This four-part series spotlights four Syracuse University summer abroad programs and students’ experiences – part 4 of 4.

Café de Flore sits on the corner of Boulevard Saint-Germain and Rue St. Benoit in Paris, France, replete with tourists and Parisians alike.

It was this very spot where James Baldwin wrote “Go Tell it on the Mountain” in 1948. He left America for inspiration, and it was here, in the heart of what many call the most beautiful city in the world, where he found it.

In July, one of the busiest tourist months of the year, customers cover the café’s outdoor patio that wraps around the bustling street corner. Among the crowd a group of Syracuse University students are likely hunched over books or discussing their next assignment for Paris Noir, a five-week study abroad program that focuses on the influence of Black culture in the French setting.

“With Paris Noir, the city really is our classroom,” said Courtney Garvin, a junior public health and communication and rhetorical studies double major. “If you’re not seeing the city, you’re not taking advantage of what the course has to offer.”

Paris Noir covers famous writers such as Josephine Baker, Chester Himes and Richard Wright, and the influence they’ve had on not only Paris, but the entire artistic world. But any student can examine these works in the classrooms on campus –– Paris Noir gives them a living, breathing environment that meshes the curriculum with the setting.

“Being in Paris has given another element to the literature that we have covered,” Garvin said. “We’re not just reading the books, but also seeing the environments described in the books, and surrounding ourselves in the places we’ve read about.”

The students also heard readings from renowned poets –– Sonia Sanchez and James Emanuel have joined the program before, giving the students even more contact with the material they cover. But professor Janis Mayes, the program’s founding director, has always been eager to branch out into new territories.

The program doesn’t just explore literature. Mayes said the students have worked with any number of cultural institutions, like jazz musician Archie Shepp and members of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company.

This gives the program a well-rounded approach to its material, Mayes said. In its 13th year, Paris Noir has brought students not only to the famous city, but also surrounding areas. Mayes calls this an effort to explore “cultural landscapes and historical landmarks,” taking advantage of the country’s rich imprint on the world as it is today.

On the other hand, sophomore Jaye Michelle Harris went to high school in Paris. For her, the study abroad program is less about exploring, and more about returning to her roots. But that doesn’t mean she isn’t learning.

“We’ve been exposed to a whole new type of literature that I wasn’t aware of before,” said Harris, who is double majoring in advertising and French and Francophone studies. “I’ve learned about the untold history of the city I call home.

Harris’ love for the city has only been multiplied by Paris Noir’s analysis of Black culture. She’s found a new appreciation for not only literature, music and poetry, but also food and architecture.

These could be distractions for any student, and Harris said the workload is difficult enough, considering the program’s intensive structure. But when their schoolwork is done, Harris said the combination of museums, restaurants and cafés serves more than enough as a reward.

“We have a lot of time to explore the city,” she said. “We go on museum tours and try new restaurants. The workload is tough, as we have to read one book per week, and everything is due so quickly. But I always find a way to do it, and being in Paris makes up for that.”

The city on the Seine River isn’t all fantasy, though. When Garvin leaves her temporary home at night, she’s always surprised at some of the sights she sees.

“Along the streets between bars, clubs and storefronts would be homeless families,” she said. “Like a mother and an infant, or parents and their children sleeping outside on a mattress or blankets among people partying.”

Seeing Paris’ poverty has sparked discussions among the group, usually revolving around the differences, or lack thereof, between the U.S. and France.

Garvin and the group are used to seeing homeless people, especially In Syracuse under the Interstate 81 viaduct and under awnings downtown, but seeing children without shelter has opened the students’ eyes to the fact that some places aren’t as perfect as they seem.

“Paris Noir has let us explore,” Garvin said. “Not only in an academic setting, but in a world setting. We’ve seen things we’re not used to, for better or for worse, and we’re coming back with something we couldn’t have learned in a classroom.”

Published on July 17, 2014 at 8:21 pm