bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Heal the World, Make It a Better Place: Social and Individual Hope in Indian Children’s Cinema
Authors: Rajagopalan Jayashree
Published: February 2013

The Indian children’s film industry lacks the attention enjoyed by its adult counterpart, commercial cinema, yet several Indian films for and about children have created a distinct space for themselves. This article examines four Indian children’s films that delve into contemporary socio-political issues, contrast individual hope with social despair, and end with the onset of social hope through children. In the process, they highlight the romantic ideologies of redemption and reform in Indian children’s literature and cinema.
ACCESS DENIED: Godard Palestine Representation
Authors: Niessen Niels
Published: February 2013

Can cinema testify to the political injustices of its historical moment? Departing from a close reading of Jean-Luc Godard's Film socialisme (2010), and in particular the film's representation of Palestine, the following article argues that this question connects Godard's early work, through his video period, to his recent engagement with digital technologies.
Mental Landscapes: Bazin, Deleuze, and Neorealism (Then and Now)
Authors: Horton Justin
Published: February 2013

Though often thought to advocate an "objective" cinema, Bazin instead proffered a "supernatural" conception of realism, one deeply invested in character interiority. This article brings together Bazin's writings with Deleuze's theorization of free indirect cinematic discourse to reconcile the hallucinatory ending of George Washington (David Gordon Green, 2000) with the neorealist paradigm.
"Hard to Handle": Camp Criticism, Trash-Film Reception, and the Transgressive Pleasures of Myra Breckinridge
Authors: Diffrient David Scott
Published: February 2013

Twentieth Century Fox's Myra Breckinridge (Michael Sarne, 1970) is perhaps the most notorious studio-backed motion picture of its generation. This article adduces the reasons behind the film's initial failings, discusses its subsequent reevaluations by various cult fan communities, analyzes key scenes, and examines the "campy" critical rhetoric that has contributed to its shifting cultural status over the years. Despite its initial failure to connect with mainstream viewers, Myra Breckinridge has done much to destabilize taste-based assumptions of "trash" and "art" while collapsing distinctions between Old Hollywood and New Hollywood through a radical, transgressive textuality.
Persistently Displaced: Situated Knowledges and Interrelated Histories in The Spook Who Sat by the Door
Authors: Sheppard Samantha N.
Published: February 2013

Removed from theaters shortly after its 1973 release, Ivan Dixon's The Spook Who Sat by the Door 's narrative and production history mark the film as a "radical" text. This article analyzes the way in which the film's historical displacement can productively be situated and read against interrelated spatiotemporal moments of Black history and cultural production.
"Rotten to the Core": Exposing America's Energy-Media Complex in The China Syndrome
Authors: Shaw Tony
Published: February 2013

This essay conducts a case study of the 1979 thriller The China Syndrome (James Bridges). It explores the motives of the film's architects, notably Jane Fonda, and examines the role that The China Syndrome played in framing both the Three Mile Island nuclear accident and the notion of an energy-media complex for the public in the United States and abroad.
“That’s not Writing”: Exploring the Intersection of Digital Writing, Community Literacy, and Social Justice
Authors: Turner Kristen Hawley , Hicks Troy
Published: February 2013

Communities—and their literacies—exist within larger contexts, and writing has the potential to empower or oppress, to maintain the status quo, or to transform the collective community. School is one such context and, in recent years, the nature of writing has changed; digital writing skills needed to participate in contemporary society do not always resemble skills of traditional, school-based literacy. This article examines the teaching of digital writing as an issue of social justice by sharing the perspectives of several novice teachers who were challenged to alter their views of what writing is and how it should be taught.
Inquiring Communally, Acting Collectively: The Community Literacy of the Academy-Women eMentor Portal and Facebook Group
Authors: Hart D. Alexis
Published: February 2013

Women who work in highly male-dominated fields such as science and the military often find it difficult to establish a place for themselves within their workplace communities. In this essay, I examine how two related online communities for military women enable participants to overcome their workplace isolation, form a collective consciousness, find positive mentorship, and develop a community literacy that affords them a voice through which to enact both personal and public change.
Mapping Complex Terrains: Bridging Social Media and Community Literacies
Authors: Dadurka David , Pigg Stacey
Published: February 2013

While social media is a pervasive form of digital cultural interaction, it remains a relatively new area of study for literacy scholars. Scholars have expanded the scope of social media research beyond traditional academic communities; however, much research still focuses narrowly on youth. This essay begins by tracing how digital communities have developed and argues that online spaces constitute legitimate sites where meaningful community literacies develop. We then highlight how social media is evolving as a new mode of community and civic engagement. Finally, we identify areas for more research at the intersections of social media and community literacy.
Identification as Civic Literacy in Digital Museum Projects: A Case Study of the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum
Authors: Hessler H. Brooke
Published: February 2013

Scholars have observed that rhetorical identification is a common strategy used by both physical and virtual museums to engage the public in their narratives of civic history. This essay explores what happens when service-learning students enter this context to build digital projects as agents and as objects of identification. Drawing from my ten-year partnership with the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, I illustrate how identification can arise within a museum-based digital project, how it can enrich and complicate the project, and how my students and I attempt to balance our insider/outsider roles as authors and interpreters of community history.
Researching the “Un-Digital” Amish Community: Methodological and Ethical Reconsiderations for Human Subjects Research
Authors: Adkins Tabetha
Published: February 2013

This article argues that methodologies for studying community literacy must be reexamined in light of advancements in technology and the research community’s relationship to those technologies. Based on her ethnographic study of an Amish community in southeast Ohio, the author offers a counterpoint to discussions of literacy and digital tools by showing how differing perspectives on technology led to complications during the data collection process. Furthermore, Adkins argues that methodologies cannot always be dictated by a template or by “best practice” and that researchers and IRBs should be more flexible in their thinking about how to treat research communities ethically.
Interracial Bridging Social Capital Among Students of a Multicultural University in Malaysia
Authors: Tamam Ezhar
Published: February 2013

In this study, the influence of interracial socialization and race on interracial bridging social capital among Malaysian students of a multicultural Malaysian public university was examined. Results reveal a narrowed level of interracial bridging social capital among the students. The minority Chinese and the majority Malays do not differ in their level of interracial social capital, but the minority Indians has a significantly higher level of interracial bridging social capital in comparison. The level of interracial socialization with peers directly and significantly affects the level of interracial bridging social capital for all three racial groups. No interaction effect of race and interracial socialization frequency on interracial bridging social capital is found. The implications of the findings are discussed.
College Student Concerns: Perceptions of Student Affairs Practitioners
Authors: Reynolds Amy L.
Published: February 2013

The purpose of this study was to increase awareness of the perceptions of student affairs professionals regarding the most frequent and challenging concerns facing college students today. Using the Delphi method, 159 entry-level and mid-level student affairs administrators from institutions across the country were surveyed about their perceptions of student concerns. Their responses provide valuable information about the challenges facing student affairs professionals as they attempt to address the increasingly complex and demanding problems that college students experience. Implications for future research and training are explored.
Predictors of Civic Values: Understanding Student-Level and Institutional-Level Effects
Authors: Lott Joe L.
Published: February 2013

This multilevel study extends the work of Pascarella, Ethington, & Smart (1988) and Rhee and Dey (1996) to investigate how student-level characteristics and organizational characteristics affect college students' civic values. Institutional variables found to impact civic values include institutional selectivity, institutional size, and attending a private institution. Student-level variables found to impact civic values include having taken a women's studies class, ethnic studies class, and being a social science major. Using Weidman's (1989) model as a conceptual base, this study has implications for a number of theories and practices that further explain the various socialization processes among students that facilitate civic values development.
The Association Between Sensation Seeking and Well-Being Among College-Attending Emerging Adults
Authors: Ravert Russell D. , Kim Su Yeong , Schwartz Seth J. , Weisskirch Robert S. , Zamboanga Byron L. , Ham Lindsay S. , Donnellan M. Brent , Bersamin Melina M.
Published: February 2013

Sensation seeking is a known risk factor for unsafe and reckless behavior among college students, but its association with well-being is unknown. Given that exploration plays an important psychosocial role during the transition to adulthood, we examined the possibility that sensation seeking is also associated with psychological well-being. In a large multisite US college sample (N = 8,020), scores on the Arnett Inventory of Sensation Seeking were positively associated with risk behavior, psychological well-being, and eudaimonic well-being. When sensation seeking dimensions were examined separately, well-being was found to be associated with high novelty seeking but with low intensity seeking.
Student Leadership in a Residential College: From Dysfunction to Effective Collaboration
Authors: Bloomdahl Susana Contreras , Navan Joy
Published: February 2013

This article depicts the intervention strategy of two faculty members on a dysfunctional student council in a residential college setting. The council demonstrated poor collaboration and productivity, which indicated signs of distrust. The group intervention helped to expose the students' lack of organization and need to learn more about each other. Ongoing intervention tactics included the use of simple trust-building and planning activities that helped to create more effective and productive organization and improved the leadership competence of student members.
Motivational and Judgment Predictors of African American Academic Achievement at PWIs and HBCUs
Authors: Reeder Matthew C. , Schmitt Neal
Published: February 2013

In this study we investigated whether African American students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) differ from African American students at predominantly White institutions (PWIs) in academic motivation and judgment, and whether type of academic institution (HBCU, PWI) moderates relationships between these differences and academic achievement. Results indicate that HBCU and PWI students differed in several characteristics, and that type of institution moderated relationships between two of the three characteristics examined and achievement. Theoretical implications in light of Peters and O'Connor's (1980) concept of situational constraints are discussed, as are practical considerations pertaining to student advising.
Survival of the Fittest: What Do Early Behaviors Tell Us About Student Outcomes?
Authors: Goenner Cullen F. , Harris Melissa , Pauls Kenton
Published: February 2013

We posited student behaviors observed during the recruitment process may reveal a student's commitment to our institution and their initial motivation to succeed, which influences their level of integration and decision to leave college or remain. In particular, we examined the impact of participating in a college fair, visiting the campus before enrollment, and attending Welcome Weekend on stop-out times of students. Our findings suggest students who participate in these activities are significantly more likely to succeed. The time enrolled increases by 33.0% for college fair participants, 6.5% for campus visitors, and 18.0% for participants of Welcome Weekend.
Chinese International Students' Personal and Sociocultural Stressors in the United States
Authors: Yan Kun , Berliner David C.
Published: February 2013

To date, no empirical research has focused solely upon understanding the personal and sociocultural stressors of Chinese international students in the United States. This qualitative inquiry examined what the most stressful aspects of their personal and social lives in the United States are, how they characterize their stress, and what conditions they believe tend to account for their stress. This study reveals that the life of Chinese students in the United States is not easy and that these students have to endure multifaceted life stresses. These results can be used to help Chinese international students adapt to the American educational environment and to improve the services and programs American universities deliver to their foreign students.
“Nigiina” s as Coping Mechanisms of Peri-urban Low-income Mothers in Kampala, Uganda
Authors: Nakirya Joan Wakida , State Andrew Ellias
Published: February 2013

Low-income mothers face a number of challenges that evolve around poverty, isolation, powerlessness, and vulnerability. The main objective of this study was to examine the contributions of nigiina associations, which are informal gift giving associations, to the welfare of women and their households in an urban neighbourhood. Data was collected through use of unstructured interviews, in-depth interviews, survey questionnaires and observation guides. Findings reveal that nigiina associations, which operate in a rotational basis and give equal opportunities to every member of receiving a gift, such as in the form of household items, cash, advice, training, wide friendship networks and loan opportunities, are used as coping mechanisms by low-income mothers living in the surrounds of Kampala city.
The Influence of Organisational Culture and Job Satisfaction on Intentions to Leave: The Case of Clay Brick Manufacturing Company in Lesotho
Authors: Leisanyane Kelebone , Khaola Peter P.
Published: February 2013

Employee turnover or retention has dominated the research agenda and attracted practitioners’ attention for decades. Previous research has, however, suffered from lack of macro perspective in understanding employee turnover in organizations. Based on the survey of employees in a clay brick manufacturing company in Lesotho, the purpose of the present study was to examine the impact of job satisfaction and cultural traits on turnover intentions. There was a negative and significant correlation between job satisfaction and turnover intentions, and all cultural traits and turnover intentions. Though the variance contributed by cultural traits (stability and flexibility) over demographic factors and job satisfaction was only marginally significant, and the impact of flexibility cultural trait became insignificant in the regression analysis, the influence of stability cultural trait remained strong in both correlation and regression analyses. Managerial and theoretical implications are also discussed in this study.
Feminisation of Gender Budgeting: An Uphill Task for Zimbabwe
Authors: Manyeruke Charity , Hamausw Shakespear
Published: February 2013

This paper analyses gender budgeting initiatives in Zimbabwe from 2008 when the Gender Budget Circular Call mandating all ministries to mainstream gender in their programmes and budgets came into effect. In order to analyse national budgets and budgeting process in Zimbabwe, the research used a qualitative methodology, which is, specifically, documentary research. Special attention was placed on critical sectors, such as health, agriculture, women’s affairs, water and sanitation, and education where disparity between men and women is apparent. The paper concludes that budgetary allocations for women programmes are inadequate, hence the need to feminise gender budgeting process in order to yield better results. However, feminisation of the gender budgeting process is not an easy task for Zimbabwe due to lack of up-to-date gender disaggregated data, lack of political will, and economic challenges that are limiting the fiscal space, among others. There is, however, an opportunity to draw lessons from other developing countries such as South Africa, Mexico, and Namibia as discussed in this study.
The Panacea and Perfidy of Cultural Rites of Circumcision in African Countries: Examples From Kenya, Botswana and South Africa
Authors: Kang’ethe Simon M.
Published: February 2013

Cultural rites can be a panacea when the immense social capital embedded in them is taken stock of as well as they can be a perfidy when all the retrogressive aspects they constitute are taken into consideration. The aim and objective of this article is to generate debate and discourse on panacea and perfidy of cultural rites with particular focus on circumcision. The article used eclectic data sources. Cultural rite of circumcision is a panacea due to an array of factors: it marks entry into adulthood from childhood; it is a mark of cultural social identity in many societies of the world; it constitutes immense social capital and, currently, it serves as a platform for mitigating the effects of HIV/AIDS. Cultural rite of circumcision is also a perfidy due to: its violation of human rights to health; because it undermines boys’ and girls’ access to school; and because it is usually a leeway to early sexual overtures. The paper recommends to governments to: hold on their responsibilities to safeguard their citizens’ rights to health; ensure that male circumcision is surgically safe and done in a hygienic environment; and, alongside NGOs and civil society, educate communities to balance between the human rights pertaining to circumcision and cultural rights.
Socio-economic and Demographic Determinants of Children’s Primary School Enrolment in Ethiopia
Authors: Gurmu Eshetu , Etana Dula
Published: February 2013

This study examines determinants of children’s primary school enrolment. Using the 2005 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey data, a Binary Logistic Regression model was fitted to identify the correlates. The findings indicate that the increase in the number of siblings decreases the likelihood of children’s enrolment in early ages but increases at later ages. Poverty, loss of mother, and rural residence reduce the likelihood of enrolment whilst those living in female-headed households and born to educated parents have higher chances. The findings generally entail the importance of improving households’ socioeconomic wellbeing to widen the opportunity of children’s school enrolment.
The Road to Moscow: On Archival Sources Concerning the International Trade Union Committee of Negro Workers in the Comintern Archive
Authors: Weiss Holger
Published: February 2013

This article is a critical assessment of the documentary sources of the International Trade Union Committee of Negro Workers (ITUCNW) available at the Comintern Archives in Moscow. The organization was the key platform within the Comintern Apparatus to establish an African-Atlantic network of radical activists and organizations in Africa and the Caribbean during the first half of the 1930s. The article addresses the current status of available archival sources for assessing and analysing the objectives, intensity, extent and impact of the organization and its key activists, namely James W. Ford, George Padmore and Otto Huiswoud. It reflects on past and present presentations and evaluations of the ITUCNW's activities and provides a short outline of the chronological order of the organization. In addition, the transfer of its records from Hamburg to Moscow is discussed. The main emphasis is laid on the presentation of the various documentary sources available in Moscow, including reports, resolutions and correspondence.
Researching Colonial Childhoods: Images and Representations of Children in Nigerian Newspaper Press, 1925–1950
Authors: Aderinto Saheed
Published: February 2013

This article takes an introductory excursion into newspaper sources for researching Nigerian children's history during the colonial period by analyzing and describing items including news, editorials, stories, photos, advertisements, columns, debates, features, and letters among others. It situates these newspaper sources within the context of the circumstances under which they were produced and the prevailing politics of identity, gender, and agency, on the one hand, and the interaction between the forces of “tradition” and “modernity” on the other. Instead of approaching children's experience from the well-established stand-points of disease, violence, delinquency and crime, this paper examines the following areas: children and education; children and motherhood; and children as consumers. These uncharted areas of Nigerian children's history render alternative and useful perspectives on agency and the centrality of childhood to colonial state's ideas of progress, civilization, modernity, and social stability.
Exploring the Potential of Praise Poems for Historical Reconstruction among the Idepe-Ikale in Southeastern Yorubaland
Authors: Ogen Olukoya
Published: February 2013

The existing body of literature on the origin of the Idepe-Ikale suggests a Benin provenance and an ethno-cultural identity for the generality of the Idepe-Ikale. This paper argues that this claim has largely been sustained by the excessive reliance on archival sources for the reconstruction Ikale pre-colonial history. It, therefore, draws primarily on evidence from praise poems and partly from historical linguistics and ethnography in its examination of the ethnic identity of the Idepe-Ikale, a major Ikale sub-group in southeastern Yorubaland. With this methodological shift, the paper establishes the fact that culturally and linguistically, the Idepe-Ikale are of the Yoruba ethnic stock rather than of Benin extraction. Thus, the paper casts doubts on the prevailing consensus on Idepe's Benin origin and identity and concludes that palace promoted and colonial-backed constructions of ethnic identities should be thoroughly scrutinised to correct mistaken notions about identity formation.
Gender and Ethnic Relations in Sierra Leone: Temne Women in Colonial Freetown
Authors: Bangura Joseph J.
Published: February 2013

The article explores the role of women, particularly non-Western educated Temne market women in shaping the socio-economic history of Britain's oldest colony in colonial West Africa. It addresses the neglect of women's participation in the economy of the colony inherent in the androcentric literature. The article also highlights the cultural foundations of Temne women's activism in colonial Freetown. It argues that the role played by various subjects and actors should be fully integrated in the historical literature of the Sierra Leone colony.
Native Foreigners and the Ambiguity of Order and Identity: The Case of African Diasporas and Islamic Law in British Cameroon
Authors: O'Rourke Harmony S.
Published: February 2013

In 1947, the colonial government in British Cameroon established an Islamic court in the Grassfields to try cases involving the region's Muslim population, primarily comprised of Fulani and Hausa diaspora communities that had settled the area since the late nineteenth century. Colonial debates over the creation and purview of the court reveal uncertainties that permeated Indirect Rule's legal categories of native and non-native, or tribe and race, which were to be governed by customary and civil law, respectively. Comparing legal regimes in British Cameroon with Northern Nigeria, the homeland of “native” Hausa and Fulani, shows that Islamic law sat uneasily across the divide between customary and civil law. With the importation of the court to the Grassfields, where Fulani and Hausa transformed into “native foreigners,” the delineation between customary and civil law was rendered even more obscure, illustrating that it could never neatly correspond to constructions of race and tribe.
The Politics of Land and Urban Space in Colonial Accra
Authors: Sackeyfio Naaborko
Published: February 2013

This article connects the colonial land ordinances and laws of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century with the changing meanings of property, to show both their impact, and how these developments resonated for the Ga-inhabitants of Accra and the Gold Coast Colony. The laws and African responses to them illustrate the ways in which property took on new meaning for a variety of groups. It also presents the framework for understanding why litigation, and the production of land claims became a central feature of land affairs in Accra with the continued development of the town. This analysis contributes to the existing literature on property rights in colonial Gold Coast by carefully considering the intricacies and nuances of land disputes in the colonial capital, and their intersection with larger transformations in land affairs.
History in Novels and Memoirs: Alfons Vermeulen on Rural Congo (1899–1904)
Authors: Vansina Jan
Published: February 2013

Alfons Vermeulen published a novel about his life in a Congo town as a trader in 1933 and also left drafts about the same subject for his memoirs when he died in 1965. This essay systematically compares both documents using the rules of evidence and concludes that although it does not appear to be so on the surface the novel distorts the evidence he adduces considerably more than the memoirs. At the same time though both documents are equally deeply affected by the spirit of the time of their composition. Hence the combined evidence of both documents together is not only richer but also more reliable than their separate use.
Arabic Manuscripts in the Arewa House (Kaduna, Nigeria)
Authors: Bala Salisu
Published: February 2013

This paper discusses the Arabic manuscripts deposited in Arewa House, one of the oldest public repositories in Nigeria and now holding 1,600 Arabic manuscripts.
Demystifying “Islamic Slavery”: Using Legal Practices to Reconstruct the End of Slavery in Fes, Morocco
Authors: Goodman R. David
Published: February 2013

This article uses Muslim court records from Fes, Morocco, to challenge the concept of “Islamic slavery.” Analysis of legal actions containing references to domestic slaves for nearly six decades (1913-1971) uncovers an era of emancipation without public historical watersheds but rather with a subtle, gradual accumulation of changes in social processes. After discussing the background on slavery in Morocco and the limitations of “Islamic slavery,” notarized family court records are examined to demonstrate that slavery did not end as a consequence of official changes to laws (French or Moroccan), nor through masters granting their slaves legal manumissions. Rather, it is argued that domestic slavery ended at a staggered pace amid social, familial and personal changes more observable through attention to the dynamics across households and generations than to administrative policies or external legal forces.
Ongoing Transitions – Editors' Introduction
Authors: Doortmont Michel R. , Hanson John H. , Jansen Jan , van den Bersselaar Dmitri
Published: February 2013

When taking over the editorship of History in Africa, the current editors foresaw several lines of development for the journal. The first one was to re-examine the inheritance of David Henige and build on this to keep the journal contemporary with new developments and trends in methodology and method, emerging technologies and the growing and changing availability of sources. Secondly, the editors felt that to comply with ever more stringent demands of academic quality control a full peer review system needed to be introduced, as well as action undertaken to make the journal visible in ranking systems. Thirdly, the editors decided that the journal was in need of a larger input from African scholars in Africa, to reflect developments in the continent better. Fourthly, it was decided that the paper version of the journal was in need of a more modern and professional look and format, enhancing readability, and falling into line with comparable journals, most specifically the sister journal African Studies Review.

The production of this third post-Henige issue has proven transition to be an ongoing process. All four points of development have been instituted, some with immediate results, others as a work in progress. Volume 37 (2010) saw the extension of the Editorial Board with several African members working in Africa, the consolidation of Henige's work with the publication of numerous articles inherited from him, and an agenda for further development. At the Annual General Meeting of the African Studies Association in San Francisco in 2010, two panels were organized to honor Henige and his work. Many of the contributions to these panels were included in volume 38 (2011), making it a Festschrift, definitively concluding the Henige era. The current issue of History in Africa is therefore the first regular issue under the regime of the new editorial team.
Two Previously Unknown Letters from Hastings Kamuzu Banda, Written from Edinburgh, 1938, Archived at the University of Cape Town
Authors: Morrow Seàn , McCracken John
Published: February 2013

This article introduces, reproduces, and contextualizes two letters written in 1938 from Edinburgh by Hastings Kamuzu Banda to Samuel C. Banda (Chief Mwase of Kasungu) and Ernest C. Matako. At the time Banda was studying in Edinburgh. The letters, from a period when sources on Banda are scarce, illuminate his political and educational thinking and his personal life and attitudes at the time. The article also discusses the archival context of the letters, which were found in the papers of Godfrey Wilson, the Director of the Rhodes-Livingstone Institute from 1938 to 1941. The copies were found in the course of research into the lives of the anthropologists Monica Wilson, née Hunter, and Godfrey Wilson.
Reconstructing the Life Histories of Liberated Africans: Sierra Leone in the Early Nineteenth Century
Authors: Schwarz Suzanne
Published: February 2013

This article draws attention to the scope and significance of the Registers of Liberated Africans, which were recently retraced in the Public Archives of Sierra Leone after a period of neglect. These registers, spanning the period between 1808 and 1819, provide details of the names and physical characteristics of the first groups of “recaptives” released at Freetown by royal naval patrols in the immediate aftermath of British abolition of the slave trade. This evidence, when combined with other categories of records generated by colonial administrators, offers a rare opportunity to reconstruct biographical information about enslaved Africans after their release from slaving vessels. The methodology discussed in this article demonstrates how nominal linkage across diverse categories of records surviving in Sierra Leone and Britain makes it possible to trace aspects of the subsequent movements of individuals after their cases had been adjudicated by the Vice Admiralty Court at Freetown.
“Just a First Sketchy Makeshift”: German Travellers and Their Cartographic Encounters in Africa, 1850-1914
Authors: Jones Adam , Voigt Isabel
Published: February 2013

Abstract:

The maps of Africa produced in Europe on the eve of colonial partition and in the early decades of colonial rule purported to represent in a scientific manner what European explorers had “discovered.” Yet in reality they derived to a significant extent – albeit indirectly – from the spatial knowledge of Africans whom these explorers encountered. Whilst we do not possess many sources produced by the Africans themselves, it is possible to read the European accounts as potential depositories of African spatial knowledge and to consider how this knowledge may have been filtered in the process of cartographic production. Taking the German travellers and the important work of August Petermann in Gotha (in the period 1854-1878) as an illustration, the article analyses the difficulties a European faced when attempting to grasp Africa in spatial terms, the motivations and importance of African “informants,” and the transformation of “cartographic encounters” into maps. It also examines how some Africans responded to the growing market for geographical knowledge.
The Jeremy Newman Papers: A New Historical Source for Colonial Kenya and the Kamba
Authors: Osborne Myles
Published: February 2013

The Jeremy Newman Papers are a new source for the study of colonial Kenya. The collection includes a variety of assorted documents, but most importantly, the transcripts of thirty-one interviews carried out by Newman in Machakos District in Kenya's Eastern Province in 1973 and 1974. Newman interviewed thirty members of the Kamba ethnic group – and one European setder – all of whom were born between approximately 1895 and 1920. The interviews range widely, touching on topics such as education, European settlement, politics, trade, the First and Second World Wars, Mau Mau, and especially the destocking episode of 1938.
Enslaved Population and Indian Owners Along the East African Coast: Exploring the Rigby Manumission List, 1860–1861
Authors: Suzuki Hideaki
Published: February 2013

The main purpose of this article is to explore the potential of the “List of Slaves unlawfully held in slavery by British Indian Subjects at Zanzibar & its Dependencies, who have been emancipated at the Consulate” for historical slavery studies. This list, a result of the first British-led manumission campaign against slave ownership along the east coast of Africa, is the most comprehensive list detailing slave ownership and slaves for the pre-colonial coastal society of East Africa. Despite of the importance and uniqueness, both this list and the campaign have not been yet fully analyzed. This article challenges to extract the data as much as possible from the list, not only sex ratio and ethnic origin of enslaved individuals, but also their identity and emotional status. Moreover, this article shows an aspect of slave ownership by British Indian subjects from the list.
Canonical Conventions in Rwanda: Four Myths of Recent Historiography in Central Africa
Authors: Newbury David
Published: February 2013

At a time of significant change in the in the practice of African history, this article is an appeal for a renewed respect for conventional historiography – referring both to careful acquaintance with earlier work and to the practice of historical analysis. Focusing on Rwanda, the argument is presented at four levels. First, it identifies four myths evident in recent presentations on Rwandan history. Second it assesses a work that avoids such assumptions by drawing on broader empirical sources than is the norm. It then examines a work that, while highlighting an important theme, neglects much of the historical work done on Rwanda over the past forty years. It concludes by proposing a way out of such “dead-end discourses.”
Two Kinds of Belief in Plato
Authors: Grönroos Gösta
Published: February 2013

The purpose of this paper is to lay bare the distinction between two different kinds of belief in Plato. In the Sophist (263e10–264b4), Plato distinguishes between phantasia , which occurs “through sense perception,” and doxa , which occurs “in respect of thinking.” It is argued that a phantasia is a belief formed by means of sense perception on the basis of how things appear to be, whereas a doxa is a belief formed through a particular kind of thinking, which provides understanding of the being of the thing by sorting out how its nature is related to other natures in terms of its genus and species.
Thomas Aquinas on the Claim that God is Truth
Authors: Wood William
Published: February 2013

Thomas Aquinas argues that God can be identified with the truth as such. He holds that ‘God is truth’ is an analogical claim that asserts, first, that God exemplifies truth to the highest possible degree and, second, that God is the cause of all truth. To understand his arguments fully, one must also understand his claim that created truth “participates in” or “imitates” divine truth. Creatures participate in or imitate God just by virtue of being created. Thus, these claims simply reiterate that God causes all created truth by causing all created being. Aquinas’s claim that God is truth may seem nonsensical to contemporary readers, but properly understood, it is quite modest, and poses few intellectual obstacles beyond those posed by classical theism itself.
Theodicy and Toleration in Bayle’s Dictionary
Authors: Hickson Michael W.
Published: February 2013

Bayle scholars have largely treated toleration and theodicy as separate and unconnected topics in Bayle’s thought. I argue that in four places in the Historical and Critical Dictionary Bayle connects his concern for toleration with his refutations of theodicy. I show that there are historical, theological, and philosophical connections between the two seemingly disparate topics. An important result of this paper is that the atheistic reading of Bayle loses one its most important pillars, for Bayle’s reflection on evil, I argue, is not meant to undermine religious belief, but rather to encourage religious toleration, particularly of Calvinists.
Thomas Reid between Externalism and Internalism
Authors: Van Woudenberg René
Published: February 2013

This paper argues that next to the now widely recognized ‘externalist’ elements, Reid’s thought about belief with positive epistemic status contains a number of so-far unrecognized ‘internalist’ features. This claim is substantiated by (1) identifying a number of conditions that Reid holds beliefs of various sorts must satisfy if they are to have positive epistemic status, and by (2) arguing that, for Reid, many of these conditions are internal conditions. The conclusion is that the externalist and internalist elements in Reid form a coherent whole and that his position can, with some qualification, be classified as the conjunction of weak externalism and weak internalism.
Authority, Progress, and the “Assumption of Infallibility” in On Liberty
Authors: Turner Piers Norris
Published: February 2013

John Stuart Mill’s defense of free discussion in On Liberty includes the claim that silencing discussion implies an “assumption of infallibility.” This claim is often dismissed as absurd on the ground that a censor might attempt to silence an opinion he believes to be true but pernicious, or because rational assurance short of infallibility is obviously sufficient to justify censorship. This paper argues that Mill’s argument concerns the epistemic position one assumes with regard to future persons and circumstances as a result of attempting to settle some matter irremediably, and thus sets an important authority-limiting constraint on social authority and individuals in matters that otherwise would fall under their rightful control.
Incarceration, Community Health, and Racial Disparities
Authors: Dumont Dora M. , Allen Scott A. , Brockmann Bradley W. , Alexander Nicole E. , Rich Josiah D.
Published: February 2013

Several recent studies have shown that the racial disparities in U.S. mortality nearly disappear in prisons. We review the social determinants of the recent epidemic of incarceration, especially the war on drugs, and describe inmate morbidity and mortality within the context of U.S. health disparities. Incarceration provides an important public health opportunity to address health disparities by accessing a high-need, medically-underserved, largely non-White population, but it has also been associated with poor long-term health outcomes. Viewing incarceration within the context of community health and community life shows that the more equitable mortality rates among inmates are not evidence of the beneficial effects of incarceration so much as an indictment of disparities in the community at large. Because people of color are incarcerated far more frequently than Whites, the experience may ultimately exacerbate rather than mitigate health disparities.
Pattern and Determinants of Morbidity among People Living with HIV/AIDS in North Central Nigeria
Authors: Olaleye Adeniyi , Ogwumike F.O.
Published: February 2013

The study investigated the nature of self-reported morbidity and determinants of health status among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in North Central Nigeria. A multi-stage cluster sampling method was used to select 1,056 adult PLWHA from 60 community-based support groups as respondents to a structured questionnaire. Based on health production function, health status was specified as a function of individual/household characteristics, health-related behaviours and genetic endowment. Descriptive statistics showed that more than half (52.8%, n=558) of the PLWHA reported illness in the last four weeks. The poor, widows and divorcees, and those living in rural areas reported illness more than their non-poor, married and urban counterparts. Logistic regression results indicated that self reported mobility was associated with rural residence (p=.005), greater use of condom (p=.013), and lower CD4 count (p=.007). Programs to promote positive living and access to health care services among PLWHA in Nigeria, especially in rural areas, are recommended.
The HIV/AIDS Women of Color Initiative Improving Access to and Quality of Care for Women of Color
Authors: Blank Arthur E. , Espino Susan Louise Ryerson , Eastwood Betsy , Matoff-Stepp Sabrina , Xavier Jessica
Published: February 2013

In September 2009, the Health Resources and Services Administration, (HRSA) HIV-AIDS Bureau funded 11 programs to engage and retain women of color (WoC) living with HIV in care. This field report describes the rationale for this Special Project of National Significance (SPNS) initiative, the 11 programs in terms of their theoretical frameworks as well as the contexts and mechanism of care, and outlines some factors that may influence engaging and retaining WoC in care.
The Development of a Tracking Tool to Improve Health Behaviors in African American Adults
Authors: McDole Melissa , Ralston Penny A. , Coccia Catherine , Young-Clark Iris
Published: February 2013

Although African Americans (AAs) have high risk for cardiovascular disease, few individual tailored interventions are available to improve healthy lifestyles in this population. The purpose of this study was to develop and pilot-test a tracking tool for AA adults to examine the extent to which participants initiated health goals and were ready for change, improved health behaviors (increased fruit/vegetables and physical activity, decreased fat), and perceived the tool was useful in tracking and improving health behaviors. AA adults (n=11, 40 years or older) were recruited and completed for one week the Health Check Report Card (HCRC), a tracking tool that measures types of food eaten and physical activity using a pre-determined point system. Findings showed that the participants at post-test significantly increased fruit/vegetable consumption. The HCRC was perceived as helpful in tracking health behaviors. This study suggests that the HCRC may be a tool to explore in improving health behaviors of AAs.
Psychosocial Factors Associated with Gestational Weight Gain in a Low-Income Cohort
Authors: Wright Charmaine , Bilder Debbie , DeBlasis Tracey , Mogul Marjie , Rubin David , Shea Judy A.
Published: February 2013

Background . Excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) causes negative maternal and child outcomes. Literature is sparse regarding reasons in high-risk low-income women. Purpose . Assess psychosocial factors associated with GWG using an adapted instrument based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Methods . Community health workers surveyed 101 low-income postpartum women. Results . Mean (SD) age was 24.6 (5.7) years, with 7% White, 66% Black, 22% Hispanic. Over half (58%) of the women reported overweight or obese body mass indices (BMI) prior to pregnancy; 49% had excessive GWG. Theory of planned behavior-informed constructs associated with less GWG included internal weight locus of control (B=-11.6 (221.4, 21.9) pounds) and higher self-efficacy (B=-1.3 (22.6, 0) pounds). Perinatal depression was associated with increased GWG (B=0.88 (0.1, 1.7) pounds). Conclusion . The theory of planned behavior is useful in understanding the association of psychosocial factors and GWG. More research is warranted to evaluate the generalizability of the findings prior to the development of an effective intervention.
Renovating Charity Hospital or Building a New Hospital in Post-Katrina New Orleans: Economic Rationale versus Political Will
Authors: Leleu Hervé , Moises James , Valdmanis Vivian Grace
Published: February 2013

Since September 2005, Charity Hospital of New Orleans has been closed due to Hurricane Katrina. A debate following the closing arose about whether this public hospital should be renovated or a new medical center affiliated with the Louisiana State University should be built. Using academic literature, government statistics, and popular press reports, we describe the economic implications that support the view that Charity Hospital should have been renovated. We also address why this policy was not pursued by demonstrating the influence politics and individual stakeholders (specifically, Louisiana State University) had on the eventual policy pursued. In this commentary we also note the political identity movement away from public-sector provision of services to private-sector interests.
Recruitment of Black Subjects for a Natural History Study of Intracerebral Hemorrhage
Authors: Edwards Dorothy F. , Menon Ravi , Fokar Ali , Gibbons Christopher , Wing Jeffrey , Sanchez Brisa , Kidwell Chelsea S.
Published: February 2013

Historically, recruitment of minority subjects for clinical research has been challenging. We developed culturally-tailored recruitment materials for a longitudinal, natural history study of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and trained recruiting coordinators in cultural competence. Of 285 subjects meeting inclusion criteria, 158 (55% of those eligible) agreed to participate (60% of eligible Blacks vs. 45% of eligible non-Blacks, p..02). Of those enrolled, 138 (87%) agreed to participate in the genetic sub-study (86% of Blacks vs. 90% of non-Blacks enrolled, p..78). Of those subjects who refused enrollment, lack of interest in research (42%) was the most common reason given for the study as a whole. A higher rate of enrollment was achieved in Blacks vs. non-Blacks in this ICH clinical research study employing culturally tailored recruitment approaches and training of recruitment coordinators to overcome traditional recruitment barriers to research participation in minority patients.