Marimba Ani

Marimba Ani (born Dona Richards) is an anthropologist and African Studies scholar best known for her 1994 magnum opus *Yurugu: An African-Centered Critique of European Cultural Thought and Behavior* and for coining the term 'Maafa' to describe the African Holocaust[3][8]. She earned her BA from the University of Chicago and her MA and PhD in anthropology from the New School for Social Research, and taught as a professor of African Studies at Hunter College in New York City[2][3]. Ani is also an active organizer in the Afrikan community, leading Rites of Passage programs and directing the Afrikan Heritage Afterschool Program in Harlem[5].