Dr. Toni-Mokjaetji Humber

Dr. Toni-Mokjaetji Humber, is a native Angeleno who can trace her family heritage in Los Angeles to the early 1920s. She received her Bachelors of Arts degree in Sociology from California State University, Los Angeles, a Masters in Education from Loyola Marymount University, and her Doctorate in Sociolinguistics from Howard University. She is a professor in the Ethnic and Women’s Studies Department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Her research interests focus on African and African American culture and history, Ebonics and its educational implications, as well as ethnic studies, sociolinguistics, and inter-cultural communication. Dr. Humber taught in the Los Angeles Unified School District for many years and was director for the Program for Achieving Communication Excellence in the School of Communications at Howard University, Washington, D.C., for four years. She has been in the College of Education and Integrative Studies at Cal Poly Pomona for eleven years and has been a faculty member in the Ethnic and Women’s Studies Department for eight years. She is a world sojourner who has traveled extensively throughout Africa and the Caribbean. She strives to uncover truths, dispel distorted images, perceptions, and notions about culturally diverse peoples, especially those of African descent. She seeks to enlighten her students and learn about the dynamic histories, diverse cultures, and rich legacies of continental and diaspora Africans. Many overlook the historical fact that between 100,000 to 200,000 African slaves were brought to Mexico during the 16th through 18th centuries to work sugar cane plantations, mines, and later textile mills. This is nearly a third the number brought to the USA. In 1646 there were 35,000 African slaves in Mexico, more than 2.5 times the white population. She is currently working with: The Young Scholars Program Gretchen Morris, Program Director First Presbyterian Church of Inglewood gretchen.teaches@gmail.com