Come learn about ‘Lesbian Cuban hip hop artists’ and ‘Afghan feminist’ rappers at Florida International University
Florida International University’s African & African Diaspora Studies program is offering a course on “Race, Gender and Sexuality in Hip Hop,” that focuses heavily on topics described as “guerrilla pedagogy,” “hip hop & sex education,” and the “Black ratchet imagination.”
According to the course description, students will study “Lesbian Cuban hip hop artists…an Afghan feminist rapper…African immigrant hip hop artists in China…and the transglobal hip hop umma (Muslim community).”
The course, offered this spring semester and on a regular basis, is taught by Professor Abby Gondek, who holds advanced degrees in socio-cultural studies as well as women’s studies. The course also fulfills the Global Learning general education requirement at FIU in which students study “the process of diverse people working together to analyze and address complex problems that transcend borders and take actions that promote individual and collective well-being.”
Weekly topics listed throughout the course syllabus also include “Womanism,” “Nicki Minaj, Missy Elliot & Krudas: Queering the Mic,” and “Whiteness, Jewishness and masculinity.” The course will include a “critical analysis of readings from the course through the lens of race, gender, and sexuality.” “They will be expected to teach this ‘hip hop pedagogy’ to friends/family.”
One of the course’s primary assignments, worth 20 percent of the grade, requires students to create “hip hop lyrics, tracks, and/or videos inspired by course themes” while conducting outreach to “raise awareness about the themes we’ve discussed in the course.”
The College Fix reached out to Gondek twice via email to request clarification on several terms used in her syllabus and to ask for comment academic value of the course but did not receive a response.
The Fix also called and emailed FIU through its African & African diaspora studies program and history department to attempt to receive more details on the course or a contact to Gondek. The taxpayer-funded university did not respond to multiple requests for comment in the past several months. The Fix also reached out to the school to inquire about its perspective on the academic or career benefits of the course but did not receive a response.
Gondek addresses strict language policies in her syllabus, warning students against using or repeating “racist, sexist, homophobic and other offensive comments,” that are likely to appear in course materials. The syllabus provides details on how to reference these slurs in students’ work.
Students must “demonstrate knowledge of the interrelated local, global, international, and intercultural issues, trends, and systems that influence and shape Hip Hop culture,” the syllabus reads.
However, a higher education expert criticized the course’s content and speech policies.
“Higher education should remain a forum for robust debate and diverse ideas — not one that encourages self-censorship or ideological conformity,” Madison Doan, an education expert with the Heritage Foundation, told The Fix via email.
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When asked about the course’s potential academic value, Doan suggested that “while it’s reasonable for a university to offer courses that touch on the cultural and social aspects of hip-hop as an art form, applying frameworks like intersectionality and concepts such as guerrilla pedagogy raises important questions about academic balance and intellectual diversity.”
“It’s equally important to ensure that academic inquiry remains grounded in objective analysis and open debate, rather than prioritizing ideological activism that may limit a student’s ability to form independent, evidence-based conclusions,” Doan said. She is also the co-author of a new book about Ivy League curricula.
The syllabus also states that students will “consistently be asked to question their own assumptions, privileges, prejudices.” The Fix asked Doan what the outcome of this approach may look like.
“Encouraging students to engage in self-reflection and examine their beliefs can be a constructive academic exercise when approached with balance and genuine openness,” Doan said. “However, it becomes problematic when it presumes that every student carries inherent biases based on outward characteristics like race, gender, or background, and frames personal identity as the primary lens through which knowledge must be viewed.”
“Parents, students, taxpayers, and university leaders have a responsibility to ask whether courses like this meaningfully contribute to a student’s intellectual growth, civic engagement, and preparation for the workforce,” she said. “Is the course generating new knowledge and fostering analytical thought, or is it promoting a narrow ideological viewpoint that discourages independent reasoning?”
She called for a “clear, thoughtful evaluation” of whether courses like this one are a good use of taxpayer dollars. Classes, she said, should “prioritize open inquiry, individual merit, and skills applicable to students’ personal and professional development.”
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IMAGE CAPTION AND CREDIT: A rap performance at the University of Michigan; University of Michigan Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion/Instagram
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