Black Woman Rising: African American Community Mothers in Phoenix with Akua Duku Anokye

African American women have had a tremendous impact on the lives of Arizonans. In a project I’ve been working on for the past 20 years, I have had the privilege of interviewing some of these amazing women. I call them othermothers/community mothers–these social activist who emerged from the Black woman-centered network of community. Let me introduce you to these powerful Black women who have risen to lead movements, create institutions, administer justice, and speak up when others were silent. Let me share the stories of women like Betty and Jean Fairfax, Jean Williams, Fatimah Halim, and Carol Coles Henry who have served their community with love, foresight, and integrity.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Akua Duku Anokye, Associate Professor of Africana Language, Literature, and Culture, Associate Director of the School of Humanity Arts and Cultural Studies, Director of New College International Initiatives, office of Interdisciplinary Global Learning and Engagement (IGLE). Past chair of the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), and currently Chief Reader for the College Board’s Advanced Placement English Language and Composition, she was named 2021 Outstanding Speaker of the Year by AZ Humanities. Her research focuses on African Diaspora orality and literacy practices, folklore, storytelling, and oral history. Most recent research focuses on African Diasporic women activists as community mothers.