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Other By Michelle Anderson The Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center now has a new face fol lowing the appointment of Dr. Joseph Jordan as the center's director this past July. Jordan replaced Harry Amana, a professor of jour nalism and mass commu nication at the University, who had served as the BCC's interim director since 1999. Black Ink staff writer Michelle Anderson spent an afternoon getting to know about Jordan. When asked of his first impressions of UNC- CH, Dr. Joseph Jordan said that while he thought the campus atmosphere was good in general, he noticed reser\'ations and coolness from some students. Jordan said the uneasiness might be because of feel ings shared by students that are not necessarily said out loud. As the new director of the Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center, Jordan said he wants to reverse that impression. His goals are to work hard with integrity and consciousness, and cre ate a new way to understand the Africana experience. He said he hopes to do this by going beyond the center itself and sp)eak- ing to the sensibilities we help to create in p>eople's minds. And he w'ants to have a good time while doing it. Jordan said his immediate con cerns at the time are a number of political issues including the high incarceration rate in black communities, finding ways to understand black communities and the ways to understand black cultural forma- I tions in an age of unbridled capitalism. He said he is also interested in the con tinued fight for African freedom as well as ties of solidar ity between Africans and other progres sive peoples. Jordan, the for mer head of Atlanta's Auburn Avenue Research Library on African-American Culture, was appointed as the center's new director in July "This is my first opportu nity to address the community in the role i transition into a permanent space and when everyone is totally committed to the Center's continued success". Jordan said he looks forward to the moment when Amana's words will truly be "history" and when everyone can fully realize the vision and dream of Dr. Stone. Jordan was born in East Elmhurst of Queens, N.Y., the grandson of Trinidadian immigrants. Jordan moved to Portsmouth, Virg. when he was a little boy. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Norfolk State University. He also holds a Master of Arts in African American Studies and a Master of Science in Preventive Medicine from Ohio State University. Jordan earned his doctorate in African Studies from Howard University. Jordan said he enjoys traveling to other countries, including Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America. He said he likes political music from different places includ ing the genres of Latin jazz, charanga, son, and some salsa Trinidad calypso. He enjoys all aspects of the Africana cul- Also, he prefers read- tures. ing and look ing of Director of the Sonya Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center," Jordan said in July "At the outset I would like to thank the search committee and the students, staff and faculty who took time to talk with me during the search process." Jordan said that he quickly learned the important significance of the Center and the legacy of Dr. Stone, much of which he learned from then-interim director, Harry Amana. Earlier in the year, Amana said "The new director will be privileged to take the reins at a time when all systems are go; when preparation will begin for the at films with political themes. Jordan, who describes ^ himself as ® "painfully « impractical, » % said actions f. ' I- are more • ^ "well meaning words". He said his inspi rations include Ella Baker, CLR James, Amilcar Cabral, Che Guevara, Herbert Apthekar, Geronimo, Tecumseh, his moth er, and many others. Jordan said his vision for the BCC is to ensure that it encourages all who worked for its creation to keep pressing on. He also hopes that the freestanding build ing will be known nationally and interna tionally as a place where culture, con sciousness, careful intellectual reflection, and uncompromising scholarship are nur tured. 3 Black INK
Black Ink (Black Student Movement, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
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