African American Studies - Recent Trends: Emergence of Black Male Studies (BMS)

Recent Trends: Emergence of Black Male Studies (BMS)

African American studies scholars have often explored the unique experiences of Black boys/men. This line of research dates back to W.E.B. Dubois in his analysis of Black male training in his book Souls of Black Folk. Though African American Studies as its own discipline has been in decline, its perpetuation as a sub-discipline in various social science fields (e.g., education, sociology, cultural anthropology, urban studies) has risen. This rise has coincided with the emergence of men's studies (also referred to as masculine studies). Since the early 1980s increasing interest in Black males among scholars and policy makers has resulted in a marked rise in the sub-discipline Black Male Studies. Today, numerous books, research articles, conferences, foundations, research centers and institutes, academic journals, initiatives, and scholarly collectives emphasize or focus entirely on the status of Black boys and men in society.