After teaching at Fresno State for 29 years, Dr. Malik Simba retired Spring 2019. He taught several courses in the Africana Studies Program and History, wrote a number of books and articles and inspired students.

Simba’s interest in Africana Studies stemmed from the time and place of the 1960s. “My best academic subject was history and Malcolm X, who in many of his speeches, argued that a ‘knowledge of the past is the gateway to freedom’ led me to study the discipline of history,” Simba said.

In 1989 Simba began teaching Ethnic Studies at Fresno State which eventually changed its name to Africana Studies. Knowing that his training was in American Constitutional history, the department of history wanted him to join that department. Simba agreed to do so as long as he could maintain a joint relationship with Africana Studies. He later began to teach U.S. legal history and African American history.

“Working on campus was fulfilling because of my collegial relationships with supportive faculty and, of course, teaching students,” Simba said. “My fondest memories of teaching students are the many written notes of thanks from students who applauded my helping them intellectually in their understanding that the past is dictated by the present.”

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