Photos by Hannah Howell

In the spring, Danielle Hodge, an assistant professor of communication, offered an education abroad component for her course—Race, Anti-Black Racism and Communication—that concluded with a trip to the Dominican Republic. There, students saw lessons from the class brought to life. It was the first time the course offered a study abroad experience; students America Cabral (text) and Hannah Howell (photography), both majoring in media production, documented their experiences from the trip.

Students America Cabral, center, and Shaun Smith, right, practice with some instruments under the guidance of community residents and performers. Host families prepared meals for the students and staff, including lessons on traditional Dominican cuisine and a chance to all eat together.

What I learned in class, and how it affected my experience:

I’m proud to be a first-generation college student, though I’ve struggled with how harmful higher education can be when the wrong person organizes research and shares one-sided narratives. It was unfortunate to learn how anti-Black racism informs and justifies certain scientific findings and academic writings. For instance, I learned about Gomes Eanes de Zurara, the chief chronicler of Portugal in the mid-1400s, who defended the trade of enslaved Africans. On the trip, we learned about Joaquin Balaguer, former president of the Dominican Republic, whose writings downplayed the horrors of slavery while villainizing Haiti and Haitians.

What gave me hope and changed how I see the world:

The scholars we studied during the course were threatened, prosecuted or exiled for their refusal to accept a white supremacist narrative. However, their love and appreciation for their Blackness, and determination to bring humanity to Black life, proves, as Imani Perry wrote in The Atlantic, that while racism is terrible, Blackness is not. 

The scholars and activists we met on our trip also changed how I see the world. Two I most enjoyed learning from were Ruth Pion, who led a tour exploring the African roots of the Spanish colonial empire in the Dominican Republic, and anthropologist Jonathan De Oleo Ramos, who was prosecuted for his curiosity about the history of the food, music and culture of the country—all of which can be traced to African ancestry.

What my professor brought to class discussions and the trip:

Through class discussions and on the trip, we were met with uncomfortable truths about the ways anti-Black rhetorics have plagued our world. Through carefully crafted units and insightful reflections, Professor Hodge always brought us back to the power of what it means to reclaim Black life, and armed us with the knowledge to discern and disrupt anti-Black rhetoric.