Reclaiming the Black Past: The Use and Misuse of African American History in the 21st Century

Synopsis

In This Information Overloaded Twenty-first Century, It Seems Impossible To Fully Discern Or Explain How We Know About The Past. But Two Things Are Certain. Whether We Are Conscious Of It Or Not, We All Think Historically On A Routine Basis. And Our Perceptions Of History, Including African American History, Have Not Necessarily Been Shaped By Professional Historians. In This Wide-reaching And Timely Book, Pero Gaglo Dagbovie Argues That Public Knowledge And Understanding Of Black History, Including Its Historical Icons, Has Been Shaped By Institutions And Individuals Outside Academic Ivory Towers. Drawing On A Range Of Compelling Examples, Dagbovie Explores How, In The Twenty-first Century, African American History Is Regarded, Depicted, And Juggled By Diverse And Contesting Interpreters--from Museum Curators To Film-makers, Entertainers, Politicians, Journalists, And Bloggers. Underscoring The Ubiquitous Nature Of African American History In Contemporary American Thought And Culture, Each Chapter Unpacks How Black History Has Been Represented And Remembered Primarily During The Age Of Obama, The So-called Era Of Post-racial American Society. Reclaiming The Black Past: The Use And Misuse Of African American History In The 21st Century Is Dagbovie's Contribution To Expanding How We Understand African American History During The New Millennium-- Introduction : The Enduring Mystique Of Black History -- None Of Our Hands Are Entirely Clean : Obama And The Challenge Of African American History -- Honoring The Gift Of Black Folk : The Contested Meaning Of Black History Month -- Dramatizing The Black Past : Twenty-first Century Hollywood Portrayals Of Black History -- Everything Is Funny : Humor, Black History, And African American Comedians -- So Long In Coming : Political And Legal Attempts To Right Past Wrongs -- Afterword : Displaying The Black Past. Pero Gaglo Dagbovie. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.