Cet ouvrage collectif, qui vient enrichir la collection U des editions Armand Colin, dresse un et... more Cet ouvrage collectif, qui vient enrichir la collection U des editions Armand Colin, dresse un etat des lieux tres complet des Etats-Unis et de leurs relations avec le monde au debut du 21e siecle. Le coordinateur du volume, Frederic Leriche, auteur de l'introduction et de la conclusion, a reuni quatorze contributeurs specialistes des Etats-Unis, dont onze geographes et trois civilisationnistes. Pres de trente ans apres la publication de trois ouvrages ayant longtemps servi de reference sur l...
This 174-page book is a collection of nine essays by French and Anglophone scholars specializing ... more This 174-page book is a collection of nine essays by French and Anglophone scholars specializing in African American history and culture. It covers United States history from the late eighteenth century to the present, with a focus on African Americans as subjects of, and contributors to, historical analysis. The volume serves several purposes as stated in the introduction: first, to provide visibility to the role of African Americans in national history and its writing; second, to present Af...
After more than four decades of development in the United States and elsewhere, women's and gende... more After more than four decades of development in the United States and elsewhere, women's and gender history has become a recognized academic field, and continues to engage scholars and the general public in several interpretive debates on the status of women in American society (Dayton and Levenstein; Thébaud; Pfefferkorn). Such debates are fueled by contemporary social and cultural trends-particularly the crisis of democracy and the evolution of power relations in connection with the influence of social media, the persistent prevalence of race in politics, the redefinition of minorities and multiculturalism, or the renewed controversies over victimization and agency. In the first stages of its development, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the primary goal of women's history was to make women visible in a historical narrative dominated by and centered on white men. After the pioneering works of William Chafe, Gerda Lerner and Paula Giddins, the trend has continued to this day. 1 The titles of some publications are strikingly explicit about the issue of invisibility (Barnett; Browning; Frear; Sartain; Scott). The following stage, in the 1980s and 1990s, consisted in reexamining categories by taking into account the influence of social, economic, and political factors in the shaping of individual identities-with a growing emphasis on class and race. It was in this second stage that the redefinition of sex and race as constructs complicated the interpretive frame by insisting on the diversity of female experiences, warning against the pitfalls of essentialism (Janiewski; Spelman; Collins; Jones; Ruiz). From the 1990s on, scholars and commentators insisted on the importance of using a greater range of sources; focusing on different groups; and using a diversity of scales: local, regional, and global. 2 The key concepts that came to the fore in this process-such as agency, empowerment, and intersectionality-have become central to any discussion of women and gender in American history, the landmark publication in that respect being Kimberlé Crenshaw's 1989 article, "Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex" (Crenshaw; Nash).
The experience of southern women in the 20th century is distinct from that of American women in g... more The experience of southern women in the 20th century is distinct from that of American women in general, just as the history of the segregated South is from that of the rest of the nation. The doctrine of white supremacy, which permeated southern society, politics, and culture from the end of Reconstruction to the 1960s, rested not only on racism but also on a rigid patriarchal order, in which white women were to play a key role as guardians of the white race, while black women were relegated to the lowest level of society. The culture of segregation thus drove a wedge between black and white women, the latter belonging to the group responsible for the former’s oppression, and the two being submitted in different ways to the power and authority of white men. These conditions account for the fact that the women who became engaged in the struggle for racial equality in the region did so separately at first, and then joined their efforts in the civil rights movement. Moreover, owing to the combination of race and gender oppression inherent in segregationist culture, the women who challenged racism were bound to undermine the gender norms that had been imposed on them by segregation in the process. However, if the participation of black and white women in the civil rights movement proved as empowering to both groups, it did not foster a strong sense of solidarity among them. Indeed, the experience of southern women remained fraught with contradictions and marked by a fundamental paradox: due to their respective statuses in southern society, the struggle for racial justice drew black and white women together while estranging them at the same time.
The twentieth-century South is a multidimensional space which can be approached from a geographic... more The twentieth-century South is a multidimensional space which can be approached from a geographical, historical, or cultural perspective, and which most often takes on a mythical character. Although the region is definitely distinct from the rest of the nation, its identity cannot be defined in a straightforward way, as the abundant literature published on the subject throughout the twentieth century illustrates. The present article revisits the well-known thesis of race as the central theme in Southern culture by extending it to the relationship between the South and the nation. Focusing on the history of North/South relations since the nineteenth century, it shows how and why the South, which once stood as an exception in the nation, has come to symbolize the essence of American identity without losing its distinctiveness.
Songs are part of a long tradition of dissent and struggle in American culture since the seventee... more Songs are part of a long tradition of dissent and struggle in American culture since the seventeenth century. In the twentieth century, this tradition is well illustrated by the Freedom Songs of the 1960s civil rights movement, a distinctive feature of the struggle for black freedom in the South. Freedom Songs were used within and outside the movement to sustain as well as to publicize the struggle. The present article analyzes the nature and function of those songs, demonstrating that they represented much more than protest songs. It shows that beyond their most obvious function, which was to mobilize and cement collective participation in the various demonstrations and actions of nonviolent resistance to segregation, Freedom Songs had a transforming power over individuals. In the context of the southern Freedom Movement, singing became an existential experience, a second birth through which African Americans re-appropriated their culture and constructed a new identity for themselves and for their people. Freedom Songs thus can be said to have contributed not only to defeating white supremacy in the South but also to empowering African Americans by reconnecting them to their culture and by providing each individual the way to achieve his or her inner liberation.
From the adoption of the first state segregation laws in the 1890s, to the passage of the Civil R... more From the adoption of the first state segregation laws in the 1890s, to the passage of the Civil Rights Act by the United States Congress in 1964, the doctrine of white supremacy permeated society and culture in the southern United States 1. For a long time in the 20 th century, because the social and political elite of the region remained adamant in its defense of segregation and its hostility to reform, the white South was perceived as solidly supportive of its racist institutions. Although, in the last three decades, significant scholarship has contributed to qualifying the image of a solid, conservative, white South, by throwing light on the work of white dissenters in the midst of the segregation era, this segment of the white southern population is still not well known to the public 2. Unlike the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, that was led and popularized by charismatic male black leaders, the struggle for civil rights that preceded it was mostly led by white reformers, among whom women played a disproportionately important role, not always acknowleged as such. The primary aim of the present article is to draw attention to these women, born between the late 19 th century and World War II, who dedicated their adult lives to social and racial justice at a time when inequality and racism were the law. Obviously, white women were not alone in their actions. They often worked with black women, as well as with black and white male reformers. Yet, 1 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited segregation in all public places across the United States.
Between 1920 and 1970, a small but significant number of white women confronted white supremacy a... more Between 1920 and 1970, a small but significant number of white women confronted white supremacy and the segregationist system in the American South, incontrovertibly contributing to its demise. Using the 1954 Brown decision as a pivot, Unlikely Dissenters examines and compares two generations of white women who spoke out against Jim Crow while remaining deeply attached to their native South. For many white women reformers, the struggle for African American civil rights was linked to their own complex process of personal emancipation from gender norms. As part of the white community, southern white women felt guilt as members of the “oppressor” group. Yet as women in a patriarchal society, they were also “victims.” This paradoxical double identity forced them to develop a special brand of activism that combatted white supremacy while emancipating them from white patriarchy. In this book, Anne Stefani shows how their unique grassroots community-oriented activism functioned within—and even used to its advantage—southern standards of respectability.
Cet ouvrage collectif, qui vient enrichir la collection U des editions Armand Colin, dresse un et... more Cet ouvrage collectif, qui vient enrichir la collection U des editions Armand Colin, dresse un etat des lieux tres complet des Etats-Unis et de leurs relations avec le monde au debut du 21e siecle. Le coordinateur du volume, Frederic Leriche, auteur de l'introduction et de la conclusion, a reuni quatorze contributeurs specialistes des Etats-Unis, dont onze geographes et trois civilisationnistes. Pres de trente ans apres la publication de trois ouvrages ayant longtemps servi de reference sur l...
This 174-page book is a collection of nine essays by French and Anglophone scholars specializing ... more This 174-page book is a collection of nine essays by French and Anglophone scholars specializing in African American history and culture. It covers United States history from the late eighteenth century to the present, with a focus on African Americans as subjects of, and contributors to, historical analysis. The volume serves several purposes as stated in the introduction: first, to provide visibility to the role of African Americans in national history and its writing; second, to present Af...
After more than four decades of development in the United States and elsewhere, women's and gende... more After more than four decades of development in the United States and elsewhere, women's and gender history has become a recognized academic field, and continues to engage scholars and the general public in several interpretive debates on the status of women in American society (Dayton and Levenstein; Thébaud; Pfefferkorn). Such debates are fueled by contemporary social and cultural trends-particularly the crisis of democracy and the evolution of power relations in connection with the influence of social media, the persistent prevalence of race in politics, the redefinition of minorities and multiculturalism, or the renewed controversies over victimization and agency. In the first stages of its development, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the primary goal of women's history was to make women visible in a historical narrative dominated by and centered on white men. After the pioneering works of William Chafe, Gerda Lerner and Paula Giddins, the trend has continued to this day. 1 The titles of some publications are strikingly explicit about the issue of invisibility (Barnett; Browning; Frear; Sartain; Scott). The following stage, in the 1980s and 1990s, consisted in reexamining categories by taking into account the influence of social, economic, and political factors in the shaping of individual identities-with a growing emphasis on class and race. It was in this second stage that the redefinition of sex and race as constructs complicated the interpretive frame by insisting on the diversity of female experiences, warning against the pitfalls of essentialism (Janiewski; Spelman; Collins; Jones; Ruiz). From the 1990s on, scholars and commentators insisted on the importance of using a greater range of sources; focusing on different groups; and using a diversity of scales: local, regional, and global. 2 The key concepts that came to the fore in this process-such as agency, empowerment, and intersectionality-have become central to any discussion of women and gender in American history, the landmark publication in that respect being Kimberlé Crenshaw's 1989 article, "Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex" (Crenshaw; Nash).
The experience of southern women in the 20th century is distinct from that of American women in g... more The experience of southern women in the 20th century is distinct from that of American women in general, just as the history of the segregated South is from that of the rest of the nation. The doctrine of white supremacy, which permeated southern society, politics, and culture from the end of Reconstruction to the 1960s, rested not only on racism but also on a rigid patriarchal order, in which white women were to play a key role as guardians of the white race, while black women were relegated to the lowest level of society. The culture of segregation thus drove a wedge between black and white women, the latter belonging to the group responsible for the former’s oppression, and the two being submitted in different ways to the power and authority of white men. These conditions account for the fact that the women who became engaged in the struggle for racial equality in the region did so separately at first, and then joined their efforts in the civil rights movement. Moreover, owing to the combination of race and gender oppression inherent in segregationist culture, the women who challenged racism were bound to undermine the gender norms that had been imposed on them by segregation in the process. However, if the participation of black and white women in the civil rights movement proved as empowering to both groups, it did not foster a strong sense of solidarity among them. Indeed, the experience of southern women remained fraught with contradictions and marked by a fundamental paradox: due to their respective statuses in southern society, the struggle for racial justice drew black and white women together while estranging them at the same time.
The twentieth-century South is a multidimensional space which can be approached from a geographic... more The twentieth-century South is a multidimensional space which can be approached from a geographical, historical, or cultural perspective, and which most often takes on a mythical character. Although the region is definitely distinct from the rest of the nation, its identity cannot be defined in a straightforward way, as the abundant literature published on the subject throughout the twentieth century illustrates. The present article revisits the well-known thesis of race as the central theme in Southern culture by extending it to the relationship between the South and the nation. Focusing on the history of North/South relations since the nineteenth century, it shows how and why the South, which once stood as an exception in the nation, has come to symbolize the essence of American identity without losing its distinctiveness.
Songs are part of a long tradition of dissent and struggle in American culture since the seventee... more Songs are part of a long tradition of dissent and struggle in American culture since the seventeenth century. In the twentieth century, this tradition is well illustrated by the Freedom Songs of the 1960s civil rights movement, a distinctive feature of the struggle for black freedom in the South. Freedom Songs were used within and outside the movement to sustain as well as to publicize the struggle. The present article analyzes the nature and function of those songs, demonstrating that they represented much more than protest songs. It shows that beyond their most obvious function, which was to mobilize and cement collective participation in the various demonstrations and actions of nonviolent resistance to segregation, Freedom Songs had a transforming power over individuals. In the context of the southern Freedom Movement, singing became an existential experience, a second birth through which African Americans re-appropriated their culture and constructed a new identity for themselves and for their people. Freedom Songs thus can be said to have contributed not only to defeating white supremacy in the South but also to empowering African Americans by reconnecting them to their culture and by providing each individual the way to achieve his or her inner liberation.
From the adoption of the first state segregation laws in the 1890s, to the passage of the Civil R... more From the adoption of the first state segregation laws in the 1890s, to the passage of the Civil Rights Act by the United States Congress in 1964, the doctrine of white supremacy permeated society and culture in the southern United States 1. For a long time in the 20 th century, because the social and political elite of the region remained adamant in its defense of segregation and its hostility to reform, the white South was perceived as solidly supportive of its racist institutions. Although, in the last three decades, significant scholarship has contributed to qualifying the image of a solid, conservative, white South, by throwing light on the work of white dissenters in the midst of the segregation era, this segment of the white southern population is still not well known to the public 2. Unlike the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, that was led and popularized by charismatic male black leaders, the struggle for civil rights that preceded it was mostly led by white reformers, among whom women played a disproportionately important role, not always acknowleged as such. The primary aim of the present article is to draw attention to these women, born between the late 19 th century and World War II, who dedicated their adult lives to social and racial justice at a time when inequality and racism were the law. Obviously, white women were not alone in their actions. They often worked with black women, as well as with black and white male reformers. Yet, 1 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited segregation in all public places across the United States.
Between 1920 and 1970, a small but significant number of white women confronted white supremacy a... more Between 1920 and 1970, a small but significant number of white women confronted white supremacy and the segregationist system in the American South, incontrovertibly contributing to its demise. Using the 1954 Brown decision as a pivot, Unlikely Dissenters examines and compares two generations of white women who spoke out against Jim Crow while remaining deeply attached to their native South. For many white women reformers, the struggle for African American civil rights was linked to their own complex process of personal emancipation from gender norms. As part of the white community, southern white women felt guilt as members of the “oppressor” group. Yet as women in a patriarchal society, they were also “victims.” This paradoxical double identity forced them to develop a special brand of activism that combatted white supremacy while emancipating them from white patriarchy. In this book, Anne Stefani shows how their unique grassroots community-oriented activism functioned within—and even used to its advantage—southern standards of respectability.
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