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Director's Statement
Summary of Research Highlights
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Staff transitions slowed progress in
this area. ON GOING PUBLICATIONS FOR THE CENTER
FOR BLACK STUDIES Through its publishing venture the
Center aims to: • serve as a source of
intellectual stimulus for those connected with the Center at UCSB now and in the future; • become a clearing house for
ideas and provide a forum for both experienced and new authors from the Black community
and other progressive groups; • convey a sense of intellectual
urgency which questions existing assumptions and ideas; • demonstrate an aggressive
approach towards the existing literature and promote works that deal not only with past
historical and cultural matters but with the real issues of the day; • expose the gaps and
limitations of the existing literature; • question the existing
framework of discussion and encourage debate across discipline and across geographic
regions; • discourage the use of academic
jargon while insisting on clarity and precision; • create a climate wherein the
discussion is not just simply about Black issues, but about American society and societies
around the world as well; • offer ideas and
recommendations which may positively impact public policies; •
publish an intellectual forum that transcends the limitations of existing journals on
Black issues by maintaining a high standard of discussion and debate. It is
against this background that the Center for Black Studies is on the threshold of launching
a number of publishing ventures: WORKING PAPER SERIES: The Center hoped to publish a Working
Paper Series to discuss new knowledge and research on specific questions of interest. Papers to be included were presentations made at
the Center's Colloquia which have typically been held twice a month over the past years.
Research findings from faculty and graduate students research projects which received
funding from the Center will be included in this category. We have attempted to collect
papers for this project for about two years. We
plan to abandon this project in its current form, as faculty members do not seem ready to
submit a final version of their paper at the time that they present at the Center for
Black Studies. What they present is more of a work in progress versus material that is
ready for publication. We thought that putting the few publications that we received on
the Web may be a less costly option than trying to proceed with formal publications. We
will investigate this option. EDITED VOLUME ON THE WORK OF FORMER
DISSERTATION FELLOWS: The Center is putting together a
collection of essays from former dissertation fellows. This consists of work done by a
selected number of the 50 fellows who have been associated with the Center over the past
25 years. The goal is to document some of the
best research which has emerged from the Center since its inception. We have not yet approached a publisher for this
project since we are still gathering material and chapters. Professor Cynthia Hudley is
assisting with this project. Due to internal difficulties, we were not able to work on
this project this year but plan to move forward during 1999-2000. EDITED VOLUME ON THE WORK OF UCSB
BLACK FACULTY: The Center is in the process of
editing a book on the work of former and current UCSB faculty whose scholarship focuses on
various aspects of the African/African-American experience. This is a way for us to also
document the interdisciplinary nature and breadth of Black Studies research. Professor
Jacqueline Bobo is taking the lead on this project. Papers
were scanned and requests for permission were submitted in 1998-99. OTHER PUBLICATION PROJECTS: A first draft of a collection of essays
titled "Culture of Illusion/Illusion of
Culture: The Case of Disney" was completed in July of 1998. The book will be published under the auspices of
the Center and we hope to make considerable progress toward its completion in 1999-00. A first draft is complete and publication is expected in 2000 of "The Spirit and The Reality: Vodou and Haiti”. It will be published under the auspices of the Center, by the University Press of Florida, a leading publisher in the area of Caribbean Studies. JOURNAL(S): Journal of Haitian Studies (JOHS) I was appointed as the new editor of JOHS, the only refereed journal focusing on
scholarship about Haiti. The journal serves
as one of the few scholarly instruments that informs the world about Haiti, its
institutions, its culture and its people. Interdisciplinary
to the core, it combines the arts, the sciences and the humanities and is published in
three languages: English, Creole, and French. JOHS will be published through the Center
for Black Studies starting in early 2000 with some financial support from The Haitian
Studies Association. The Center will assist with secretarial and editorial support and we
will also seek additional support from other entities on campus to ensure the publication
of a top-notch journal. A database was produced during 1998-99 and subscription
solicitations were mailed with encouraging results. Potential contributors were contacted
and we have received several articles for consideration. Inter-Ethnic Journal After rethinking priorities, we decided against starting a new journal called Black Insights. Associate Director, Jacqueline Bobo, and I have prepared a first draft of a proposal to launch a UC Inter-Ethnic Journal
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