Ntozake Shange and a Literary Genealogy of Black Girlhood

CLA Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-110
Author(s):  
Nazera Sadiq Wright
Keyword(s):  
Ntozake Shange ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Literary Genealogy

Black Girl Thought in the Work of Ntozake Shange

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 32-47
Author(s):  
Naila Keleta-Mae
Keyword(s):  
Civil Rights ◽  
The United States ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Ntozake Shange ◽  
Black Girl ◽  
Civil Rights Era ◽  
Spheres Of Influence ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Black Girlhood

In this article I examine the performances of black girlhood in two texts by Ntozake Shange—the choreopoem “for colored girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf” (1977) and the novel Sassafras, Cypress and Indigo (1982). The black girls whom Shange portrays navigate anti-black racism in their communities, domestic violence in their homes, and explore their connections with spirit worlds. In both these works, Shange stages black girls who make decisions based on their understanding of the spheres of influence that their race, gender, and age afford them in an anti-black patriarchal world dominated by adults. I draw, too, from Patricia Hill Collins’s work on feminist standpoint theory and black feminist thought to introduce the term black girl thought as a theoretical framework to offer insights into the complex lives of black girls who live in the post-civil rights era in the United States.

scholarly journals for colored girls who’ve considered suicide while surviving Post-Traumatic Slavery Syndrome (with acknowledgements to Ntozake Shange and Dr. DeGruy)

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 807
Author(s):  
Allison Upshaw
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Ntozake Shange ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Narrative Context ◽  
Personal Context

In this audio article, the author reViews Ntozake Shange’s groundbreaking work on black girlhood/womanhood, for colored girls who’ve considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf. She briefly provides the personal context through which she interacts with the text for the first and latest time. She expands the narrative of black girlhood/womanhood into the personal by examining the actions of the characters and herself through Dr. DeGruy’s lens of Post-Traumatic Slavery Syndrome. Track 1 provides the narrative context and theoretical framework. Tracks 2 – 5 are the author’s performative responses. Track 6 lists the bibliography, while Track 7 provides a short bio of the author.

Towards an Interdisciplinary Field of Black Girlhood Studies

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 116-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tammy C. Owens ◽  
Durell M. Callier ◽  
Jessica L. Robinson ◽  
Porshé R. Garner
Keyword(s):  
Black Girls ◽  
Annotated Bibliography ◽  
Interdisciplinary Field ◽  
Recent Scholarship ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Girlhood Studies

Scholarly interest in the experiences of Black girls has grown significantly. Although many scholars, activists, and artists have completed substantial scholarship and creative works that constitute the foundation of Black girlhood studies, their body of work and names are oftentimes omitted from recent scholarship on Black girlhood. In this collectively authored essay, scholars, artists, and activists present an annotated bibliography of historical and contemporary texts, as well as cultural works, that center the voices and experiences of Black girls. This annotated bibliography serves as a resource for activists and scholars alike who are interested in Black girlhood.

Centering “Grace”: Challenging Anti-Blackness in Schooling Through Motherwork

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 142-157
Author(s):  
Terri N. Watson ◽  
Gwendolyn S. Baxley
Keyword(s):  
Black Women ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Black Children ◽  
The United States ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
Racial Biases ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Patricia Hill Collins ◽  
Educational Advocacy

Anti-Blackness is global and present in every facet of society, including education. In this article, we examine the challenges Black girls encounter in schools throughout the United States. Guided by select research centered on Black women in their roles as mothers, activists and school leaders, we assert that sociologist Patricia Hill Collins’ concept of Motherwork should be an essential component in reframing the praxis of school leadership and in helping school leaders to rethink policies, practices, and ideologies that are anti-Black and antithetical to Blackness and Black girlhood. While most research aimed to improve the schooling experiences of Black children focuses on teacher and school leader (mis)perceptions and systemic racial biases, few studies build on the care and efficacy personified by Black women school leaders. We argue that the educational advocacy of Black women on behalf of Black children is vital to culturally responsive school leadership that combats anti-Blackness and honors Black girlhood. We conclude with implications for school leaders and those concerned with the educational experiences of Black children, namely Black girls.

The History of Black Girlhood: Recent Innovations and Future Directions

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 383-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinne T. Field ◽  
Tammy-Charelle Owens ◽  
Marcia Chatelain ◽  
Lakisha Simmons ◽  
Abosede George ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Future Directions ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
History Of

Black Girl Cartography: Black Girlhood and Place-Making in Education Research

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara T. Butler
Keyword(s):  
Education Research ◽  
Black Girls ◽  
Place Making ◽  
Black Girl ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Girlhood Studies ◽  
Research In Education

Drawing on research in education, Black Girlhood studies, and conversations connected to girlhood and cartography, this chapter calls for transdisciplinary analyses of Black girls’ sociocultural and geopolitical locations in education research. In reviewing education research documenting the practices and interrogating the experiences of Black girls, I propose the framework of Black Girl Cartography. In addition to an analysis of education research, I offer a series of theoretical and methodological openings for transformative and liberatory work grounded in Black Girl knowledge and practices.

Black Girl Refusals and Reimaginings

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-145
Author(s):  
Desirée de Jesus
Keyword(s):  
Black Girl ◽  
Women's Press ◽  
Black Girlhood ◽  
Girlhood Studies

Aria S. Halliday (ed.). 2019. The Black Girlhood Studies Collection. Toronto: Women’s Press.

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