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Sankofa: A (Re)search Model for (Re)membering, (Re)storing, and (Re)birthing Black Boys and Men

Description

A (Re)search Model for (Re)membering, (Re)storing, and (Re)birthing Black Boys and Men, offers an innovative framework for conducting liberatory research rooted in African-centered thought and praxis. Drawing from the authors’ extensive work in African American Male Theory (AAMT) and decades of direct engagement with Black boys and men through rites-of-passage programs, educational initiatives, and cultural immersion experiences, this book presents a transformative methodology inspired by the spirit of Sankofa—an African concept that emphasizes reclaiming the past to guide the future.

Grounded in African philosophy, cosmology, and spirituality, this volume introduces the Sankofa/Healer Model Framework, a three-pronged approach encompassing (Re)search Model for (Re)membering, (Re)storing, and (Re)birthing. Each step calls for rigorous, culturally aligned inquiry to uncover the truth, reintegrate fragmented histories and identities, and breathe life into healing narratives that empower Black boys and men to achieve their highest potential.

The authors challenge deficit-based paradigms, such as critical race counter-narratives, by rejecting pejorative framing and centering African cosmology’s restorative power. The book offers a revolutionary perspective on the researcher’s role as a healer, emphasizing the use of “divine words” to inspire freedom, dignity, and self-actualization. Through vivid storytelling, theoretical depth, and practical guidance, the authors build on the teachings of African scholars like Asa Hilliard, III, and the ancient tale of Ausar and Auset to illuminate the transformative possibilities of research that honors African traditions and epistemologies.

Designed for researchers, educators, and practitioners in Africana Studies and related fields, Sankofa equips readers with tools to decolonize methodologies, critique dominant frameworks, and create scholarship that liberates and restores the narratives of Black boys and men. This essential guide advances the Little Black Book Series’ mission to elevate pure, decolonized Black thought and empower scholars to create impactful, community-centered research.

Listen to the author’s video for more insight.

Authors and Contributors

Lawson Bush, Ph.D.

Lawson Bush V, Ph.D. is the Chair of Pan-African Studies department at Cal State LA. Rooted in Pan-Africanism, Nana Dr. Bush employs a Pentecostal-revolutionary pedagogy – teaching from and to the spirit to foster a liberatory praxis. His approach to teaching is reflected in his research as he aims to contemporaneously disrupt power relations and to build programs, institutions, and states on the best of African philosophies and practices. He has published 5 books, including The Plan: A Guide for Women Raising African American Boys from Conception to College and The Plan Workbook, and 36 academic articles. Most notably, he published the first-ever comprehensive theory concerning Black boys and men called African American Male Theory (AAMT). Nana is a traditional Akan priest and healer. He is the father or baba of many children, but he has 3 biological – two daughters, one a medical doctor, one in medical school, and a son in his second year at Howard University.

Author profile

Amiri Mahnzili, Ph.D.

Amiri Mahnzili, Ph.D. is an author and theorist whose work and research centers on a Pan-Afrikan theoretical approach to pedagogy. Obtaining his PhD from Claremont Graduate University in Cultural Studies with an emphasis on Africana Studies, Dr. Mahnzili’s dissertation Reshaping Black Brilliance: Toward the Development and Implementation of a Pan-Afrikan Pedagogy explores a multitude of themes concerning the lived experiences of the Afrikan Diaspora including but not limited to: Afrofuturism, Ante-Modernity, Anti-Colonial Movements, and pre-colonial Afrikan epistemology. Dr. Mahnzili also conducts Rites-of-Passage manhood training programs for young men throughout Southern California, which proved an instrumental resource for his theorizations for this text. Dr. Mahnzili’s love and passion for Afrikan/Black people is exuded in his works and theorizations, his desire for Afrikan people to think beyond the confines and limitations of oppression and anti-Blackness in order to imagine a world and existence beyond these restricting ideations of the Black experience. Dr. Mahnzili is a loving father to his two children, Aynalem and Adonai, and a committed husband to his wife, Elilta.

Author profile

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