Research Symposium

BIO

Hello! My name is Michelle Gunn and I am currently a dedicated student at Florida State University. Originally from Orlando, Florida, I am an International Affairs major with a concentration in Public Administration. My interests are marginalized in global politics and the Public Administration field. I aspire to one day own a non-profit organization aimed at solving the issues amongst the Black Diaspora. I initially wanted to join this research project because I liked that it wanted to redefine the image of Black people through the lens of Black Joy.

The Omnipresence of Black Joy

Abstract

Often in the media and the news, Black people are painted in a negative light. This research project aims to redefine these negative stereotypes and offer positive narratives that are associated with Black people and Black joy. To redefine the understanding of the Black experience, the researchers of this project first used the cumulative knowledge from academic-based literature reviews to create a website that disseminates research and stories of Black Joy. While using the Kujima Theory of Collective Self-Motivation, this platform plans to include surveys completed by Black students at Florida State University to better understand what Black Joy means to them. Finally, by synthesizing information from academic literature, people's lived experiences, music, and the previously mentioned surveys, this project will be used to inform the development of a new curriculum used in public universities. This curriculum
will be focused on Black Joy as a path to physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being. The research method for this project is ongoing, as the researchers continue to gather academic literature and garner responses to their survey.

Keywords: Black people, Joy, Community, Resistance, Pride