William & Mary
Black Women Leaders in the Civil Rights Movement
Professors: Alexis Dorsey, Connor Kennedy, Sonia Kinkhabwala
Wednesdays 3:30-6:20
Spring 2020
Course Description
This course will examine the distinct leadership styles of Black, female leaders of the Civil Rights movement spanning the mid-20th century. Students will explore the civil rights movement beyond charismatic leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. to learn more about women change-makers. We will examine all spheres and levels of the Civil Rights movement, from local organizing to nation-wide coalitions to advocacy by Black women elected at the federal level. Students will examine the lives and work of these women, and their lasting legacies today.
Content Objectives
Students will have a working understanding of:
- The variety of roles Black women had in the Civil Rights movement
- The unique set of obstacles Black women faced in both activism and governance
- The lives of three women, Dorothy Height, Gloria Richardson, and Shirley Chisholm and how they navigated patriarchal institutions
- The lasting legacies of women in the Civil Rights movement
Skills Objectives
- Students will be able to analyze oral histories, name strengths and weaknesses of oral histories
- Students will be able to model how different leadership styles can be used to create social change.
- Students will be able to engage in academic discussions across difference and hold space for different narratives.
Assignments/Exams
Oral History Assignment: This assignment will allow students to develop and fully understand the skills needed to conduct an oral history. Record the oral history of a classmate. Write a paper reflecting on the oral history itself as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the methodology in general.
Final Paper: Choose a black woman from the civil rights era similar to any of the 3 women this class highlights. Defend how their leadership style is similar to Height, Richardson, or Chisholm. Also discuss where they differ and any unique obstacles or viewpoints which they held. Students will have to present their chosen topic on the final day of class.
Course Schedule
Week 1: Introduction to Course, Oral History Tutorial
Week 2: Dorothy Height Background
Watch: Dorothy Height Speech at the 2004 National Book Festival
https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-3598/
Week 3: Dorothy Height Leadership Styles
Read: Dorothy Height and the Sexism of the Civil Rights Movement
https://www.theroot.com/dorothy-height-and-the-sexism-of-the-civil-rights-movem-1790879502
Week 4: Dorothy Height Impact
Watch/Read: Dorothy Height Oral History On Work in Mississippi
https://wm.thehistorymakers.org/story/18171;type=2;pgS=30;pg=1;spec=—;q=dorothy%20height;sT=0;sS=0
Week 5: Gloria Richardson Background
Read: Gloria Richardson Interview with Joseph Mosnier (BB)
Week 6: Gloria Richardson Leadership Style “The Militant”
Watch: “Social Change Needs Engaged Communities, Not Heroes” Gerardo Calderón
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdHBWL4LK88
Read: “Ella Taught Me: Shattering the Myth of the Leaderless Movement” by Barbara Ransby
https://www.colorlines.com/articles/ella-taught-me-shattering-myth-leaderless-movement
Read: Generation on Fire: Gloria Richardson Dandridge: The Militant
Oral History by Gloria Richardson Dandridge, Jeff Kisseloff
Week 7: Gloria Richardson Impact
Read: “Recasting Civil Rights Leadership: Gloria Richardson and the Cambridge Movement” by Sandra Y. Millner
https://www.jstor.org/stable/2784860?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents
Week 8: Shirley Chisholm Background
Read: “Chisholm, Shirley (1924-2005), Representative (DNY), U. S. Congress” in
Ralph J. Bunche Oral Histories Collection on the Civil Rights Movement
Read: Newspaper articles “Shirley Chisholm Wins Support of Black Political
Figures” and “Winners!”
Week 9: Shirley Chisholm Leadership Style “Fighting Shirley”
Reading: “Mrs. Chisholm insists on running, much to the dismay of many
politicians”
Watch: Oct 3, 1983 “A Coalition of Conscience” speech at Greenfield High School Greenfield, Mass. https://video.alexanderstreet.com/watch/shirley-chisholm-lecture?context=channel:american-history-in-video
Week 10: Shirley Chisholm Impact, Paving the Way for Women Today
Reading: “Democratic Hopefuls Summon King’s Legacy While Shaping Their
Own”/”Following in Chisholm’s Steps, Harris Plunges into 2020 Field”
Week 11: Final Presentations