An Examination of Mary Lou Williams' Creative Resilience Against Racism
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AN EXAMINATION OF MARY LOU WILLIAMS’ CREATIVE RESILIENCE AGAINST RACISM AND PATRIARCHY UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI FABU PHILLIS CARTER A Thesis Submitted in Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Award of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in African Women Studies, University of Nairobi NOVEMBER 2020 DECLARATION This dissertation is my original work and has now been presented for the award of a degree in any other University or Institution Signature ………………………………………… Date………20/10/2020……… Fabu Phillis Carter C85/50906/2016 This thesis has been developed under our guidance and has been submitted for examination with our approval as the university of Nairobi supervisors. Signature……………………………… Date………21/10/2020…………………… Professor Wanjiku Mukabi Kabira University of Nairobi (First Supervisor) Signature………………………....... Date…………21/10/2020………………. Professor Henry Indangasi University of Nairobi (Second Supervisor) ii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my inspirational Great Aunt Martha who lived to be 104 years old and left for “her glory seat in heaven” on June 2018, and my father, United States Army Staff Sergeant, Herman Grant Carter, who loved jazz and introduced it to my ears and heart when I was a young child. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I acknowledge, with sincere appreciation, the African Women's Studies Centre for providing a ground-breaking platform and academic space that focuses on African women studies in Africa and around the world. I am honoured to be a student in this Centre and to benefit from this rich and rigorous academic environment. My sincere gratitude goes to my supervisors, Professor Wanjiku Mukabi Kabira and Professor Henry Indangasi for sharing their considerable knowledge about women and literature as well as giving their invaluable guidance, input and mentorship during the entire study. Dr. Nkatha Kabira also shared important insights into the PhD process and I thank her too. I would also like to acknowledge my late mother, Mrs. Bernice Partee Carter, who was my first and most loving teacher and my son Woodie Onkendi Mogaka for all the discussions that we have shared about poetry and our mutual love for jazz. My mother and my son have loved me well all of their lives. I thank the Mary Lou Williams Centennial Committee who provided the grant for my research and I thank my church/writer friends in Madison, Wisconsin who always encouraged me. Most of all, I am grateful to God for helping me every step of the way from Africa to America and back again. iv ACRONYMS (All words are using British spelling) AWSC African Women Studies Centre CD Compact Disc FBI Federal Bureau of Investigations IJS The Institute of Jazz Studies L.A. Los Angeles MLW Mary Lou Williams Ph.D. Doctor of Philosophy UON University of Nairobi U.S. United States UW University of Wisconsin-Madison v TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ......................................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................ iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................................... iv ACRONYMS ................................................................................................................................ v DEFINITION OF TERMS ......................................................................................................... xi ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................ xv CHAPTER ONE: BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT............................................................. 1 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................. 5 1.3 Objectives .............................................................................................................................. 6 1.4 Research Questions ................................................................................................................ 6 1.5 Justification ............................................................................................................................ 6 1.6 Hypothesis ............................................................................................................................. 9 1.7 Archival Research .................................................................................................................. 9 1.7.1 Review of Literature and analysis scholarly writing in the two biographies, a dissertation, as well as two papers presented during the Centennial Celebration of Mary Lou Williams in Madison. ................................................................................. 10 1.7.2 Primary Data Collection ............................................................................................... 11 1.7.3 Analysed contemporary perspectives from Centennial Committee. ............................ 12 1.7.4 Secondary Data Collection ........................................................................................... 12 1.7.5 Analysed audience surveys at three major public concerts of Williams’ music .......... 12 1.7.6 Analysed contemporary perspectives from teachers and students at Toki and Cherokee Middle Schools: ........................................................................................................... 12 1.7.7 Analysed contemporary perspectives from students at Goodman, Packer, Nehemiah, Meadowood, and Lussier Community Centres. .......................................................... 13 1.7.8 Analysed Middle and High school Jazz Band Directors. One middle school and four high school jazz band directors were surveyed. .......................................................... 13 1.7.9 Analyses the African American Community in Madison and their responses to programs, locations and publicity. ............................................................................... 13 1.8 Theoretical Framework Black Feminist Theory .................................................................. 14 1.9 History of the Women’s Rights Movement and the Women’s Suffrage Movement in the United States ....................................................................................................................... 15 1.9.1 The Feminist Movement in the U.S. ............................................................................ 16 1.9.2 The Black Feminist Movement .................................................................................... 17 1.10 Data Collection Tools and Analysis .................................................................................. 18 1.11 Chapter Breakdown ........................................................................................................... 18 vi CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW AND ANALYSIS OF SCHOLARLY WRITINGS ON MARY LOU WILLIAMS............................................................................. 19 2.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 19 2.2 Literature Review ................................................................................................................ 20 2.2.1 Scholarly Works on Mary Lou Williams ..................................................................... 20 2.2.2 Historical Perspectives including the Harlem Renaissance, Jazz Age, Civil Rights and Black arts movement ................................................................................................... 23 2.2.3 Selected Literature on Jazz Music ................................................................................ 27 2.2.4 Analysis of Literature on Jazz Musicians .................................................................... 28 2.3 Review of Scholarly Works on Women .............................................................................. 30 2.3.1. Review of Linda Dahl’s two works on Mary Lou Williams ....................................... 30 2.3.2 Race .............................................................................................................................. 31 2.3.3 Gender .......................................................................................................................... 33 2.3.4 Music ............................................................................................................................ 34 2.3.5 Faith and the New Mary Lou Williams ........................................................................ 35 2.3.6 Conclusion.................................................................................................................... 36 2.4 Review of Tammy Kernodle two books about Mary Lou Williams ................................... 37 2.4.1 Race .............................................................................................................................. 38 2.4.2 Gender .......................................................................................................................... 40 2.4.3 Music, Faith, and the New Mary Lou Williams........................................................... 41 2.5 Comparison between Morning Glory and Soul on Soul .....................................................