Exploring Literacy

“(…)African American women have built a tradition of literacy and action and have established a place for themselves as users of the word, as “dark spinners of word magic”-Royster

Being a black person made being literate difficult but then adding the word “woman” to that confounded the degree of difficulty by a lot. Whether you became literate or not had a lot to do with what circumstances you were coming from. The wealthier you were, the higher the chances were that you learned to read and write. African American people made up the lower class and therefore were most frequently the ones considered “illiterate” simply because they did not have access. The reason for the literate’s ability to read and write came from schooling through the church. The story of Maria Stewart, the first African American woman to have written essays, helps illustrate this point. The man that she was indentured to for years was a clergyman and she learned to read and write from Sabbath schools. Her story is one of empowerment and inspiration. Although Stewart grew up without the access to schooling, she knew that it was important to acquire the skills in order to make her voice heard. She knew that she would need to be literate. The time period was one of newly-opened minds and mouths and she had access to that, being married into the "middle class". Black people had their own newspapers, like Freedom's Journal, and people could write and have their material published and seen by the multitudes for the first time ever. As Freedom of Speech was being asserted, so was literacy and Stewart made sure she was a part of that. I see this as a lesson in courage. Although she had the odds stacked against her from the beginning, Stewart jumped onto the literary scene and made the voice of the Black woman heard. If we want to see change in our environments, then we must EFFECT change.
-Olivia LaFlamme

"Turning the Tide"

          Post Civil War, there were many efforts to advance the literacy of African Americans.  In reading, Charlotte Forten's personal literacy journey, and the journey of some distinguished Spelmanites, we learn that acquiring literacy among African American women was actually more important than what most history books give credit.  For they (African American women) knew that it was their responsibility to lay down the "foundation for universal literacy" within their communities, so that they may further the advancement of their culture.

          Charlotte Forten's story is that of how she was, and how she sought to educate others.  At the tender age of nineteen after her father had given her the okay to continue her education, Forten made a personal commitment to herself, her entire race, and any persons held captive, that she would "live for the good that [she] could do [her] oppressed and suffering fellow creatures" (147).  She would carry out these duties on St. Helena  along with some other women (whom where white), as teachers for the Port Royal Experiment.

          Much like Forten, Royster tells the story of some distinctive Spelman alumnae.  She takes us back to how and why Sophia B. Packard and Harriet E. Giles, under the direction of Father Frank Quarles, they had created the seminary for the girls of the community, such as Clara Howard class of 1887 (Spelman's first graduating class), and Selena Sloan class of 1888.

Ultimately, this passage goes on to tell us how missionaries, both northern whites and African Americans and southern African Americans, worked together to expunge illiteracies.

~A. Foster

Dare To Be Different

Going against the grain to me means daring to be different. There were so many literary opportunities available for white mean and very few for African American men. There were so many restrictions put on the slaves that they had to sneak around learn. They learned some things from the slave masters and by eavesdropping at school doors. Women were viewed as second class citizens; therefore there was no need to educate them. But in this particular piece you come to understand how it gets its title. In the section that I read I learned how women in the 1800's created their own schools. Most people would not believe that slaves were even remotely literate but they were. In one section Fox-Genovese states that "elite white women became themselves through reading", which leads me to ask do African American women become who they are through slavery. I don't believe that this is an accurate statement but some might see the struggle of educating yourself while being oppressed as the making of a black woman. It amazes me that even though our ancestors were not literal in the typical sense of the word they still saw the importance in educating the future generations to come. Would they be proud of the generation we have become is something we would never know. 

-Takiyah Thomas

Going Against The Grain

" First of all, they were required to define themselves as human beings, rather than as animals, in order to
 
establish a place for themselves under the law as rightful holders of the entitlement of citizenship, including
 
opportunities for literacy and learning." (Royster 109).


To be African American during these times was a hard enough task that was faced within this race itself.

However, adding the gender as female changed everything as we would see for the worse. Just as we have

recently wrote our literacy narrtaives, Royster clearly shows that African American females upheld a

substantial amount of literacy in their own unique ways, whether it be cultural, professional etc.. How I have

recently discovered through the arts, literacy can be obtained to a new knowledge. The “white man” and society

wanted to degrade their worth, but in households and in life, you could not stop their worth. Smarter than

anyone could possibly imagine, to be able to manipulate the court system and come on top, it is obvious that they could

not be animalistic and worth nothing as it was seemed to be. The first pages really exutes forth the true

nature of African American females, going against everything, it behooves us, the generation today to

continue “Going Against the Grain,” and make strides for a better future. Royster touches on if we slip up,

then the finger will be pointed once again. Would we really want to be held accountable for the downfall of

such great women before us?

-Socoya Douglas

Black Women/Black Literature

          Dowdy's interview with college professor Christina McVay on black people, literature, and their intersection was very intriguing and inspirational to me.  McVay filled Dowdy in on how she, a white instructor, "fell" into the field of what she refers to as "Black English," in the Pan-African Studies Department at Kent State University in Ohio.  McVay goes on to speak about the courses she teach, including The Legacy of Slavery in Literature, Pan-African Women's Literature, and African-American Masterpieces to name a few. 

          McVay tells of her students and one specific assignment that she asks them to do, which allows them to deconstruct their man-made hatred for language.  McVay ask her students to write a slang dictionary, with a word or term they would use in their everyday speech and define it in so-called "proper" English.  This allows her students to reevaluate their opinions about language, and also allows them to become comfortable, making them "forget that [she is] an English teacher, because that  makes them self-conscious."  She tells and encourages her students that Black English is not bad, a "fact" that not only their preceding teachers, but even their parents and family might have told them.  McVay in complete opposition as those who may have agreed to this, declares Black English as a legitimate language.

         I love how McVay as an instructor does not contain herself to just that; meaning she also learns from her students, she calls them "co-teacher[s]."   Yet the fact that McVay is not of African descent and openly exalts black oral and written literature is still what baffles me and even some of her students.  Yet at the same time, it makes me realize that not all members of other races, white people to be more specific, look down and talk bad about African Americans, their culture, struggles, and ultimately what makes them stand apart. 

~Althreasa Foster

The Alienated

"Education, we are told, is the key that opens the imaginary door to success,"

(183) starts Leonie C.R. Smith's essay To Be Black, Female, and Literate: A Personal Journey in Education and Alienation.From the island of Antigua to America, Smith's transition was not an easy one. After taking a test that she was not conditioned to take she was labeled a illiterate. Not letting that deter her goals, she preceded to be accepted into the Gateway program in high school and graduated in the 1% of her class. Smiths struggles where not over as she failed to achieve social status. Attending an all-white college and receiving no respect on her track team causes her to realize what she calls the "cancer of racism". This story as sad as it is inspirational made me think about what blacks who were not born in America go through. Since I was born here I really never thought anything of it. I mean yes I struggle because i'm African American, but when your are from another part of the world literacy standards are different. If not anything I've learned from this essay that no matter the negative stigma that is placed on you.....YOU CAN OVERCOME.

-Takiyah Thomas