Like Years, Like Work: Reflections on the African American Experience

This website is curated by the brilliant young scholars of the Spring 2023 sections of the First Year Experience: African American Experience course and Amber Reid, Ph.D., a professor of Africana Studies at Morehouse College. The class emphasizes the exploration of Black history and culture with the objective of understanding and defining the African American experience. Throughout the course, students learned about traditional African civilizations, values, and practices and the retention of  African heritage in America during and after enslavement. They also examined the sociopolitical plight of Black communities and the values, aesthetics, challenges, and successes that were birthed during each historical era. With assistance and resources from the AUC Robert W. Woodruff Library Archives Research Center, each student submitted a final project consisting of a mini digital exhibit representing the African American experience from their perspective. This website is the culmination of their work and our collective exhibit, "Like Years, Like Work: Reflections on the African American Experience". The circumstances by which Africans arrived in America created an inherently complex existence. Now, generations later African American corporeality is still characterized by duality; trauma and triumph, oppression and optimism, sorrow and celebration, etc.  Arriving in America under enslavement meant African Americans had to persevere and create beauty in the vilest of circumstances and we continue to do so today. Consequently, African American living and our stories embody so much as illustrated by the above lyrics from the song Black Folk by Tank and the Bangas featuring Alex Isley. While the African American experience is not monolithic and leaves room for individual interpretation, we have shared realities and stories. They "look like history, sound spiritual, sound strong, like sacrifice, like years, like work."

We would like to acknowledge the staff of the AUC Robert W. Woodruff Library Archives Research Center and Morehouse College Writing Center for helping us to do our best work. We hope your visit to the site is pleasant and thank you for your support!