Prof. Stephanie Y. Evans (African American Studies)
drevans@ufl.edu
African Americans in Paris (AFA 3930, 2 Credits)
This course will explore the African American presence in Paris. Since the mid-1700s scores of African Americans have visited, lived, and worked in France. Students will research the experiences and perceptions of Black Americans and study why and how a sustained pattern of visitation has occurred. Students will look at African Americans in Paris through their own academic lens and make connections from their own scholarly disciplines to the topic of African Americans in Paris. There are many disciplinary approaches that will facilitate learning about African Americans in Paris. For example, political science, performing arts, English and creative writing, sociology, history, and economics all offer a point of entry to this topic. The course will be designed to approach topics chronologically, but will mainly be organized thematically to show the various reasons African Americans have continued to engage in Parisian life.
The course will introduce students to three groups Black Americans who have traveled to Paris: 1) political persons, 2) academics, and 3) culture bearers. These themes will be explored via geographic visitations to the arrondissements where Black Americans experienced world wars, Pan-Africanist movement, study abroad, writer's life, café culture, and Jazz Age club life.
