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The purpose of this research is to explore the complications of the expansion of School Choice Programs (SCP) and the integration of an African-centered curriculum, education, thought, and schools into American public schools and school choice programs. The complications deal with the issues of the Zero Tolerance Policy (ZTP), No Excuses Model, School to Prison Pipeline (STPP), and discriminatory practices that impact students of color at a higher rate than whites such as racial and economic segregation, expulsions, suspensions, and dropout rates, which evidence shows leads to juvenile and incarceration arrests. In order to correct the complications, the framework of African Centered Thought (ACT) based on Dr. Jacob Carruthers, and Critical Race Theory (CRT) should be implemented into the SCP for an African centered curriculum, education, thought, and schools.

The objective of the paper is to review the works of several important scholars on cultural imperialism, neocolonialism and class struggle in Africa. In order to understand the forces of neo-colonialism and the class struggle in Africa along with the development of African consciousness and African Centered Thought, there must be a review of some of the most critical scholarship of African thinkers. To accomplish this objective we review the works of several widely read and appreciated scholars including: W.E.B. Du Bois who was a proponent of Pan-Africanism, Kwame Nkrumah and Frantz Fanon who maintained Pan-African and Marxist-socialist views, Julius Nyerere who was a Pan-Africanist and an African socialist, Jacob Carruthers who maintained African centered perspectives, Claude Ake who held both Marxist-socialist and African centered views, and Walter Rodney who held both a Pan-Africanist and Marxist-socialistic views.

This paper will analyze the scholarly works and ideals of Black feminist, feminist, womanist, Pan Africanist, and Africana womanist thinkers to address the progress of Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, sexism, racism, and Afrofuturism. To address racism, sexism must be addressed first to challenge the structures of power to pursue equality and equity for all. Through the systematic lens of Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, and Afrofuturism will help with approaches to challenge the sexism and racism that dwells in our culture and society. Many academic scholars have added to the foundation of Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, and Afrofuturism that have been overlooked by the hegemonic culture. The paper will analyze those academic works from Maria Stewart, Angela Davis, Anna Julia Cooper, Alice Walker, Betty Friedan, bell hooks, Elizabeth Spelman, Kimberle Crenshaw, Sandra Harding, Clenora-Hudson Weems, Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi, Marie Pauline Eboh, and Patricia Hill Collins, who have added to the advancement of Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, and Afrofuturism. Afrofuturism was established with the ideas, ideals, minds, writings, thoughts, actions, and experiences of the women in the Africa/ African Diaspora. Afrofuturism is a philosophy that discovers the art and beauty of the African/ African diaspora. Also, is used to create a world the has a space and time for black bodies to live within their culture. Womanhood is Afrofuturism. By this definition, the feminist outline has engulfed different issues ranging from political rights to educational opportunities within a worldwide setting. The Black feminist plan is determined to make headway on these issues and concentrations on those that are priority to African-American women. According to Patricia Hill Collins, Black feminism: “… is a thought stating that sexism, class oppression, gender identity and racism are inextricably bound together.” These terms mentioned above are grouped together to form a concept called intersectionality, which was introduced by a legal scholar, Kimberle Crenshaw in 1989. Crenshaw discussed in her that Black feminism, contests the experience of being a black woman who cannot be understood in terms of being black or of being a woman. On the other hand, each concept should be understood separately while maintaining the experiences that occur to establish each other. Activist and author Angela Davis was one of the first people to organize an argument on intersectionality from her book, Women, Race, and Class (1981). Anna Julia Cooper added that black feminism is necessary, because: “the vital agency of womanhood in the regeneration and progress of a race, as a general question is conceded almost before it is fairly stated. I confess one of the difficulties for me in the subject assigned lay in its obviousness. The plea is taken away by the opposite attorney’s granting the whole question.” By examining the ideals and theories of black feminist thought in race and power, there will be a connection made between the works of black feminist authors, womanist thinkers, Pan African thinkers, and Africana woman thinkers who have relevance in Black feminism. Black feminism, womanism, and Africana womanism allows for examination of sexism and racism that is deeply-rooted in the institutions and systems of American society. In the speech, “Ain’t I a Woman” (1851), Sojourner Truth discussed sexism and racism in the statement: “…I am a woman’s rights. I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much as any man. …I have heard much about the sexes being equal; I can carry as much as any man, and can eat as much too, if I can get it. I am strong as any man that is now. As for intellect, all I can say is, if women have a pint and man a quart- why can’t she have her little pint full? You need not be afraid to give us our rights for fear we will take too much, for we can’t take more than pint’ll hold. Through God who created him and woman who bore him. Man, where is your part?” The institutional sexism and racism are forceful in the hegemonic culture. Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, and Afrofuturism is used as a systematic lens to examine existing power structures. The theory analyzes these power structures which are based on white privileged and white supremacy and sustains alienate people of color. Ultimately, Black feminism, womanism, Africana womanism, and Afrofuturism critically examines society and culture through the scopes of race, law and power.

In this paper, the objectives and mission of AFRICOM will be examined in comparison to its actual practices to assess the true nature of its presence in Africa and its impact on the class struggle of Africans. To fully understand the interest of the United States in Africa; US foreign policy, and the establishment of United States’ Africa Command (AFRICOM), one must examine these concepts for understanding. Discussing the history of the United States capabilities, intentions and motivations is necessary for insight for interpreting the past, present, and future of Africa and its’ relationship with the US. This research will help examine if AFRICOM is an instrument of US foreign policy in the form of neo-colonialism or diplomacy and the impact to the class struggle to Africans. Kwame Nkrumah stated that neo-colonialism: “…is a greater danger to independent countries than is colonialism. …In neo-colonialism, however, the people are divided from their leaders and, instead of providing true leadership and guidance which is informed at every point by the ideal of the general welfare, leaders come to neglect the very people who put them in power and incautiously become instruments of suppression on behalf of the neo-colonialism.” Also, this paper will offer insight on if the interests of Africans and African Americans are really served by Africans. Peter Pham’s research concluded that AFRICOM has been viewed by some policymakers and commentators as a US foreign policy used to colonize Africa. Tsenay Serequeberhan concluded that the United States is plays apart in neo-colonialism. He stated: “Today, in the last decade of the twentieth century, the United States is the dominant superpower and the harbinger of a new ‘new world order’ dominated by the West (i.e., NATO). In fact, paraphrasing Lenin and Nkrumah, one could describe this ‘new world order’ as the latest, if not the highest, stage of neocolonialism in which the United States, under the guise of the United Nations, rules the world, and smart bombs enforce ‘international law’.” AFRICOM should be examined and analyzed to see if the mission of AFRICOM is meeting its objectives. Concluded by Peter Pham, AFRICOM was established to “bring peace and security to the people of Africa and promote US common goals of development, health, education, democracy and economic growth in Africa by strengthening bilateral and multilateral security of cooperation with African states and creating new opportunities to uplift their capabilities.” From Pham’s research, there are concerns from the people of Africa and within the United States that the interest of Africa is not the same under AFRICOM. To know if AFRICOM is an instrument of US foreign policy, one must analyze the US foreign policies of post-colonial United States administration with Africa and the interest in Africa to find patterns, trends, and underlying economic interests. The theoretical framework of which this research will be analyze through is the theories of power elite and dependency. The power elite theory is used as a lens to examine the interactions between Africa and its’ people and individuals of business, government, and military who are powerful and influential to make decisions concerning Africa’s cultural, economic and social well-being. The dependency theory will help explain the how developing nations, such as Africa are economically exploited by advanced nations, such as the United States. The theories will help gain insight into AFRICOM, to understand its’ true intentions and motives with Africa and its’ people. In order to understand the purpose of class struggle, and its’ connection to Africa, the history and intent must be analyzed and examined. The class struggle will be viewed through the lens of Karl Marx, Pierre Bourdieu, Kwame Nkrumah, W. E. B. Du Bois, Jacob Carruthers, Julius Nyerere, Frantz Fanon, Ali Mazrui, Claude Ake, and Chairman Mao Tsetung.

Why do genocides occur? This paper applies qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to revisit this question, and analyses 139 cases of genocide and non-genocide. The paper demonstrates the importance of both priming, contextual conditions which provide a political opportunity structure conducive to genocide, as well as triggering, more proximate conditions which constitute immanent motivations. Most centrally, sufficiency is demonstrated for genocide occurrence when an autocratic regime and the salience of an elite's ethnicity are present, and are combined with either an exclusionary ideology or political upheaval. As such, the autocratic nature of the state provides an opportunity structure allowing genocide to occur, while the salience of elite ethnicity can serve as a motivation. Finally, the ideology and the political upheaval serve as an additional motivation or opportunity structure, respectively. While political upheaval can play a part in causing genocide, its role is much more understated than is suggested in previous literature.

In the recent past, U.S. courts have begun to require that litigating parties base patent infringement damages on sales of the “smallest salable patent-practicing unit,” or SSPPU, in an effort to constrain the patentee’s damages claim to the true “economic footprint” of the invention. We ask whether this legal requirement can be grounded in economic theory, industry licensing practices, or the scope of actual patent claims. We find significant theoretical reasons to reject the mandatory imposition of the SSPPU rule, because the economic impact of an invention is not, in general, limited to the sales price of an input that allegedly embodies it. In the telecommunications industry, where the SSPPU rule has assumed additional policy significance in the context of FRAND commitments by owners of standard-essential patents (SEPs), we find overwhelming evidence that: (1) major licensors and licensees reject the ostensible SSPPU — the baseband processor — as a royalty metering device, regardless of their place in the supply chain; and (2) for one representative patent portfolio, the scope of the claims cannot be limited to the baseband processor itself. In short, we find that the pricing of telecommunications inventions is not limited to the “smallest” component, nor are such components necessarily “salable,” or “patent-practicing.”

In the case of Freddie Gray, certain standards of operation, practices, and policies set by the law enforcement administration for the Baltimore Police Department was not followed. The issue of the cause of death needs to be examined. As observed in the review of literature, the police officers misinterpreted what the reasonable amount of force is and abused their authority which ended up costing a young man’s life. To minimize the arrest-related deaths in police custody, there needs to be advice on the use of force policy to protect both the officer and suspect. Also, in the Baltimore Police Department and police departments worldwide there should be a push to enforce accountability and supervision among the ranks of officers. By doing this ensures that the standards of operation, practices, and policies are enforced daily to promote the mission of each department. Enforcing accountability will allow officers to meet the needs of the citizens that they are there to protect and serve them.

The development and installation of susta13inable energy systems create jobs, regional development, and long term economic growth. The challenges presented by sustainable urban development are critical. Back in 2010, 82% of Americans lived in cities; by 2050 it will be 90 %. Cities are responsible for around two-thirds of the energy used, 60% of all water consumed, and 70% of all greenhouse gases produced worldwide. Sustainable cities are looking at ways to become more environmentally friendly, increase the quality of life for their residents, and cut costs at the same time.