In Search of Brightest Africa: Historian Jeannette Eileen Jones critiques early representations of Africa in America

Jeannette Eileen Jones' research takes her back to an era when many Americans were first exposed to the continent of Africa.

The early images and exhibitions that found their way to the U.S. from what was often referred to as "Darkest Africa" featured dangerous animals and primitive motifs – pygmies, cannibals, and tribal rituals.

Jones, an assistant professor of history and ethnic studies at UNL, examines these representations of Africa – and cultural and intellectual responses to them - in her new book, to be released in 2010, "In Search of Brightest Africa: Imagining Africa in America, 1884-1936."

This topic has intrigued Jones since she was nine years old. That year, her closest cousins moved to Africa. Jones was interested in her peers' perceptions of the continent, and how those ideas differed from what she learned from her relatives who were gaining first-hand experience living in Africa as expatriates.

"One of the things that I grew up trying to do was understand the complexity of the African side of my identity," Jones said. "That's what attracted me to this project. I was trying to figure out why we were fascinated with this romantic picture of Africa – lions, safaris - and not so much interested in its people. When I was a kid in the 70s, the only images we had of people were of the famine in Ethiopia. It was a monolithic representation—starving Africans and animals that will kill you. I knew that just wasn't true."

Jones jumped back in time almost a century to study the earliest images of Africa in the U.S. She wrote about the American Museum of Natural History in New York – in particular its "Hall of African Peoples" - for her dissertation at the University of Buffalo. After arriving at UNL in 2004, she decided to expand her original research into a book-length look at representations of Africa spanning about 50 years. In addition to examining the role of museums in shaping perceptions of Africa, she also researched pan-African activists and African intellectuals, and how Africa became important to African American identity and self-determination.

"I focus mostly on pan-Africanists, but also African American missionaries to Africa, and then a group I call ‘everyday black folk.' I wanted to look at people who felt some kind of relationship and kinship to people in Africa and felt some kind of duty to participate in anti-colonialism," Jones said. "In the book, I argue that Africa became important for African Americans' sense of a kind of race manhood and womanhood."

Jones found that white Americans who became involved in Africa mainly approached it from the side of science—they were anthropologists, natural historians, and environmentalists. They advocated for preserves, national parks, and gorilla sanctuaries. Jones believes that taking an interest in Africa's natural environment was a way for white Americans to construct a "new sense of whiteness" in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Over time, Americans' relationship with Africa varied dramatically by country and region and politics. "In Search of Brightest Africa" looks at America's special relationship with Liberia, as well as eastern Africa during the colonial period, South Africa and the Belgian Congo. To compile her research, Jones spent time on three continents and turned to newspaper articles, congressional records, records from British foreign office, African American newspapers, expedition travelogues, private letters and correspondences, and films (both Hollywood features such as Tarzan, and expeditionary films produced by travelers in Africa,) and film reviews. "Ultimately, what I'm looking at is people who were responding to myths about Africa, and what they were doing to undermine those images," Jones said. "I wanted to see what cultural and intellectual work people were doing to counter the images of darkest Africa."

In some cases, individuals began making films in homage to Africa. They went to great lengths to film a more accurate representation of African people and cultures, and their work stood in stark contrast to some of the earliest portrayals of the continent. Their work, by and large, remained focused on the flora and fauna of Africa, rather than the lives of its citizens. Pan-Africanists were interested in uncovering the political past of Africa before colonialist penetration, and argued for an independent, resurgent Africa. They felt it was a role of African Americans to help re-shape the continent's political future.

"In many ways their critique of imperialism was not so much about going to Africa and prostheletizing and building industries; it was about the fact that Europeans were exploiting the continent," Jones said. "There was a hope, a belief that African Americans wouldn't exploit the continent, but instead would help build it up because they had a vested interest.

"In many ways African Americans stylized their own kind of imperialism, born from a sense of duty. But a key difference was that they felt it was coming from a place of sincerity and connection."

Taking the Art of Mentoring to New Heights: Atmospheric scientist Jun Wang and graduate student David Peterson bring extraordinary collegiality - and significant research funding - to the Department of Geosciences

They sit side-by-side at a computer, sometimes well past midnight, problem solving on research and software questions.

They grab Thai food for lunch.

They're friends and colleagues, but first and foremost their relationship is that of professor and student.

The strong mentor-mentee bond between Jun Wang, assistant professor of geosciences, and his graduate student David Peterson, caught the attention of College of Arts and Sciences Dean David Manderscheid when he was selecting his latest Academic Stars.

Wang and Peterson's teamwork reached a zenith this summer when Peterson received a $90,000 NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship, which will fund three years of his doctoral research. As Peterson's adviser, Wang will serve as principle investigator on the project. The two worked closely on the grant proposal, which was familiar territory for Wang; he received the same fellowship in 2004.

Peterson uses satellite data to explore the causes of wildfires in the boreal forests of Canada and Alaska. He kind of "fell into" the field after arriving at UNL unsure of which career track within meteorology to pursue.

"Until I met Jun, I'd never thought of studying anything dealing with satellites," Peterson said. "His class definitely opened the door for that. Since then, he basically has kind of pushed me; if I wanted to do something, he would always help and throw things my way. He's a great guy to work for. He's definitely focused on helping me achieve my goals."

In his two years at UNL, Wang has established himself as an advocate for his students, an encourager of their research, and a finder of grants and scholarship opportunities. In part because he's not too far removed from the graduate student experience—he received his doctorate from the University of Alabama in Huntsville and then completed two years of post-doctoral work at Harvard under a prestigious National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fellowship directly before arriving at UNL in 2007—he is especially tuned in to his students' futures.

"I want to see my students succeed. If they cannot get a great job when they graduate, I consider that a personal failure," Wang said. "I want to see them excel and that's why I mentor them."

Live Wire: Bryan Miller brings determination, customer service and a touch of rock star charisma to the College of Arts and Sciences

When he's not working (which is rare,) you might find Bryan Miller rocking out to David Lee Roth or Rick James at a karaoke club. Usually, however, the latest Academic Star in UNL's College of Arts and Sciences can be found tinkering with equipment in his office or making the rounds of departments he supports, in search of projects and good conversation.

For the last three and a half years, Miller has worked as a technology support specialist for several of the college's departments, including geosciences and anthropology. He and his graduate student assistant spend their days monitoring servers, setting up equipment for faculty, and fixing problems.

"I like to keep busy, so when we don't have urgent work, we do preventative maintenance in the labs," Miller said. "I also walk through the halls; I call it ‘doing the rounds.' You'd be amazed at how much work you pick up just walking down the hallways. People will grab me and say, ‘While I've got you here, can I ask for your help with something?'"

Constant activity and engagement is important to Miller, a native of O'Neill, Neb., who hates being bored and has no interest in sitting at his desk waiting for work to find him.

"I consider myself very much in the service industry," he said. "I have customers that need to be taken care of, and I am not just going to wait for them to come to me. I like to go out and build those relationships. I like to be visible. Work is more fun that way, too."

When he's off the clock, Miller relishes taking a break from computers. He jumps on his bike, or parks his camper at a lake near Lincoln and enjoys a breather from technology. Once in a while, he grabs a mic and hits the stage for karaoke. But when Monday morning rolls around, Miller – who has received both monthly and annual Applause Awards, which recognize exemplary employees in the college - greets the new week with genuine enthusiasm.

"I love the work that I do," he said. "I'm lucky, because when I wake up in the morning I don't have to talk myself into coming to work. I get to work with great people, and that's what makes it easy to come in to work every day. The university is a wonderful place to be."

The Dynamic Duo: Leann Messing and Linda Mahloch bring 75 years of experience to UNL's English department

Linda Mahloch loves opera, and has traveled the world in search of great performances.

LeAnn Messing is most at home in her garden, elbow deep in dirt.

Both are equally happy at work as at play, and together they possess 75 years of professional experience in UNL's English department. It is a staggering amount of shared history and institutional knowledge.

Technological leaps –the shift from typewriters and a clunky phone system to computers and email – and a changing and diversifying student body have marked their tenure in the College of Arts and Sciences. Messing, the department's office supervisor, remembers students organizing Vietnam War protests when she began working on campus. Today, both women are amazed at the range of students, staff and faculty they come in contact with on a daily basis.

Mainly, the two women are grateful to have jobs that they love.

"The people I work with are all outstanding employees," said Mahloch, business manager for the department. "They are very professional and good at what they do, and that of course makes the department look good."

Messing echoes this sentiment.

"Everybody chips in around here, this is a great department to work in," she said. "In addition to faculty and administrators, right now we have the best group of support staff we've ever had. You can count on them to always help when needed. We've got the cream of the crop."

Over the years, Messing and Mahloch have also forged close ties with colleagues in other departments.

"One danger in a very big department is that you tend to get isolated, focused in, and think, ‘We're it,'" Mahloch said. "It's really important to get out to the broader university to see how things work. When you get together with a group of people and start throwing out ideas, very often you'll come up with a way to change procedures or processes."

Of course, their most enduring professional relationship is with each other. The women think of themselves as Lucy and Ethel, and they manage to squeeze a fair amount of goofiness and enjoyment into their busy workdays.

"We have a lot of fun," Mahloch said. "Some people say we remind them of an old married couple; we talk over each other, and can read each others' minds."

Through floods in the building, communications upgrades, staffing changes and a few ill-advised escapades, Mahloch and Messing remain beloved and reliable fixtures in the English department.

When it comes to the comparison with two beloved sitcom stars, who's who?

"She's Lucy, I'm Ethel," Messing said. "We're always jumping right in and doing things, even at times when it probably isn't the best idea. Linda hired me to supervise the office in 1973. She's guided me along the way, teaching me all kinds of things. To work with someone that long, and still work well together is amazing."

All in the Family: Dawn Braithwaite explores communication dynamics in the families we inherit and the families we choose

Dawn O. Braithwaite, Willa Cather Professor of Communication Studies, has accumulated enough accolades to fill several academic journals. She was awarded the National Communication Association's Brommel Award for Outstanding Scholarship and Service in Family Communication in 2006, and the UNL College of Arts & Sciences Award for Outstanding Research and Creative Achievement in 2002. She is currently first vice president of the National Communication Association and will be the association's president in 2010.

Dawn's research focuses on communication in personal and family relationships, communication in stepfamilies and chosen (fictive) families, and communication rituals.

From Columns Magazine: Movies, cooking magazines and greeting cards lead us to believe that holiday dinners should materialize as loving family tableaus straight out of Norman Rockwell paintings.

In reality, life rarely mirrors the cover of the Saturday Evening Post, and sometimes those loving families are a bit more nontraditional. Voluntary kin—people who feel like family, but to whom we are not related by blood or law—are a significant part of peoples' support systems, according to Dawn O. Braithwaite, Willa Cather Professor of Communications at UNL.

Braithwaite and colleagues at UNL, the University of Iowa, and the University of Montana are in the midst of their second research study of voluntary kin, also called chosen or fictive kin.

These relationships are born out of a variety of circumstances. Sometimes, a death in the family can lead people to substitute a new relationship in place of a bond with a lost loved one. For example, one woman Braithwaite interviewed lost her son, and over time she formed a mother-son bond with his best friend.

For most people, voluntary families are supplemental to their blood and legal families. For example, at holidays they may choose to spend time with voluntary kin with whom they feel closer, maybe because these people share their values. They may also feel that these voluntary family members understand or accept them more than their blood and legal relatives.

The knitting together of blood and fictive kin can enrich family gatherings and life in general. In her current research on the challenges of having both blood and voluntary families, Braithwaite is discovering that many people knit these two families together, sometimes in such a close way that they become seamless. Legal and voluntary relatives will gather for special occasions, and over time, the "two" families become one.

Braithwaite is encouraged by these findings, and feels they are useful to her friends and colleagues in Lincoln.

"This idea is especially relevant in a college town," she said. "When we do have family around us, I think we should take the challenge of looking to see if there are people around us—students, faculty, staff —who aren't going to have family around at the holidays, and then finding ways to include them. This doesn't exactly fit the definition of voluntary family, but it's still an important thing to do. As a community we have an obligation."

Read the Scarlet article

Renaissance Woman: Lindsay Kerns spins her UCARE research on an 18th-century English sailorwoman into theater and film

A student in both the College of Fine and Performing Arts and the College of Arts and Sciences, Lindsay Kerns is in her second year of an Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences grant. Alongside Willa Cather Professor of History Carole Levin, she has conducted UCARE research about dreams, saints, witches, madwomen, Queen Elizabeth I and Shakespeare.

In addition to her scholarly work, Lindsay has embarked on her own project: she is writing a play and research paper about the life of Mary Ann Talbot, an 18th-century English sailorwoman. Lindsay is also currently filming a modern loose adaptation of Talbot's story set on the prairie.

Read more about Lindsay Kerns in Student Achievements

 

Red state, blue state: for political scientist John Hibbing, politics is a state of mind

For political scientist John Hibbing, politics is a state of mind.

John is an internationally respected scholar of the American political process, and has studied extensively the factors that influence voters' decision making. His unique work combines quantitative scientific research with a philosophical approach to political science.

In September, John and his colleagues published a study in the journal Science, which showed that an individual's physiological reaction to sudden noises and threatening visual images can predict variations in political beliefs. The study, which was supported by the National Science Foundation, built on his earlier research examining the role of genetics in shaping political temperaments and attitudes.

John's work has received attention from Time magazine, the Washington Post, and Wired News, just to name a few publications.

John joined Nebraska's faculty as an assistant professor in 1981, and was named a Foundation Regents Professor in 2001. He has taught courses and written books and articles on biology and social behavior, American politics, legislative politics and public opinion.

Eileen's Web: One lab. 3,000 spiders. Career-defining research. Biology professor Eileen Hebets explores spider communications

Eileen Hebets, a professor in the School of Biological Sciences, actively involves students of all levels - especially undergraduates - in her research on evolution and diversification of animal communication systems.

She has received a prestigious Career grant from the National Science Foundation, and this spring, she received the Harold and Esther Edgerton Young Faculty Award from the university, in recognition of her outstanding teaching and research.

 

Kenneth Price and Katherine Walter: Taking A Byte Out Of Digital Humanities - UNL researchers build a global reputation

The team behind the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities spans the University Libraries and the College of Arts and Sciences, and engages faculty, staff and students who are defining new paradigms for scholarly research in the humanities.

They are using the World Wide Web and other alternative media to publish their research in new and exciting ways.