Aretha Butler

Class of 2009

Hometown: Bronx, NY
Year: Sophomore
Hometown: Bronx, NY

Usually when I tell others that I am a proud Black Studies/Women Studies double major, they ask, “Well, what are you going to do with that?” This question has forced me to reflect on what is valued in our society. Pre-med and economics majors are not confronted with the same question nearly as many times as I am. This question has also forced me look back at my decision and determine exactly why I chose Black Studies as one of my majors. My first introduction to Black Studies was from one of the most influential women in my life, my First Year Seminar Professor, Tiyi Morris. My first year seminar course, Black Women’s Autobiographies, allowed me the opportunity to delve into the lives of powerful black women like Assata Shakur, Ida B. Wells, Zora Neale Hurston, Harriet Jacobs, Audre Lorde and Charlayne Hunter-Gault. This class was much different than highschool where the only influential women I learned about were Rosa Parks and Harriet Tubman. As a discipline, Black Studies taught me that Black people have a past that is greater the few “heroes” mentioned during Black History Month. Furthermore, by learning the contributions of Black women throughout history, I was left with a profound urge to continue the legacy which Black women helped foster through their persistence and dedication.

The same passion can be found in Black faculty on DePauw’s campus who embrace Black history as something that is important to any discipline. This is what makes Black Studies so essential to a liberal arts education. The ability for Black perspectives to be included in other history courses, political science courses and women’s studies courses I have taken shows the inclusiveness Black Studies is successful in embracing. Few people know that Black Studies can be an essential part in studying law and medicine. Black Studies is not limited to the study of Black people. The biggest benefit I have gained from courses in Black Studies is the ability to be a critical thinker and reader. The mere introduction of a history that was denied me before I came to college allows me the ability to question whatever else I learn. It allows me the opportunity to ask, “What other perspectives can be included in this history?” However, I definitely see the need for Black Studies to be accepted more outside of the Black community. It is a shame to know that aside from the rare exception on DePauw’s campus, I can only go to faculty of color to learn more about my history. It is a shame to know that I took a course in philosophy with a white professor and a Black philosopher wasn’t mentioned throughout the whole semester. This isn’t something that only happens on DePauw’s campus. Eurocentric thinking continues to pervade institutions across the country. Black Studies seeks to challenge this thinking and little by little, change is occurring. Due to the critical thinking and ability to acknowledge others perspectives, Black Studies is a major that anyone can benefit from.

When thinking about where I plan to take my education in Black Studies, I take what I have learned in Black Studies courses and apply them to my career choice-to become a professor. Black Studies and Women’s Studies allowed me to see much more than my individual struggle. The concept of “Personal is Political” comes to mind in my plans for activism on DePauw’s campus and beyond. From Black Studies and Women’s Studies I am able to see how my struggle is related to the struggles Black people and Black women in particular face throughout the world. This common bond I share with people in the Black Diaspora allows me to see the disparities in education between Black children and their white counterparts. Due to this awareness, I am willing to challenge the problems, we, as a people face. Soon there will be a next generation of young men and women eager to learn but denied a holistic education because of Eurocentric thinking. Similar to what Black professors have done on this campus, I want to serve as a positive introduction to a history that is essential to one’s identity and success. As a Black Studies/Women’s Studies professor, I hope to continue the work and legacy that Black faculty have fostered in higher education. Black Studies inspires me to continue to dream. It has helped me develop a holistic, integrated self-narrative where Black women are no victims but agents of change. Due to the self-awareness and consciousness Black Studies promotes, there is no doubt in my mind that it will not continue to do the same for other students who are brave enough to take the road less traveled.