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African Studies Bulletin
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DISTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN STUDIES PROGRAMS AND AFRICANISTS
IN THE UNITED STATES: A VIEW FROM THE SOUTH
1L. Gray Cowan, "Ten Years of African Studies," African Studies Bulle-
tin, XII, 1 (April 1969), 1-7.
2Gwendolen M. Carter, "African Studies in the United States," African
Studies Bulletin, X, 3 (Dec. 1967), 96-108.
3Cowan, "Ten Years," pp. 4 ff.
169
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170 AFRICAN STUDIES BULLETIN
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125 ,20 0'S 00 9s _______ _ 90 95 0
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21 I
i45~~~~~ ~~~~~ ? ic
x. I ...............'k '~ ~ ! V /' ~" ' " ! I~~
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K * ~~~~~~~~~~Non-degree-granting programs
__ 225 2200 I 005 95 50 0 N0
Figure 1
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172 AFRICAN STUDIES BULLETIN
Africanists
New York State with 124 Fellows stands well ahead of second-place
California with 76. However, the greatest concentration of Africanists appears
to be in the university and governmental center of Washington, D.C., where
71 Fellows are listed. Thereafter the number of resident Fellows in any state
drops appreciably, 45 being recorded in Massachusetts and Illinois.
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11 = The number of Fellows of
the African Studies Association
resident in the state
Figure 2
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174 AFRICAN STUDIES BULLETIN
A number of states show Fellows resident in the state, but at the same
time the state is apparently without a formal African studies program; 42
states have resident Fellows, but only 21 states plus the District of Columbia
have programs of African studies. For example, Georgia and New Hampshire
list five Fellows each, but neither state has an African studies program. The
fact that 42 states have resident Fellows while only 21 have formal programs
of African studies suggests that Africanists do not restrict themselves to
states and institutions offering programs. It further suggests that Africanists
are far more widespread than are programs. In addition, the Africanists dis-
persed throughout the United States provide a base for the development of pro-
grams in states and areas without them. And if a mechanism could be found
whereby Africanists in programless states are involved in the affairs of the
Association, as will be the case when the Association holds its 1970 annual
meeting in New Orleans, momentum might be gained in the development of
programs in those areas. This in turn would further strengthen the Associa-
tion, its members, and programs of study of Africa.
The South is the only part of our country that has environmental
ditions closely approximating those encountered over so much of Africa
tainly our experience with the ecological relationships among climate
tion, and soils in the South has provided an understanding that has appl
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DISTRIBUTION OF AFRICAN PROGRAMS AND AFRICANISTS 175
over much of tropical Africa: soil fertility, leaching and nutrient loss, soil
erosion under subtropical conditions, livestock rearing problems, commerc
food-crop production, etc. Likewise, disease problems of the South have
yielded insights applicable to Africa: helminthic diseases, elimination and
control of insect-borne diseases, etc. And the small-farm land tenure of much
of the South plus its relatively low educational level give parallels to problems
facing Africa. Presumably the reservoir of information and techniques from the
South have utility in the African scene.
Thus, it would appear that the institutions and people of the South repre -
sent an untapped source of technical competence and acquired experience that
would have direct value in developmental problems in Africa. For example,
Louisiana with its subtropical climatic conditions leads all states in the pro -
duction of rice and sugar cane and is one of the traditional cotton-producing
areas of the South. All three of these crops are economically important in
various parts of Africa, and they are likely to be more so in the future. And
would not a maize variety developed in Louisiana have potentially more utility
in Africa than a variety suited to Michigan? African students being trained in
the South would find environmental and some social problems closely akin to
those from which they have come.
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176 AFRICAN STUDIES BULLETIN
studies centers. This pattern is to be broken in 1970 when the southern insti-
tutions centered on New Orleans host the annual meeting. At present the
southern institutions and scholars are weakly represented and involved in the
affairs of the Association, but an African awareness and interest can certainly
be fostered through such specific encouragement by the Association. The
South has much to offer Africa, and vice versa.
Donald E. Vermeer
The Louisiana State University
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