Langston University: A History of Transformative Rhetorics at Oklahoma's Only HBCU, 1960-1970

Abstract

This project presents a history of rhetoric and writing instruction at Langston University, Oklahoma's only HBCU, from 1960-1970. It details the liberatory pedagogies practiced by Langston professors during the civil rights and Black protest eras. Teachers offered students a liberatory, activist rhetorical education through a race centered curriculum. A rhetorical education focused on reading, writing, and civic duties. Community also played an important role in meeting the needs of the whole student, and this often meant financial support from the community. An ethic of care and trust characterized a Black liberatory rhetorical education at Langston in the 1960s. Liberating and transformative pedagogies reached beyond skills based rhetorical approaches. Cultural literacy is important to meeting the needs of marginalized or underrepresented classes.