Some books leave us free and some books make us free.
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Reading that awakens understanding and hope
Activism in the Name of God: Religion and Black Feminist Public Intellectuals from the Nineteenth Century to the Present (Margaret Walker Alexander Series in African American Studies)
Contributions by Janet Allured, Lisa Pertillar Brevard, Jami L. Carlacio, Cheryl J. Fish, Angela Hornsby-Gutting, Jennifer McFarlane-Harris, Neely McLaughlin, Darcy Metcalfe, Phillip Luke Sinitiere, P. Jane Splawn, Laura L. Sullivan, and Hettie V. Williams
Activism in the Name of God: Religion and Black Feminist Public Intellectuals from the Nineteenth Century to the Present recognizes and celebrates twelve Black feminists who have made an indelible mark not just on Black women’s intellectual history but on American intellectual history in general. The volume includes essays on Jarena Lee, Theressa Hoover, Pauli Murray, and Alexis Pauline Gumbs, to name a few. These women’s commitment to the social, political, and economic well-being of oppressed people in the United States shaped their work in the public sphere, which took the form of preaching, writing, singing, marching, presiding over religious institutions, teaching, assuming leadership roles in the civil rights movement, and creating politically subversive print and digital art. This anthology offers readers exemplars with whose minds and spirits we can engage, from whose ideas we can learn, and upon whose social justice work we can build.
The volume joins a burgeoning chorus of texts that calls attention to the creativity of Black women who galvanized their readers, listeners, and fellow activists to seek justice for the oppressed. Pushing back on centuries of institutionalized injustices that have relegated Black women to the sidelines, the work of these Black feminist public intellectuals reflects both Christian gospel ethics and non-Christian religious traditions that celebrate the wholeness of Black people.
The Fiction of Toni Morrison: Reading and Writing on Race, Culture, and Identity
A collection of essays offering new and experienced teacher-scholars alternative ways to approach Toni Morrison’s fiction and prose in the classroom, focusing on the history of racism and identity and cultural politics.
Designed to facilitate a richer understanding of Toni Morrison’s work, this book features classroom-tested approaches and pedagogical suggestions for teaching each of Morrison’s novels as well as the fascinating short story “Recitatif.” Each chapter includes questions and suggestions for classroom discussions, projects, and essays that illustrate how students can more fully understand Morrison’s contributions to American culture―particularly the history of racism as well as identity and cultural politics. In addition to offering a broad variety of classroom approaches to the texts, The Fiction of Toni Morrison promotes critical thinking by asking students to investigate issues of whiteness, historiography, critical race theory, and narratology. The book concludes with six sample student essays and a useful bibliography.
