![]() ![]() That same passion recently led Shanita to acquire her M.A. in 2012, she has continued to pursue her passion for providing underserved and underrepresented student populations with college access opportunities and scholarships by working in and with the Office of Admissions, Financial Aid, and serving as the advisor for various multicultural and performance organizations on campus. Shanita Mitchell currently serves as the Assistant Director for the Rappahannock Scholars Program at the University of Mary Washington. I hope this column encourages members of the BIPOC community to build spaces that are authentically reflective of their personal style, culture, and preferred method of communication, and promote multimodal/audiovisual autoethnography as a viable investigative method. In addition, engaging with topics in an inclusive manner that transcends past barriers that have separated the academic and general population is fundamental to the column’s working mission. It prompts audiences to reexamine preconceived notions surrounding respectability politics and scholarship. ![]() The column title itself is a nod to this goal. It examines the prescriptive, limiting rules that often dictate how one is recognized as an academic by the community. The Twerking Academic seeks to probe and question the established idea of what constitutes an academic. Themes explored include bodily autonomy, stereotypes, mental health, and the experience of the Black female academic. A written memo supplements each piece explaining context and speaking to significant themes within the work. Audiences can view each audiovisual piece independently. Column installments include an audiovisual piece that focuses on exploring, processing, and communicating meaningful personal experiences that also offer a voice to the experiences of the wider cultural community. The Twerking Academic is dedicated to exploring the multilayered lived experience of Black womanhood using multimodal autoethnographic expression. The Twerking Academic: Visual Exploration of Black Womanhood This piece is a salute to the transformational beauty and magic of cosplay and all the laughter it inspires. What matters is that I, a Black woman, am out taking up space in these fantasy worlds and proudly injecting many of these characters with a dose of color. Throughout my time as a cosplayer, I have seen that my costumed presence in public spaces inspires laughter. But what happens when a witch is black and beautiful?ĭespite its lack of mainstream appeal, hundreds of cosplayers brave the streets and cons every year dressed in full character regalia innocently intent on bringing joy to themselves and anyone who also enjoys the craft and fanfare. ![]() ![]() How does one casually tell another person that they love to embody different characters that they have encountered in film, TV, and literature by dressing up in elaborate costumes and parading around in public? After all, donning a costume is far from a socially acceptable practice outside the month of October or a formal stage. “So, what do you like to do for fun in your free time?” This question, often meant to be casual, always inspires a secret laugh within me because I know that my answer will spiral the questioner into a place they did not anticipate. The Twerking Academic: What Happens When A Witch Is Black & Beautiful? ![]()
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