Gender and Lynching: The Politics of Memory

194 Pages·2011·5.715 MB·English

by  Evelyn M. Simien (auth.)

Gender and Lynching
Gender and Lynching
The Politics of Memory
EvelynM.Simien
genderandlynching
Copyright©EvelynM.Simien2011.
Softcoverreprintofthehardcover1stedition2011 978-0-230-11270-4
Allrightsreserved.
Firstpublishedin2011by
PALGRAVEMACMILLAN®
intheUnitedStates—adivisionofSt.Martin’sPressLLC,
175FifthAvenue,NewYork,NY10010.
WherethisbookisdistributedintheUK,EuropeandtherestoftheWorld,
thisisbyPalgraveMacmillan,adivisionofMacmillanPublishersLimited,
registeredinEngland,companynumber785998,ofHoundmills,
Basingstoke,HampshireRG216XS.
PalgraveMacmillanistheglobalacademicimprintoftheabove
companiesandhascompaniesandrepresentativesthroughouttheworld.
Palgrave®andMacmillan®areregisteredtrademarksintheUnited
States,theUnitedKingdom,Europeandothercountries.
ISBN 978-1-349-29463-3 ISBN 978-1-137-00122-1 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9781137001221
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Genderandlynching:thepoliticsofmemory/editedby
EvelynM.Simien.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
1. Lynching—Sexdifferences—UnitedStates—History.
2. AfricanAmericanwomen—Violenceagainst—UnitedStates—History.
3. Rape—UnitedStates—History. 4. Lynchinginliterature.
5. Lynchinginart. 6. Sexism—UnitedStates—History.
7. Racism—UnitedStates—History. I. Simien,EvelynM.,1974–
II. Title.
HV6457.G462011
364.1(cid:2)34—dc23 2011016902
AcataloguerecordofthebookisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
DesignbyIntegraSoftwareServices
Firstedition:November2011
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Transferred to Digital Printing in 2012
Formyson,RomanMarcellus
Iloveyouverymuch,unconditionally.
Contents
ListofFigures ix
Acknowledgements xi
Permissions xiii
Introduction 1
EvelynM.Simien
1 MaryTurner,HiddenMemory,andNarrativePossibility 15
JulieBucknerArmstrong
2 SistersinMotherhood(?):ThePoliticsofRaceandGender
inLynchingDrama 37
KorithaMitchell
3 TheAntislaveryRootsofAfricanAmericanWomen’s
AntilynchingLiterature,1895–1920 61
BarbaraMcCaskill
4 “AWomanwasLynchedtheOtherDay”:Memory,
Gender,andtheLimitsofTraumaticRepresentation 81
JenniferD.Williams
5 ThePoliticsofSexualityinBillieHoliday’s“StrangeFruit” 103
FumikoSakashita
6 Gender,Race,andPublicSpace:Photographyand
MemoryintheMassacreofEastSaintLouisand
TheCrisisMagazine 131
AnneRice
NotesonContributors 173
Index 175
List of Figures
1.1 Historicalmarkerdescribingthe1918Brooks-Lowndes
lynchings(PhotographcourtesyofJulieBuckner
Armstrong) 16
2.1 NAACPantilynchingadvertisementthataimsto
mobilizereadersbyemphasizingthatmobviolence
harmswhites 48
4.1 KimMayhorn,“AWomanWasLynchedtheOther
Day,”1998(CourtesyofKimMayhorn) 82
4.2 Flag,announcinglynching,flownfromthewindowof
theNAACPheadquartersonFifthAve.,NewYorkCity
(LibraryofCongressPrintandPhotoCollection) 83
4.3 PostcardofthelynchingofLauraNelsoninOkemah,
Oklahoma,May25,1911(CourtesyofTwinPalms
Publishers) 85
4.4 MetaVauxWarrickFuller“MaryTurner(ASilent
ProtestAgainstMobViolence,”1919(Courtesyof
MuseumofAfricanAmericanHistory,Boston,MA.) 91
5.1 BillieHolidayatCaféSociety,1939.FrankDriggs
Collection,InstituteofJazzStudies,RutgersUniversity 114
6.1 SilentProtestParade1917 132
6.2 CoverofSeptember1917Crisis:BlanchDeas,ofthe
NegroPlayers.AstudyfromlifebyFrankWalts 142
6.3 CoverimageofNAACPspecialreportonEastSt.Louis 143
6.4 “TheFire”asseenacrosstheriverfromSt.Louis
(St.LouisStar) 146
6.5 BroadwayOperaHouseafterthefire.$700.000damage
wasdoneinthisvicinity(St.LouisGlobe-Democrat) 147
6.6 Lookingforthebodiesofvictims.Sixwerefoundhere
(St.LouisStar) 149
x ● ListofFigures
6.7 Coloredmaninfrontofcar,beingmobbed.Militia
lookingon(InternationalFilmService) 151
6.8 Compositeimagefeaturingsixphotographsoftheriot’s
aftermath 152
6.9 AttheMunicipalLodgingHouse,St.Louis,MO
(St.LouisStar) 153
6.10 MineolaMcGee.Shotbysoldierandpoliceman.Her
armhadtobeamputated 154
6.11 NarcisGurley.71nextbirthday.Livedinherhome30
years.Afraidtocomeoutuntiltheblazingwallsfellin 155
6.12 TheNegroSilentParade,atFortySecondStreetand
FifthAvenue,NewYorkCity(C.T.Adams) 161
6.13 TheNegroSilentParade,FifthAvenue,NewYorkCity
(UnderwoodandUnderwood) 162
Acknowledgements
This book evolved out of the 2008 National Endowment for the
Humanities(NEH)SummerInstituteentitled “AfricanAmericanStrug-
glesforCivilRightsintheTwentiethCentury,”sponsoredbytheW.E.B.
DuBoisInstituteatHarvardUniversity.Theinstitutewasmanagedand
directed by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Waldo E. Martin, Jr., and Patricia
Sullivan.Ioweaspecialdebttothisgroup,includingfellowparticipants
andvisitingfacultywhoprovidedmewithanintellectuallyengagingand
thoroughlyrewardingexperiencethatrevitalizedmyapproachtoteaching
civilrightshistory.LeonLitwack’sguestlectureonlynching—particularly,
hisdiscussionofMaryTurner—inspiredthisproject.Thefour-weekpro-
gram promoted collaboration between participants and visiting faculty,
as evidenced by the working groups that took place on-site and con-
tinued long after we left Cambridge, MA. I wish to thank Todd Allen,
BillHuntzicker,WandaJackson,ErikaMolloseauPryor,SherrowPinder,
Janie Ward, and Rychetta Watkins for their warmth and kindness. Our
in-depthconversationswerebothmeaningfulandthoughtful,aswerou-
tinely reflected upon our classroom experiences over breakfast, lunch,
anddinner.IamespeciallygratefultoBrendaEdgerton-Webster,Frances
Jones-Sneed,andBarbaraMcCaskillwhometwithmeonaweeklybasis
todiscussthebookproject.Theyproofreadtheoriginalcallforpapersand
made editorial suggestions. They also commented on the earliest drafts
of manuscripts. Barbara, in particular, read a disproportionate share and
providedsuperbfeedback.
Given the interdisciplinary focus of Gender and Lynching, I solicited
the help of several readers from a range of disciplines outside my area of
expertisesothatthecollectionofessayswouldmeetthehighestintellec-
tual standards. I am especially thankful to those readers who were not
amongmyfriendsorcolleagues,butwerevirtualstrangerswhowillingly
volunteeredtoreviewmanuscriptsbothcarefullyandthoughtfully,often
more than once. I owe a huge debt to all of the following, from close
xii ● Acknowledgements
friendstomereacquaintanceswhoobligedmyrequests:LawrenceDavis,
AliceDeck,TiffanyGill,DayoGore,AngelettaGourdine,MickiMcElya,
Robin Muhammad, Shawn Salvant, Judith Stephens, Christel Temple,
Bernell Tripp, Christopher Waldrep, and Stephanie Wright. I must also
thankthecontributors.Ifitwerenotfortheiroriginalresearchandintel-
lectualcuriosity,thisprojectwouldnothavebeenmadepossible.Forthe
privilegeandopportunitytoworkwiththem,Iameternallygrateful.
I must also thank my friends and colleagues: Michele Tracy
Berger, Sharon Harris, Shareen Hertell, Shayla Nunnally, and Melina
Pappademos for their professional guidance and collegial support.
Michelle read the book’s proposal before it was sent to the editor at
Palgrave. Shareen was kind enough to proofread the introduction at a
moment’snotice,asdidSharonandShayla.Melinalentmeherearswhen
I needed to vent. I benefited enormously from our candid conversations
about how to balance competing demands of work and family. An asso-
ciateprofessorwithtenureintheDepartmentofPoliticalScience,Ihold
ajointappointmentwiththeInstituteforAfricanAmericanStudiesand
I am affiliated with Women’s Studies. I am also Acting Director of the
University of Connecticut’s Humanities Institute. I believe one of the
greatest challenges facing joint hires like me is the ability to so manage
timeeffectivelyandskillfullythatyoufulfillyourserviceobligations,but
nottothedetrimentofyourresearchagendaorfamily.Pregnantwithmy
firstchild,thebook’sproposalalongwithsamplechaptersweredelivered
tothepressforexternalreviewdaysbeforeIwentintolabor.
Finally,Imustthankthetwomostimportantpeopleinmylife.First,
I have to thank my husband, Steven, for the extra hours of sleep in the
morning, his willingness to become a full-time stay-at-home dad to care
forourson,andhisunwaveringsupportofmyacademiccareer.Secondly,
Ihave toacknowledge the wayinwhich our son, RomanMarcellus, has
changedmylife.IhaveneverfeltasproductiveasIdonow.Everysingle
dayhegreetsmewiththebiggestsmileandheartiestlaugh.Hebringsme
such joy. I never knew that I could love another human being quite so
much,unconditionally.