Examines demands, problems, and responsibilities facing the Black academic professional in the field of Afro-American studies. Holds that failure to understand fully the field and the special circumstances of its professionals leads to unfair and inaccurate assessments of their work as academicians and professionals. (Author/GC)

Discusses the proposition that the black studies movement is but a continuing aspect of our general battle for survival and liberation in a fluctuatingly hostile environment, and that a part of what is seen today in the black studies movement is but a fluctuation in a fight and an expression of black collective awareness dating back to the…

Argues that Black Studies teachers are frequently inadequately prepared: most receive training within an intellectual tradition that has largely overlooked the actualities of racial relations. Discusses twentieth century developments in the "sociology of knowledge," especially with regard to the possibilities of defining a "Black Epistemic" within…