Talking 'Bout a Revolution: Afro-Politico Womanism And
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TALKING ‘BOUT A REVOLUTION: AFRO-POLITICO WOMANISM AND THE IDEOLOGICAL TRANSFORMATION OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY, 1965-1980 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Kalenda Clark Eaton, M.A. * * * * * * The Ohio State University 2004 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Dr. Valerie Lee, Adviser Dr. James Upton _______________________ Dr. Stephane Dunn Adviser Graduate Program in English Copyright by Kalenda Clark Eaton 2004 ABSTRACT This project examines how the ideological transformation of the Black community during the Black Power movement is represented in fiction written by Black female novelists during the post-Civil Rights period. I argue that by recognizing and often challenging prevailing paradigms within Black nationalist rhetoric, female activists/writers such as Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Toni Cade Bambara, and Paule Marshall worked within and wrote about the black community in ways that would ensure a focus on continued progressive action after the “official” end to the Civil Rights and Black Power movements. Via fictional representations of Black female activists struggling to save the Black community, the authors question the usefulness of Black rhetorical warfare that serves as imaginary distractions to current issues and problems that face the Black community at the dawn of a new era. The theoretical framework I employ for this project is what I call, “Afro-Politico Womanism.” Afro-Politico Womanism is a theory based on a holistic method of understanding community building among the Black masses who are left behind, after a Black middle-class collective moves into the folds of mainstream American society. Afro-Politico Womanism is supported by the logic, endurance, passion, and attitudes of Black women. This agenda is committed to literary representations of Black female political activism, and often exists in 20th century literature written by black women, where the protagonist(s) have a strong desire to “disrupt the infrastructure.” In the context ii of this project, literary representations of Black female political activism includes a character’s struggle, for justice within the Black community, and an understanding of how gender relationships can be used to heal relationships. As a method of theorizing the socio-political milieu during the time specified I incorporate readings of cognitive liberation theory; indigenous organizational structures, and gender politics as variables which effectively lead to the mass movement and political mobilization of the Black underclass. iii Dedicated to: Sellester (Lester) B. Eaton For being my cheerleader and reminding me to always “get (my) lesson” Your living was not in vain… And, Linda D. Eaton-Young For instilling your revolutionary spirit within me I am, because you are “…This mother’s daughter will ride the wind…” iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank the past and present members of my dissertation committee, for providing the intellectual support, and guidance that made this project possible. I thank those professors at The Ohio State University, who helped me further appreciate the field and the contributions I will make as a scholar. Thank you, Dr. Jaqueline Jones Royster for your listening ear and the many opportunities you provided. You lead by example. I am forever indebted to the UNCF-Mellon Undergraduate Fellowship Program, Dr. Rudolph Byrd (Emory University), Dr. Cynthia Spence (Spelman College), Dr. Sylvia Ballard-Huete (Dillard University), Ms. Elizabeth Marsden (Dillard University), as well as Dr. Beverly Bruce and the SSRC Mellon-Mays Program, for their intellectual and financial contributions. Thank you to Claude Marks and the Freedom is a Constant Struggle Archives in San Francisco, CA. His willingness to aid in my research and the valuable experience and connections I obtained as a result of my time at the archives will never be forgotten. Keep up the fight! I also wish to thank Dr. Chandra Tyler Mountain for introducing me to the “Ph.Diva” club, and teaching me through her experiences. I thank my family and friends for helping me navigate through the rough spots, providing advice (and shelter), and always cheering me on. I am grateful to my grandmother, Clara Eaton, who taught me to pray by saying, “In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy path.” Thank you, Randell, for your love, support, and understanding. v VITA November 25, 1977………………………..Born—Castro Valley, CA 1999………………………………………..B.A. English/Spanish, Dillard University 1999-2000………………………………….Fellow, The Ohio State University 2001-2003………………………………….Graduate Teaching and Research Associate, The Ohio State University 2003-Present……………………………….Assistant Professor, Barry University FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: English Primary Field: 20th Century African American Literature Secondary Field: Black Women’s Protest Literature vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract………………………………….………………………………………...ii Dedication…………………………….…………………………………………...iv Acknowledgments………………..……………………………………………..…v Vita…………………………….….…………………………………………….…vi Chapters: 1. Introduction: “Let Me Know When You Get Through”: The Afro-Politico Womanist Agenda…………………………………1 2. Disruptive Figures: Politics, Black Women, Activism, and the Politics of Black Women’s Activism………………………….….….19 3. “I Would of Loved ‘Em All”: Nationalist Identities and Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon………………………………………….…….……47 4. “Tomorrow the People Would Come”: Continuing the Revolutionary Tradition in Alice Walker’s Meridian……………….84 5. “A Burst Cocoon”: Regenerating Self and Community in Toni Cade Bambara’s The Salt Eaters.……………..….………..112 6. “Something That’s Been Up Has to Come Down”: Black Consciousness at the Dawn of a New Era…………….…….144 Glossary………………………………………………………………………...164 Notes……………………………………………………………………………168 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………....172 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION “LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU GET THROUGH”: THE AFRO-POLITICO WOMANIST AGENDA Don’t you know? They’re talkin’ bout a revolution—it sounds like a whisper Don’t you know? They’re talkin’ bout a revolution—it sounds like a whisper Finally the tables are starting to turn, (talkin’ bout a revolution) ‘Cause finally the tables are starting to turn, (talkin’ bout a revolution)… -Tracy Chapman Several Black feminist critics have examined female subjugation and the exclusion of the feminine voice during “Black Power,” or the years between 1966-1976. Scholars including Patricia Hill Collins, Madhu Dubey, bell hooks, Angela Davis, Barbara Christian, and Joy James, are a few who represent a wide range of theoretical scholarship on the role of the Black woman in the variegated “community.”1 Significantly, these years represent the reclamation of the black community by virile, “masculine warriors” (i.e., black men), through organizational leadership and community organizing. As is commonly argued, during this period the Black political platform 1 became a predominately masculine one, and not surprisingly, the fight against racial oppression ignored simultaneous internal gender oppression within the black community. In addition, this earlier Black feminist critique of black masculine ideologies noted that while increased male participation and persuasive rhetoric identifying the black man as “king” increased notoriety and garnered mass support for various organizations, the success was contingent upon female subjugation. Here Michelle Wallace’s seminal Black Macho and the Myth of the Superwoman (1978) is key as she interrogates the role of black women in the folds of exclusively masculine rhetoric and misogynistic underpinnings. She identifies black women’s initial reluctance to speak against the performance of “macho,” as a fear of being deemed “counterrevolutionary”— which was assumed to ultimately lead to the destruction of the black family. Accordingly, the mythical “Strong Black Woman,” who exists through a rejection of male domination and systematic gender oppression, is deemed a detriment to the progress of the Black community because of her overbearing demeanor and emasculating tendencies. Though Wallace has been derided for statements that argue “rampant misogyny” exists within the community, and she has retracted her position somewhat in recent years, the premise behind Black Macho is equally important as the criticism it aroused. Among other topics, Wallace argues that unlike Black female abolitionists, Black clubwomen at the turn of the 20th century, or Black feminists who preceded the 1960s—women during the Black Power movement were not “allowed” to do anything important (Wallace 162). Because “there was more parading of Black macho than revolutionary planning” the silencing and subsequent absence of women meant the fall of the Movement (78-81). While the “popular” attention was on the rhetoric of the era and the prevalence of a Black 2 masculine discourse based on the reclamation of power, understanding these truths does not constitute a comprehensive portrait of Black women’s activity during the era. Like the strong Black woman, the mythic silent Black woman has often been misread and idealized. First-hand accounts of the movement note that Black women felt guilty for “contributing” to matriarchal domination and accepted their places “ten steps behind” the men who had been emasculated by white America and the Black woman for so long (APR). What most historical studies of the era do not acknowledge is the brevity of this passive position (“that got old,