Contact Us | African & African Diaspora Studies

Solidarity with protestors condemning racial violence and calling for reform

The recent senseless murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Milwaukee’s Joel Acevedo highlight the ongoing racial violence Black Americans suffer daily. The scourge of state violence in the forms of police brutality and lack of justice for crimes against black bodies are only two of many manifestations of our country’s deep history of anti-black racism. The disproportionate burden of sickness and death African Americans have borne due to structural inequities during the COVID-19 pandemic adds to the body count of preventable deaths.

Current protests continue the legacy of resistance to systems perpetuating racial inequalities experienced in mass incarceration, hypersegregation, employment insecurity, disproportionate poverty, political disenfranchisement, healthcare disparities, and more. Although white supremacist groups have shamefully infiltrated protests to start fires, destroy property, and cast suspicion onto black-led demonstrations, the cry of protestors for racial justice and equality must be upheld.

The Department of African and African Diaspora Studies was founded to elevate the voices, stories, value, human dignity and beauty of people of African descent, long suppressed and negated. As we collectively grieve those we have lost, we will continue to stand with those who resist the erasure of black people and their voices.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, be aware that any contact phone numbers found on this site may not be monitored. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the person you’re trying to reach by email.

Department Chair

Anika Wilson
email: awilson@uwm.edu

Undergraduate Advisor

Ermitte St. Jacques
email: saintjac@uwm.edu

Graduate Advisor

Peter Akubeze
email: akubeze@uwm.edu

Academic Department Associate

Rachel Hegland
Phone: 414-229-4155
email: rhegland@uwm.edu

Mailing Address

Department of African and African Diaspora Studies
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
P.O. Box 413
Milwaukee, WI 53201

Building Address:

Department of African and African Diaspora Studies
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Mitchell Hall 225
3203 N. Downer Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53211

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Parking
Paid parking is available in the UWM Union Parking Garage (2200 E. Kenwood Blvd) and the Pavilion Parking Garage (3409 N. Downer Ave.). Short-term free and metered parking is available on Kenwood Blvd, Downer Ave, Stowell Ave, Linwood Ave, and Prospect Ave.

Public Transportation
Milwaukee County Transit System buses regularly run the perimeter of the campus on Edgewood Ave., Downer Ave., Kenwood Blvd., and Oakland Ave., and through campus on Hartford and Maryland. For buses and route information, please check the Milwaukee County Transit System website.