Justin Dunnavant

Justin Dunnavant is an American anthropologist who has done various works involving maritime archaeology and historical connections. He is an assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles in the Department of Anthropology. His area of interests revolve around anthropology and history with specifics to Atlantic and Indian Ocean Slave Trade, community-based archaeology, and black geographies. He has been part of many research projects, from terrestrial to maritime archaeology, and even coral reef restorations. Some of the content he has been a part of include being featured in various streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, public academic magazines such as National Geographic, and contributed publications.

Academic achievements

• 2017 - Ph. D : University of Florida
• 2009 - B.A. : Howard University

Awards

• 2021 : National Geographic Society's Emerging Explorer
• 2021 : Explorer's Club 50 - Fifty People Changing the World
• 2021 : Society for American Archaeology's Outstanding Public Archaeology Initiative Award
• 2021-2019 : Vanderbilt Provost's Postdoctoral Fellow
• 2019-2017 : University of California President's Postdoctoral Fellow
• 2017 : GMAC Diversity Field School Award for commitment to diversity in historical archaeology
• 2017-2014 : Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellow
• 2013 : Stetson Kennedy Vox Populi Award for Oral History and Social Justice (SPOHP)
• 2010-2009 : Fulbright US Scholars Program
• 2007 : District of Columbia Mayor's Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation

Netflix's Explained: Pirates

In this Netflix Original series called Explained, Justin Dunnavant is a special guest in this episode called Pirates. This 20 minute episode goes into the in-depth reality of what pirates were and are today. The information provided in this episode ranges from analyzing various known pirates, like Black Beard and Captain Morgan, and discoveries of ships, like "The Queen Anne's Revenge". What the analysis and research of the various special guest provide is that the pirates we know of are not what we consider them to be, nor what we think of pirate ships. The reality is that those ships were used for slave trade, production transportation, profit and status elevation during that time. Dunnavant provides information on how pirates took a part the slave trade, who Captain Morgan truly was and how he obtained his wealth, and what impact those pirates had within those location they had at their plantations or trading requests. This episode goes into the change of criminal charges onto pirates, what connections the government had with raids, the legality of it, and what this lifestyle provided within that culture. In the history aspect of this episode, pirates have been known and around ever since ships have been on sea. Aside from how we know pirates within movies and characteristics that apply to pirates, like the exaggerated "R" or the requirement of alcohol, the most known pirate was Cheng I Sao due to her strict constitution, the size of her fleet, her control over the salt trade versus the government, and how her punishment was handled. This episode went in-depth of what we know of pirates, how they are able to maintain their lifestyle, the reality of their illegal activity including slave trade, and how pirates are known today within society as criminals.

Hulu's Your Attention Please: Volume 6

Your Attention Please is a Hulu Show hosted by Craig Robinson who dives into the wide spectrum of passions and personal journeys from various African American individuals that have made an impact not only for themselves, but for their ancestry, culture, and future. These individuals that Craig Robinson learns more about embark on their personal struggles, lifestyle, backgrounds, goals, and choices that have led them to where they are now. In the episodes, the audience gets to know that the individuals featured go through their own journey, which includes pushing their limits and creating something new in their own form of art. Each episode has a time frame of 6 minutes to 35 minutes. This episode of the series features Annie Bercy, Rhonda Harper, and Justin Dunnavant. In the segment of Justin Dunnavant, it goes into his background and his purpose within the field of archaeology, along with what the field research can provide: "offering solutions to the problems". Some of the background information provided about him includes his attendance to college at Howard University at the age of 16 with an archaeological dig that was set as an abroad trip being a critical point to his life that led him into world of archaeology. His specialty within archaeology centers around Africa and any migration patterns, along with a focal point about pirates. Apart from pirates, Dunnavant makes the audience rethink what we know about history and challenge it with a new lens based on Afrofutuerism, the compelling work of Diving with a Purpose and National Association of Black Scuba Divers, and new evidential sites. This show and its special guests have the purpose of inspiring the African American community to learn more about their history, question the multitude of possibilities their journey can answer, and take pride in who they are.

National Geographic

This article was published on January 27, 2022 and stated to be a 4 minute read. Under the heading "Impact", by the title of "Justin Dunnavant: Excavating stories from the relics of our past", this article goes into the methods of how Dunnavant is adding more to what we know about our past. Some of the location include the U.S. Virgin Islands, Danish West Indies, and coast of Florida Keys, with data collection of relics to disclose the relationship that can be provided from environmental factors and the slave trade. Further into the article, it goes into why Dunnavant went into this field of study, his goal with this field and representation, what opportunities maritime archaeology can provide, and his contributions as being an assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.

References

This article "Justin Dunnavant" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Justin Dunnavant. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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