How to Study Africa and the African Diaspora: A Question of Method

Join us for the third seminar in the Fall 2025 From Area Studies to Global Studies series, part of the Ph.D. in Global Studies curriculum at Global Studies University (GSU): “How to Study Africa and the African Diaspora: A Question of Method,” presented by Professor Anthony Bogues, Asa Messer Professor of Humanities and Africana Studies at Brown University and Professor-at-Large at The Africa Institute, GSU.

Date & Time: Thursday, November 27, 2025, 12:30 – 2:30 PM GST
Location: Auditorium, The Africa Institute, GSU (location map)

The session is free and open to the public.

Abstract

In this seminar, Professor Anthony Bogues will explore how the area studies model in the academy was linked to specific moments in 20th-century Cold War history and how it evolved during formal decolonization and following the African American Civil Rights Movement. The seminar will examine how globalization transformed the fields of African and African Diaspora studies and highlight that there is currently no formal academic settlement on how these fields should be studied. Central to the discussion will be issues of epistemic justice and knowledge formation, which are essential for any reformulation of the study of Africa and its diaspora.

Speaker

Anthony Bogues is a writer, scholar, curator, and Director of the Ruth J. Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice. He is the Asa Messer Professor of Humanities and Africana Studies at Brown University and affiliated with the Departments of Political Science, History of Art and Architecture, and the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Read more.

Moderator

Mamadou Diouf is the Leitner Family Professor of African Studies, a former Director of the Institute for African Studies, and a Professor of African Studies and History at Columbia University. He is currently a Visiting Professor of African History at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University. In addition to his academic roles, he serves on the Advisory Board of The Africa Institute. Read more.   The seminar will be in English.

This seminar offers prospective Ph.D. students a chance to engage with the Ph.D. curriculum, interact directly with faculty, fellows, and students, experience the atmosphere of scholarly exchange, and gain insight into the intellectual discourse that defines the program.

Admissions Open for Fall 2026: Ph.D. in Global Studies