Although Black faculty have been present in the academy since the late nineteenth century it
has been during the twentieth century that they have established a presence which has had
political cultural and epistemological implications. This book focuses on contemporary
successful Black scholars in the academy: they have become tenured and promoted been
recognized as noteworthy scholars researchers and as excellent teachers and have served in
leadership capacities. Through autoethnographic narratives that illustrate and interrogate
experiences about being in the academy as gendered race classed and sexually oriented others
this book captures the diverse voices of Black men and women achievers who have not only
survived but also thrived. Their candor will inspire others to negotiate normative milieu and
make manifest their legitimacy and right to belong.
