The dispersal of people of African descent to different locations in the globe has become the focus of many studies on how this dispersal shaped and is shaping the creation of communities, cultures, religions and politics outside the boundaries of the "native" homelands. Yet, African diasporas have not existed in isolations from other diasporas and immigrants communities, they have rather influenced and being influenced by other cultures and by the existing socio-economic and political circumstances in old and new locations. This course examines the gendered meanings associated with mobility, travel, and dislocation in the context of colonization, globalization, and transnational movements. We will examine the meanings of identity construction, race, class, and place making as Africans (in the diasporas) struggle to create their own social spaces within new setting and with reference to their "real" and "imagined" homelands. Focusing on the 'dynamics of black diasporas' has become a central concern for DAAS, that we as teachers and students attempt to document and understand. AAS 211 builds upon the foundation of AAS 111 and satisfies as well the 200-level "cross-area" requirement for concentrators.