Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Tameka Hobbs.
Hi Dr. Hobbs, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Books have been a central part of my life. Some of my earliest and best memories are of sitting in my mother’s lap while she read stories and nursery rhymes to me. Growing up in a small town, the library was a place for inspiration, exploration, and a portal to a world beyond my own. Because I was an avid reader, writing came naturally and paved the way for my academic success in high school and college.
As an undergraduate at Florida A&M University, I developed a passion for Black history. The course on African American history and culture that I took during my first years in college completely reoriented my life. I was inspired by what I was learning about my ancestors, both generally and specifically, but I was angry that this knowledge had been kept from me and so many others for so long. I felt so strongly that I changed my major from business to history, and I began working in what is now the Meek-Eaton Black Archives Research Center & Museum. When I enrolled in graduate school at Florida State University, I focused on U.S, History with a focus on the African American Experience with a minor in historical administration and public history. It was also during those years that I began working with the John G. Riley Center and Museum for African American History and Culture. I envisioned a career as a preservationist, storyteller, and educator. My path has been true to that original intent.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I have been fortunate to be a part of a community of academicians and preservationists who have inspired and encouraged me over the course of my education and career. Dr. Elizabeth Dawson at FAMU and Dr. Maxine Jones at FSU were my guideposts as an undergraduate and graduate student and have remained very influential in my career. Althemese Barnes of the Riley Center and Museum has been a tremendous inspiration for me as a professional. To have been a part of her staff during the founding years of the Museum and the Florida African American Heritage Preservation Network and to witness their impact and growth over these past 25 years has been a very vivid example of what it takes to bring a vision to fruition.
I also was very fortunate to have been selected as a recipient of a McKnight Doctoral Fellowship, which supported my graduate career. I would not be where I am today without the financial support and mentoring that were a part of that opportunity.
The struggle came in pursuing my educational and career aspirations while balancing my responsibilities as a mother. After divorcing in 2017, I’ve had to work to restabilize myself personally and professionally, which has meant many twists, turns, and relocations over the years. Still, I’m grateful for the lessons and the fantastic new opportunities that I’ve been afforded.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am an educator, author, and leader in the area of African American history. I am the author of the award-winning book, “Democracy Abroad, Lynching at Home: Racial Violence in Florida,” published by the University Press of Florida in 2015. Because of my work documenting lynchings in Florida’s history, I became increasingly interested in modern instances of violence and police brutality and what could be done to dismantle the systems that allow them to keep happening. This sparks the concept for the Social Justice Institute at Florida Memorial University, which I founded in 2020. I also served as the inaugural director of the A. Philip Randolph Institute for Law, Race, Social Justice, and Economic Policy at Edward Waters University.
I’m very proud of my work with the South Florida People of Color. Founded in 2015, the organization works to dismantle racism in all its forms through education, dialogue, and advocacy. I’ve served as a curriculum designer, facilitator, chief strategist, and now as chair of the board of directors. I co-created our signature program, the Awkward Dinner (TM).
I am excited to begin my new role leading the African American Research Library and Cultural Center in Fort Lauderdale. I remember being greatly inspired and impressed by its establishment in 2002. It’s an incredible, full-circle moment to have been selected to lead the institution 20 years later.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
The South Florida People of Color is a non-profit dedicated to dismantling racism and bias through education, dialogue, and advocacy. You can learn more at www.southfloridapoc.org or following @sfpoc on Instagram and Facebook.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.tamekabradleyhobbs.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.tamekahobbs/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrTamekaHobbs
Image Credits
Tameka and Roni Bennett
Mike Nolan
