had no value. I found that it was ignorant of people to not see any value in this African burial site because the ancestors who buried were slaves and struggled for many years to gain their freedom and rights during this time period. It’s bad enough that our ancestors had to deal with the struggles of being discriminated against, prohibited from education, and not gaining civil rights when they were alive, for them not receive the respect and acknowledgment now is just ludicrous.

The trip to the African Burial Ground has helped me furthermore understand the hardships that our ancestors had experienced. As African Americans we take for granted the advantage to bury our loved ones in a proper manner. With that being said, as African Americans it is necessary for us to understand who we are, where we come from, what we’ve become, how did we did get to where we are , and why haven’t we progressed any further as a people?

-Ramona Williams

African Burial Ground

This past weekend, all Freshman Seminar classes were given the opportunity to visit the African Burial Ground Museum located in New York City. This was a special field trip for me, as I had never visited any kind of museum of this sort, and I found the fact that actual slaves were buried within the grounds of the museum quite fascinating. The trip began with us being led into a screening room and viewing a docudrama about the rituals slaves would practice beforing burying a loved one. They would prepare the bodies for burial by wrapping them in linen shrouds with their most prized-posessions. Africans were not able to bury their people in churches with proper memorial services however. Within the museum I viewed a great number of ancient artifacts, the most interesting to me being the cuffs used to enslave Africans and force them on slave ships. This was particularly heartwrenching, as I could not fatham my wrist being bound by the small metal cuffs, and being forced to work strenous labor in a land foreign to me. I also had the opportunity to view historical documents that were ratified during slavery, such as the Runaway Slave Act. The biggest artifact in the museum however, was hanging on a long wall. On the wall was a list of hundreds of buried slaves, and details about their nature of their body and bones during the time of death, age, and gender. What puzzled me the most was the amount of children and babies I saw buried next to their mothers or fathers. The innocence of a child being taken away by the monstrous reigns of slavery deeply saddened me. A lot of the bones also had missing body parts or objects brutally pierced between them. It was crazy to try and understand how people could treat an entire race of people so cruelly merely on the basis of their ethnicity. I was also confounded how these Africans buried here long ago were given no kind of credit or recognition for their feats in helping build many of the monuments and buildings we see in New York today. The trip to the museum saddened me a great deal, but I think that it was a much needed tour for me to realize how far we have come as a race and the journey and struggles my ancestors before me had to endure. I most certainly am grateful for this fact and since visiting the African Burial Ground, I will make sure that I never forget how the bodies that lay beneath me that day helped establish who I am today. I would like to thank Dr. Carr and all the other teachers and assistants who participated in the organizing of this field trip and giving students the opportunity to get a first hand look of their cultural background.

Research & Methodology... As presented by Dr. Dana Williams

This past week's presentation by Dr. Dana Williams was basically a summary of everything we've done in Freshman Seminar thus far. She explained the purpose of Freshman Seminar as being a guide to help students become more independent and realize their true-self and potential to achieve great things not only at Howard, but elsewhere. She explained the purpose of the research we are to be doing in class with the Mbongi forms as a method to help us become more self-aware and informed on issues regarding our ancestors, our community, and our culture. The blogs we write every week are also used as a tool to measure how well retain the information being given to us. Dr. Williams then went on to discuss the research we will begin to conduct now that all lectures have been presented. She informed us on the various research methods we can use to assist us in developing a research question for our group, and creating a research design for our upcoming group projects. This lecture session was very informative because it outlined the course of Freshman Seminar and what we can expect out of it, as well as what is expected of us as students. This lecture session helped me gain a great deal of information regarding the research my group will need to begin and served as a guide to research methods I can use not only for this class, but for any other projects I have in other classes. Concisely, I thought Dr. Williams did an excellent job preparing the class for the weeks ahead, during which we will have to use the information she gave us to present our group projects to the class.