From Introduction to Black Studies from Peoples College

You have to be careful, very careful, introducing the truth to the Black man who has never previously heard the truth about himself, his own kind, and the white man.... The Black brother is so brainwashed that he may even be repelled when he first hears the truth.

Malcolm X, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, 1965

...Many activities have developed as regular features of Afro-American Studies at most colleges. One of the most important ones is the expansion of Negro History Week into Black Liberation Month. Carter G. Woodson founded Negro History Week in 1926 in the context of a virtually total racist denial of the contributions of Black people to world history. As a result of the 1960s, the issue was popularized and Negro History Week was turned into Black History Month. This was carried even further by the national television production of "Roots" by Alex Haley watched by millions of people. The question became, history for what? This led to the origin of Black Liberation Month. Here is the explanation developed by Peoples College:

Black Liberation Month is our attempt to unite with the founders and supporters of Negro History Week, and join their emphasis on study with our emphasis on struggle. Moreover, the concept of Black Liberation Month more accurately reflects the needs of our movement, particularly the need to build on the massive participation of people in the upsurge of struggle during the 1960's.

Carter G. Woodson, noted Afro-American nationalist historian, founded Negro History Week in 1926. In addition to the newspaper column of J. A. Rodgers, this was the major source of information that Black people had about their history. Every year in schools, churches, civic and political organizations, Negro History Week has been a time for historical reading and discussion.

We believe that Negro History Week has made a great contribution to mass awareness of Black History. Moreover, the recognition of Negro History Week has caught on, and has become an intellectual tradition in the 20th century Afro-American experience. However, times have changed considerably since 1926. In political and cultural terms, the time has come to transform our orientation: from Negro to BLACK, from History to LIBERATION, from Week to MONTH.

The revolutionary upsurge of the 1960's is our most recent historical experience of massive militant protest. It continues to be a rich source of lessons for current and future struggles. BLACK LIBERATION MONTH unites with Woodson's effort, but does so by raising it to a higher level based on the lessons of the 1960's.

In sum, our study of history must be linked with the revolutionary history of the Black liberation movement. Our goal is not simply to symbolically institutionalize a change in our yearly calendar of events, but to use this month as one more way to raise the consciousness of the masses of people about the historical nature of exploitation and oppression, to unite people around a correct political line, and to mobilize people to actively take up the struggle for Black liberation.

Professionalism - The development of Black Studies has been mainly a reaction to the racism and conflict Blacks have experienced in other disciplines and areas of the university. So it is particularly important to indicate the affirmative action taken by Black scholars to impose high quality professional standards on Black Studies. Professional achievement is a function mainly of research and publication, acceptance and approval of one's work in professional organizations that decide future developments, and productive organization of graduate level programs of study. In short, Black Studies is consolidating around professional journals, professional organizations, and graduate programs. Achievement is being judged on the basis of a shared value-orientation in the field. This is clearly spelled out in a 1981 study by McWorter, "The Professionalization of Achievement: Ranking of Black Studies Programs."

Theory - Another aspect of the development of Black Studies is the theoretical coherence of the field. Alternative theoretical models that serve to organize ideas and guide research have been clarified. George (1984) deals with four models of race relations theory, including the ethnic group model, the caste model, the colonial model, and the Marxist model.
Different theories are most clearly found in the alternative texts that have developed in the field. Each text is an expression of a basic position in Afro-American Studies. There are three fundamental points of unity: the central theme of Black Studies is "ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY"; Afro-American intellectual history is the foundation of the field; and Africa remains an important reference for the historical origin of the Afro-American experience and for comparative analysis as well. But some differences do exist.

Karenga, (1982) provided a text based on his nationalist theory of Kawaida:

The seven basic subject areas of Black Studies then are: Black History; Black Religion; Black Social Organization; Black Politics; Black Economics; Black Creative Production (Black Art, Music and Literature) and Black Psychology... this conceptual framework is taken from Kawaida theory, a theory of cultural and social change.

Asante (1980) put forward a theory called "Afrocentricity," which consciously attempts to build on Kawaida. Mumford (1978) presented a Marxist analysis. He focuses on making historical analysis of class and class struggle the basis for understanding the Black experience. His analysis especially concentrates on slavery, the lumpenproletariat, racism, and Africa.

Our text is based on a paradigm of unity for Black Studies, a framework in which all points of view can have the most useful coexistence. While maintaining a dynamic process of debate, everyone involved can remain united and committed to the field. This includes Marxists, nationalists, pan-Africanists, and old-fashioned civil rights integrationists as well. Further, our specific orientation is anti-racist, anti-sexist, and anti-capitalist. We are basing our analysis on most of our Black intellectual tradition and that leads us, as it did Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, and W. E. B. DuBois, to a progressive socialist position. This text, therefore, has a definite point of view, but it presents the basis for clarity, understanding, and dialogue between different schools of thought and different disciplines.