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OFFICE OF CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY RESPONSIVE INITIATIVES Brownies’ Books: Grades 9 & 10 May 2020 The Brownies’ Books are comprised of stories (folktales, fantasies, as well as more realistic stories), poems, games, articles on current events of the era, letters from young readers and photographs. In 1920, these literary magazines celebrated African American identity, urged racial pride, and encouraged its young readers to aspire to positions of leadership within their communities. The books are intended to be read with other members of the family. Many of the life lessons taught in the books are applicable to the uplift of young people of all races today. The office of CLRI, has chosen literary works from the Brownies’ Books, edited by renowned scholar, W.E.B. Du Bois, for you and your child’s reading pleasure. Each literary work has standards‐ aligned reading, writing, and critical thinking activities to supplement core‐curriculum reading materials. The Brownies’ Books are written by diverse authors, and particularly, authors of African American descent. According to historical literacy expert, Dr. Gholdy Muhammad, citing W.E.B. Du Bois, the Brownies’ Books are “designed for all children, but especially for ours.” Moreover, “the content of the readings was intended to recognize and cultivate the genius within youth” (Muhammad, 2020, p.152). Please be informed that the Brownies’ Books are historical documents that use period language and phrases common during the 1920s era. While we have maintained the authenticity of this literature, please understand some of the dialects are not common terms or phrases that are widely used today. The text represents people of color in a positive light dispelling falsehood and stereotypes. Please enjoy these historically and culturally responsive stories. More stories can be found here: http://childlit.unl.edu/topics/edi.brownies.html The following stories can be read independently or aloud with families. Complete activities and questions under each story. Why Bennie was Fired That Meddlesome Bird OFFICE OF CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY RESPONSIVE INITIATIVES WHY BENNIE WAS FIRED BROWNIES’ BOOK- JULY 1920, W.E.B. DU BOIS, EDITOR WILLIE MAE KING BENNIE PARKER was a little colored girl eleven years old but small for her age. Perhaps my little readers will smile to hear of a girl's being named Bennie but many little girls in the South have boys' names. Bennie was the oldest of four children and besides her father was dead. She was quite an attractive child and much petted at school because of her precociousness and industrial activities but at home she was the little mother of the family. Bennie did chores every day for Mrs. Blair, a white lady who lived on Vine Street about three blocks from where Bennie lived. She helped with the meals, washed the dishes, and swept the porches and walks every morning before school. Bennie was proud of her job for she got three dollars and a half a week. Every morning she rose at 5:30 o'clock and was at her work by 6:00. She had finished her breakfast dishes, sweeping and dusting by 7:45 and was off to school on time. She always had her lessons and seemed no less happy than her more fortunate playmates at school. Bennie's one great pride was her small bank into which she put one‐half of her weekly earnings; the other half she cheerfully gave to her widowed mother towards the general upkeep of her smaller brothers and sisters. A broad smile always revealed two pearly white rows of teeth and lit up her little brown face when Bennie thought of the fat roll of twenty‐five dollars tucked away in her little iron bank. This she had saved from her weekly earnings and also she had placed in her bank the extra nickels she made by going to the store for lunch for some of the teachers. Then too Miss Howard, her teacher, often gave her extra nickels for candy, but Bennie kept them tightly tied up in her handkerchief until she got home and then she would carefully deposit the shining coins among her other precious hoard. As soon as she had saved up thirty dollars she planned to put it in the big bank downtown where it would draw interest. It was near time for school to close and Bennie had almost thirty‐five dollars now. She always finished her work earlier on Saturdays. One bright sunshiny Saturday in May she carried her sum of $35.50 to the National Bank in town and as she received a bank book with her name plainly written across the top and the amount stamped to her credit she was very happy. Several people smiled at the independent carriage of that little smiling colored girl as she left the bank. School would close on the twenty‐sixth of May and Bennie would finish from the Eighth Grade and she was the youngest in her class! The school board had offered three prizes for the winners in an oratorical contest for the colored pupils in all the grade schools of the city and there were three. The first prize was twenty‐five dollars; the second, ten dollars; and the third, five dollars. Bennie wanted to try for one of the prizes and how she wished she could win the first! Then she would have almost one hundred dollars saved. Oh! if she could only win! Bennie had never written anything herself— the speaking part wasn't so bad for she had often recited, but to write an essay seemed doubtful. Then, too, there was Evelyn Hill who could write much better than she and Helen Jones who spoke so well, too. She decided that she would not try but that night she dreamed that she won in the contest. Bennie didn't believe in dreams because none of hers ever came true but somehow the next morning on her way to work she resolved to try. The next morning she gave her name to her teacher as one of the contestants. "I am glad you are going to try, Bennie," pleasantly remarked Miss Howard after hastily writing her name. Bennie gave as her reply her broad, cheerful smile. She hurried to finish her work that evening and when Mrs. Blair came into the kitchen to tell Bennie she could take home the cake which was left from luncheon she found the work done and Bennie gone. The thought foremost in her mind was the preparation of her essay. She had now only three weeks to write and memorize it. She could hardly see how she could do it but she must. She made visits to the library during her recess hours and found some material which helped her in writing the composition. Then for over a week she practiced memorizing it. She rose earlier than the rest of the family and would go over the essay aloud in the kitchen or the woodshed. Bennie found herself running breathlessly in order to get to work on time every morning. She had practiced in the woodshed every morning now because she was afraid her loud talking in the kitchen would cause some member of the house hold to investigate and no one must find it out. Friday morning Bennie stayed over fifteen minutes of her time and by the time she ran up the street to the big stone steps of the brick house it was six‐thirty. She had been late nearly every day of the week. 'What would Mrs. Blair say? Bennie wondered if she had yet come into the kitchen as she ran up on the porch. She caught sight of Mrs. Blair's tall but stout form through the glass of the kitchen door. Bennie quietly walked in with her usual "Good morning, Mrs. Blair." Mrs. Blair was irritated this morning because she had planned to accompany her husband in the car to town that morning and here Bennie had spoiled her arrangement by being late again. "Bennie you are late again. You needn't come back tomorrow, you are fired!" was Mrs. Blair's stern verdict. Her piercing blue eyes looked straight into Bennie's wide open deep brown ones. She hastily left the kitchen and the rest of the work for Bennie. The blow to Bennie was a crushing one. She was almost late for school that morning and she felt that everybody knew she was "fired". She never had been before and she couldn't feel just right again unless she had "a job". What would her mother say? She couldn't tell why she was late. That would give her secret away. After school she slowly turned her steps homeward to tell her mother she was "fired." "Mother, I got fired this morning," said Bennie slowly, expecting a sound scolding as she placed her school books under the table. "'Fired'! and all on account of that little unruly tongue of yours I suspect," said her mother. "Well school is out next week and I guess another job will turn up soon," she consolingly concluded. Bennie dared not to attempt an explanation for she was glad to escape. She was thankful for the extra days she had to put in practice and made several extra trips to the woodshed that week for wood. Commencement quickly arrived and the contest was to be in the city auditorium at eight o'clock Wednesday night. Bennie looked very nice in her white dress, white shoes and stockings which she had earned herself. Six contestants were seated on the platform including one boy, Herbert Brown.

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