Overview of the Item |
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| Repository: | The HistoryMakers | |
| 1900 S. Michigan Avenue | ||
| Chicago, Illinois 60616 | ||
| (312) 674-1900 | ||
| info@thehistorymakers.com | ||
| http://www.thehistorymakers.com | ||
| Interviewer: | Samuel Adams | |
| Videographer: | Scott Stearns | |
| Title: | Video Oral History Interview with Na'im Akbar | |
| Dates: | April 22, 2002 | |
| Abstract: | (ABSTRACT) | |
| Quantity: | 7 Betacam SP videocassettes, 1 half-Hollinger box containing (NUMBER) folders of accompanying materials. | |
| Identification: | A2002.048 | |
| Language: | The interviews and records are in English | |
Distinguished African American psychologist Na'im Akbar was born on April 26, 1944, in Tallahassee, Florida. Originally given the name Luther Benjamin Weems, Jr., Akbar changed his name in 1971 after joining the Nation of Islam. Akbar attended the Florida A&M University Laboratory School through high school, graduating in 1961. Akbar attended the University of Michigan to complete his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees in psychology.
Prior to attending the University of Michigan, Akbar lived within a completely African American social environment. His freshman year of college marked the first time he had real contact with whites. At the University of Michigan, Akbar was active with the Black Action Movement (BAM) strike that closed down classes for three weeks during the late 1960s. After receiving his Ph.D., Akbar accepted a position in the Psychology Department at Morehouse College in Atlanta. There he instituted Morehouse's first black psychology course and eventually developed probably the first Black Psychology program at a historically black college or university. Within two years, he became chair of the department.
Akbar left Morehouse after five years to work with the Nation of Islam's headquarters in Chicago to start their Office of Human Development. After two years, Akbar joined the faculty of Norfolk State University, again instituting courses in black psychology. In 1979, Akbar accepted a faculty position at Florida State University.
In 1971, Akbar became active with the Association of Black Psychologists, the largest black mental health professional organization in the world. He has served on its board for numerous terms and was elected president in 1987. The Association has bestowed all of its most prestigious awards on Akbar for his professional contributions.
Akbar continues to teach a specialized course on the psychology of the African American at Florida State University. In the late 1980s, he formed his own publishing company, Mind Productions, and a private consulting company, Na'im Akbar Consultants, to bring his teaching to a wider audience.
Selected Bibliography
Akbar, Na'im, Breaking the Chains of Psychological Slavery, Tallahassee: Mind Productions & Associates, Inc., 1996.
Akbar, Na'im, Know Thy Self, Tallahassee: Mind Productions & Associates, Inc., 1999.
Akbar, Na'im, Visions for Black Men, Tallahassee: Mind Productions & Associates, Inc., 1991.
Biographical Note by The HistoryMakers®
This life oral history interview with Na'im Akbar was conducted by Samuel Adams on 2002-04-22 in Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Tallahassee, FL and is recorded on 7 30-minute Betacam SP videocassettes. Access copies exist on Betacam SP, VHS, DVD and MPEG-1. The interview contains information on (COMPLETE ONE SENTENCE DESCRIPTION OF INTERVIEW). Accompanying materials in the collection include Na'im Akbar's correspondence with The HistoryMakers® related to the interview; a copy of the signed release form and the production report; the biographical information used by the interviewer to prepare for the interview (DETAILS); paper copies of the interview transcripts, 3 1/2" floppy disks with electronic copies of the transcripts; selected quotes for video clips; photocopies of photographs captured on video; XML files with metadata created in editing and cataloguing the interview for The HistoryMakers Digital Video Library; and paper copies of these XML files.
Access to paper records is restricted. Other restrictions may be applied on a case-by-case basis.
All use of materials must be pre-approved by The HistoryMakers® and appropriate credit must be given. All use credits must be pre-approved by The HistoryMakers®. Copyright is held by The HistoryMakers®.
Index Terms |
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| This record series is indexed under the following controlled access terms. | ||
| Contributors: | ||
| Adams, Samuel | ||
| Akbar, Na'im, 1944- | ||
| Stearns, Scott | ||
| Persons: | ||
| (PERSONS) | ||
| Corporate Bodies: | ||
| (CORPORATE BODIES) | ||
| Family Names: | ||
| Akbar | ||
| Places: | ||
| (PLACES) | ||
| Subjects: | ||
| (SUBJECTS) | ||
| Document Types: | ||
| Video oral history interview | ||
| Titles: | ||
| The HistoryMakers® Video Oral History Interview with Na'im Akbar | ||
Accompanying materials: Accompanying materials are filed in (NUMBER) folders in a half-Hollinger box and shelved at The HistoryMakers® Archives and Collection Library by accession number, separately from the videos.
Betacam, VHS, DVD and MPEG-1 access copies are held for in-house use at The HistoryMakers®; Betacam SP, VHS and DVD playback hardware is provided for in-house viewing of the access copies; MPEG-1 copies are searchable and viewable via a digital video database.
The HistoryMakers® Video Oral History Interview with Na'im Akbar, April 22, 2002. The HistoryMakers® African American Video Oral History Collection, 1900 S. Michigan Avenue Chicago, Illinois.