Saluting Those Who Fought Racial Discrimination on the Ground Level The civil rights movement is well documented, especially incidents involving leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. Thanks to the work of Brian Purnell, Ph.D., assistant professor of African American studies, some of that era’s lesser-known heroes are getting their due. More >>
Women Artists Work to Realign Hip Hop Image It has been three decades since hip-hop was born in the Bronx, but the popular musical form and its attending culture thrives primarily as an institution of power and privilege for men. That was the consensus of a panel of Bronx-based female hip-hop artists and writers who spoke at on Jan. 22 as part of the Bronx is Building lecture series at Fordham. More >>
The following video "This is My America" beautifully captures the spirit of the BAAHP's new research initiative exploring African immigration to the Bronx. Written by Chosan, a poet, rapper and designer born in Sierra Leone, the song, taken from Chosan's new CD "Diamonds in the Dirt" depicts the struggles immigrants face in trying to make a home in the United States. The chorus of the song - "struggle, hustle and stress - this is my America" - echoes the stories told to us by so many African immigrants of working two and three jobs to support families here and back home, of living in crowded and stress-filled conditions, and going through incredible hardships to gain legal status. Like the BAAHP's African Immigration Project, Chosan's video and CD give voice to an extraordinary group of people whose struggles and accomplishments have been invisible for too long. If you want to purchase Chosan's new CD "Diamonds in the Dirt" you may do so through the album website: http://cdbaby.com/cd/chosan
The Bronx African American History Project (BAAHP), with its focus on African immigration seeks to examine the situation of African immigrants in the Bronx with an aim of capturing their complex and varied experiences in the United States of America in general, and the Bronx in particular. Using Oral History research method, the project analyzes the social, cultural, economic and historical aspects of African immigrants living in the Bronx. Our goal is to provide insights into the immigrants’ differentiated lived experiences, and their social, cultural and economic institutions. Rather than simply assessing the needs and challenges of African immigrants, this project adds a new dimension to the growing scholarship on African immigration to the United States by analyzing the social, cultural, economic and intellectual contributions that African immigrants make to their host society, including the linkages they build between local communities in America and Africa.
BAAHP Receives Donation From Local Developers, PA Associates
L to R: Natasha Lightfoot, Brian Purnell, Aaron Malinsky, Mark Naison, Paul Slayton
In July 2007, local developers, Aaron Malinsky and Paul Slayton, made a generous donation to the Bronx African American History Project. For more information on Major Donors to the Bronx African American History Project, click here. Past News
The Bronx African American History Project Receives Grant to Conduct Archival Survey!
Click here to read full story, meet the archival staff and find out how you can help.
The White Castle Protests and the Civil Rights Movement in
New York City, Summer 1963
Brian Purnell, Research Director of The Bronx African American History Project, delivers the annual, public Gouvernor Morris Lecture of the Bronx County Historical Society
Interview with Brian Purnell
from Fordham Conversations on WFUV (90.7 FM and WFUV.ORG) Listen Now! (requires Windows Media Player)
February 14, 2004
Radio broadcast about BAAHP
Fordham Conversations on WFUV (90.7 FM and WFUV.ORG) Listen Now! (requires Windows Media Player)
