Black in the Middle
Black in the Middle

Author: Terrion L. Williamson

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

Published: 2020-09-01

Total Pages: 223

ISBN-13: 1948742888

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“[A] timely, compelling collection that allows predominantly Black Midwesterners to reclaim their home, histories, and future.”―Jen Cox, Chicago Review of Books Black Americans have been among the hardest hit by the rapid deindustrialization and accompanying economic decline that have become so synonymous with the Midwest. Since the 2016 election, many traditional media outlets have renewed attention on the conditions of “Middle America,” but the national discourse continues to marginalize the Black people who live there. Black in the Middle brings the voices of Black Midwesterners front and center. Filled with compelling personal narratives, thought-provoking art, and searing commentaries, this anthology explores the various meanings and experiences of blackness throughout the Rust Belt, the Midwest, and the Great Plains. Bringing together people from major metropolitan centers like Detroit and Chicago as well as smaller cities and rural areas where the lives of Black residents have too often gone unacknowledged, this collection is a much-needed corrective to the narrative of the region. “Ambitious and eclectic, with African American humanity on display.” ―Joseph P. Williams, Minneapolis Star-Tribune “The honesty in the essays, the emergency in the poetry, and the intensity of the photographs and paintings help to sharpen the edge of what it means to be Black in the middle of anything, which is the sum of our fears and the hope that manifests itself in our dreams.” ―Jason Vasser-Elong, St. Louis Post-Dispatch “Timely and evocative . . . By calling forth the full range of the Black Midwestern experience, this bracing anthology offers crucial insights into why the region is the epicenter of current protests against police brutality and racial injustice.” ―Publishers Weekly

Black in the Middle
Black in the Middle

Author: Terrion Williamson

Publisher:

Published: 2020-09

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9781948742696

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Essays about the Black experience in Middle America

Mouths of Rain
Mouths of Rain

Author: Briona Simone Jones

Publisher: The New Press

Published: 2021-02-23

Total Pages: 401

ISBN-13: 1620976250

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Winner, Lambda Literary Award in LGBTQ Anthology Winner, Judy Grahn Award for Lesbian Nonfiction, Publishing Triangle Awards A Ms. magazine, Refinery29, and Lambda Literary Most Anticipated Read of 2021 A groundbreaking collection tracing the history of intellectual thought by Black Lesbian writers, in the tradition of The New Press's perennial seller Words of Fire African American lesbian writers and theorists have made extraordinary contributions to feminist theory, activism, and writing. Mouths of Rain, the companion anthology to Beverly Guy-Sheftall's classic Words of Fire, traces the long history of intellectual thought produced by Black Lesbian writers, spanning the nineteenth century through the twenty-first century. Using “Black Lesbian” as a capacious signifier, Mouths of Rain includes writing by Black women who have shared intimate and loving relationships with other women, as well as Black women who see bonding as mutual, Black women who have self-identified as lesbian, Black women who have written about Black Lesbians, and Black women who theorize about and see the word lesbian as a political descriptor that disrupts and critiques capitalism, heterosexism, and heteropatriarchy. Taking its title from a poem by Audre Lorde, Mouths of Rain addresses pervasive issues such as misogynoir and anti-blackness while also attending to love, romance, “coming out,” and the erotic. Contributors include: Barbara Smith Beverly Smith Bettina Love Dionne Brand Cheryl Clarke Cathy J. Cohen Angelina Weld Grimke Alexis Pauline Gumbs Audre Lorde Dawn Lundy Martin Pauli Murray Michelle Parkerson Mecca Jamilah Sullivan Alice Walker Jewelle Gomez

Scandalize My Name
Scandalize My Name

Author: Terrion L. Williamson

Publisher: Fordham Univ Press

Published: 2016-10-03

Total Pages: 166

ISBN-13: 0823274748

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From sapphire, mammy, and jezebel, to the angry black woman, baby mama, and nappy-headed ho, black female iconography has had a long and tortured history in public culture. The telling of this history has long occupied the work of black female theorists—much of which has been foundational in situating black women within the matrix of sociopolitical thought and practice in the United States. Scandalize My Name builds upon the rich tradition of this work while approaching the study of black female representation as an opening onto a critical contemplation of the vagaries of black social life. It makes a case for a radical black subject-position that structures and is structured by an intramural social order that revels in the underside of the stereotype and ultimately destabilizes the very notion of “civil society.” At turns memoir, sociological inquiry, literary analysis, and cultural critique, Scandalize My Name explores topics as varied as serial murder, reality television, Christian evangelism, teenage pregnancy, and the work of Toni Morrison to advance black feminist practice as a mode through which black sociality is both theorized and made material.

Blues Vision
Blues Vision

Author: Alexs D. Pate

Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society

Published: 2015-02

Total Pages: 343

ISBN-13: 0873519744

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"A rich Minnesota literary tradition is brought into the spotlight in this groundbreaking collection of incisive prose and powerful poetry by forty- three black writers who educate, inspire, and reveal the unabashed truth. Historically significant figures tell their stories, demonstrating how much and how little conditions have changed: Gordon Parks hitchhikes to Bemidji, Taylor Gordon describes his first day as a chauffeur in St. Paul, and Nellie Stone Johnson insists on escaping the farm for high school in Minneapolis. A profusionof modern voices-- poet Tish Jones, playwright Kim Hines, and memoirist Frank Wilderson-- reflect the dizzying, complex realities of the present. Showcasing the unique vision and reality of Minnesota's African American community from the Harlem renaissance through the civil rights movement, from the black power movement to the era of hip- hop and the time of America's first black president, this compelling anthology provides an explosion of artistic expression about what it means to be a Minnesotan. Alexs Pate, an award- winning novelist, playwright, and writing professor, is the president of Innocent Technologies, LLC. Pamela R. Fletcher is associate professor of English at St. Catherine University. J. Otis Powell!? is a poet, performance artist, and curator working in an aesthetic rooted in Afrocentric lore and culture"--

Sweeter Voices Still
Sweeter Voices Still

Author: Ryan Schuessler

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

Published: 2021-01-26

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 1953368077

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“A collection of prose and poetry that aims to challenge clichés about LGBTQ+ life in the Midwest and Appalachia.” —The Buckeye Flame The middle of America―the Midwest, Appalachia, the Rust Belt, the Great Plains, the Upper South―is a queer place, and it always has been. The queer people of its cities, farms, and suburbs do not exist only to serve as “blue dots” within “red states.” Every story about a kid from Iowa who steps off the bus in Manhattan, ready to “finally” live, is a story about a kid who was already living in Iowa. Sweeter Voices Still is about that kid and has been written by people like them. This collection features queer voices you might recognize―established and successful writers and thinkers―and others you might not―people who don’t think of themselves as writers at all. You’ll find sex, love, and heartbreak and all the beings we meet along the way: trees, deer, cicadas, sturgeon. Most of all, you’ll find real people. If you’re seeking fully realized stories about the nuanced, joyous complexity of queer identity in the Midwest, Sweeter Voices Still is the book for you. “A marvelous ode to humanity and its passions [and] a reminder that LGBTQ individuals and communities (and those who exist outside the confines of the acronym) have always kept the Heartland beating.” ―Little Village Magazine Includes a foreword by Northwestern University professor Doug Kiel

She Raised Her Voice!
She Raised Her Voice!

Author: Jordannah Elizabeth

Publisher: Running Press Kids

Published: 2021-12-28

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 0762475145

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A fully illustrated middle-grade anthology celebrating Black women singers throughout history in a first-of-its-kind collection. From jazz and blues, hip hop and R&B, pop, punk, and opera, Black women have made major contributions to the history and formation of musical genres for more than a century. In this fully illustrated middle grade anthology, 50 strong, empowering, and inspiring Black women singers' bios will teach kids to follow their dreams, to think outside the box, and to push the boundaries of what's expected. Written by music writer and journalist Jordannah Elizabeth and illustrated by Briana Dengoue, She Raised Her Voice! will inspire readers to find their voice and their own way of expressing themselves.

Teaching Beautiful Brilliant Black Girls
Teaching Beautiful Brilliant Black Girls

Author: Omobolade Delano-Oriaran

Publisher: Corwin Press

Published: 2021-03-27

Total Pages: 526

ISBN-13: 1544394411

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Be a part of the radical transformation to honor and respect Beautiful Brilliant Black Girls! This book is a collective call to action for educational justice and fairness for all Black Girls – Beautiful, Brilliant. This edited volume focuses on transforming how Black Girls are understood, respected, and taught. Editors and authors intentionally present the harrowing experiences Black Girls endure and provide readers with an understanding of Black Girls’ beauty, talents, and brilliance. This book calls willing and knowledgeable educators to disrupt and transform their learning spaces by presenting: Detailed chapters rooted in scholarship, lived experiences, and practice Activities, recommendations, shorter personal narratives, and poetry honoring Black Girls Resources centering Black female protagonists Companion videos illustrating first-hand experiences of Black Girls and women Tools in authentically connecting with Black Girls so they can do more than survive – they can thrive.

A Black Woman's Guide to Getting Free
A Black Woman's Guide to Getting Free

Author: Tamara Winfrey Harris

Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Published: 2024-07-09

Total Pages: 115

ISBN-13: 1523006935

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Empowering, feminist guidance for Black women on living unapologetically and authentically-from the bestselling author of The Sisters Are Alright. Unshackle your authentic self from the expectations and stereotypes of American culture through the 6 pillars of living free as a Black woman. Tamara Winfrey Harris harnesses her knowledge as a two-time author and storyteller of the Black femme experience and nationally known expert on the intersections of race and gender to deliver a sharp feminist analysis that is illustrated by real-life stories and examples plucked from popular culture and intimate Black woman-to-Black woman truth-telling. This book is separated into two parts. First, the meaning of liberation is explored and Black women will be guided in creating sustaining practice to mature their well-being along the freedom journey. In part two, readers are introduced to the 6 pillars of living free as a Black woman: Spot the distortions Know your truth Celebrate the real you Understand the cost of liberation Practice freedom SEE free Black women everywhere With the bold, astute writing that you have come to expect from Winfrey-Harris, A Black Woman's Guide to Getting Free urges Black women everywhere to choose themselves, and choose freedom, in a world that would have you chained.

Recipes for Respect
Recipes for Respect

Author: Rafia Zafar

Publisher: University of Georgia Press

Published: 2019-03-15

Total Pages: 148

ISBN-13: 0820353655

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Food studies, once trendy, has settled into the public arena. In the academy, scholarship on food and literary culture constitutes a growing river within literary and cultural studies, but writing on African American food and dining remains a tributary. Recipes for Respect bridges this gap, illuminating the role of foodways in African American culture as well as the contributions of Black cooks and chefs to what has been considered the mainstream. Beginning in the early nineteenth century and continuing nearly to the present day, African Americans have often been stereotyped as illiterate kitchen geniuses. Rafia Zafar addresses this error, highlighting the long history of accomplished African Americans within our culinary traditions, as well as the literary and entrepreneurial strategies for civil rights and respectability woven into the written records of dining, cooking, and serving. Whether revealed in cookbooks or fiction, memoirs or hotel-keeping manuals, agricultural extension bulletins or library collections, foodways knowledge sustained Black strategies for self-reliance and dignity, the preservation of historical memory, and civil rights and social mobility. If, to follow Mary Douglas’s dictum, food is a field of action—that is, a venue for social intimacy, exchange, or aggression—African American writing about foodways constitutes an underappreciated critique of the racialized social and intellectual spaces of the United States.