Anne Moody Timeline - Part 2

By Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D.

Chairman, Anne Moody History Project

Copyright© 2017

(Updated 6/30/17)

I recently shared this document on a couple of my academic web pages, including Figshare.com (https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.5165725.v1 )

#AnneMoody

Anne Moody was a civil rights pioneer

and the noted author of

Coming of Age in Mississippi

1964 – On February 28, her uncle, Clifton Walker, is reportedly murdered by a white mob on East Poor House Road, which is located a few miles north of Woodville. Walker was the brother of Emma, the second wife of Anne’s dad, Fred Moody.

She works for the Congress on Racial Equality (CORE) in the town of Canton, Miss., during what is called “Freedom Summer.” In June, she meets with Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman, and James Chaney, all members of CORE, one week before they go missing and are later found dead, having been murdered by the local Klansmen. June 21, the day they went missing, is reported as the date of their deaths.

She graduates from Tougaloo College with a B.S. degree. She leaves the state of Mississippi. She speaks at United Auto Workers (UAW) convention in Atlantic City and becomes a popular speaker. She meets famous baseball player Jackie Robinson, who encourages her to write a book about her experiences. On August 4, the bodies of Schwerner, Goodman and Chaney are found in a dam near Philadelphia, Miss. Between August and December, she assists Jackie Robinson with his fundraising efforts to build the Chaney-Goodman‐Schwerner Memorial Center.

She works as civil rights project coordinator for Cornell University’s School of Labor Relations until 1967.

1965 – She begins writing Coming of Age in Mississippi following encouragement from Jackie Robinson.

1966 – She meets Austin Straus, a white Jewish poet and a graduate student at New York University (NYU), and falls in love. They live together for one year.

1967 – She marries Austin Straus on March 9. She becomes a counselor for New York City’s poverty program. She completes the book, Coming of Age in Mississippi.

1968 – Her book, Coming of Age in Mississippi, is published by Dial. The book is described as an “autobiography of growing up poor and black in the rural south.” It is released in December. The hardcover edition features a photograph of her taken by her husband. The photograph appears on the back cover of the book.

1969 – She travels the country promoting Coming of Age in Mississippi. She appears on numerous TV shows. On April 3, she appears on The Merv Griffin Show. By August, she is exhausted. Coming of Age in Mississippi receives the Brotherhood Award from the National Council of Christians and Jews, and the Best Book of the Year Award from the National Library Association. She is published in Mademoiselle in January. Her article notes her frustration with the civil rights movement.

1970 -- Coming of Age in Mississippi is published in Germany by Fischer-Verlag. Heinrich Ball, a Nobel prize-winner, writes the Foreword. He and his wife translate the book, and it soon becomes a bestseller in Germany. Anne is honored with a silver medal from Mademoiselle. The recognition is part of the magazine’s “New Hopes for the Seventies: 25 to Watch” feature.

1971 – Her son, Sasha Strauss, is born.

1972 – She and her family move to Berlin, where they live until 1974. She receives a German Academic Exchange Service grant – a full-time scholarship from the city of Berlin and a large house. She works as an artist-in-residence in Berlin.

1973 – Her friend in the movement, George Raymond Jr., dies of a heart attack on March 8 at the age of 30 in New Orleans. Raymond was a Freedom Rider and CORE leader.

1974 – She returns to the United States. She learns of a friend, Chinn, being convicted of murder and serving time at Parchman. She returns to Mississippi.

1975 – Her book, Mr. Death: Four Stories, is published by Harper & Row; (1st edition).

1976 – She returns to Mississippi for the second time because her mother is dying. She begins work on a sequel to Coming of Age in Mississippi, titled, Farewell to Too Sweet. Her mother, Too Sweet, dies.

1977 – She and her husband are divorced after 10 years of marriage.

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Author’s Note:

Questions about the Anne Moody History Project may be directed to Roscoe Barnes III via email at doctorbarnes3@gmail.com or roscoebarnes3@yahoo.com For updates on Anne Moody history and the on-going work of this community service project, please follow AMHP on Twitter (@AnneMoodyHP). Ideas and suggestions are also welcomed.