Giving Credit to Whom it is Due
By Roscoe Barnes III
Chairman, Anne Moody
History Project
Copyright © 2017
#AnneMoody
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| Anne Moody's book, Coming of Age in Mississippi, will soon turn 50. It was first published on December 3, 1968 |
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This
month, as we celebrate the Christmas holiday season, my mind is on the legacy and
life history of civil rights pioneer Anne Moody. Forty-nine years ago this
month, her autobiography, Coming of Age in Mississippi, was published by Dial.
And thankfully, it is still in print and still being read in schools throughout
the United States.
Her
achievement as a literary giant prompts me to
reflect on her level of prestige and her place in our history. At the same
time, I find myself thinking about her struggles. I think about what it was
like for her growing up as a poor black child in southwest Mississippi during
the Jim Crow era. I’m also thinking of the sacrifices she made in the interest
of freedom and justice, and all the other things that she did to make life
better for others.
Moody
was, by all accounts, an unexpected star. According to Ed King, former chaplain
at Tougaloo College, she was “one of the heroines of the civil rights movement.”
Moody was a gentle warrior and a strong black woman who risked her own life in
the fight against bigotry, segregation and discrimination. She overcame poverty,
hate, and negative stereotypes that smothered rural Mississippi and held black
people down. She was jailed and sometimes beaten. She participated in some of
the historic peaceful protests of the 1960s. She also worked with major leaders
of the movement. Through it all, she never forgot her roots. And fortunately
for us, she lived to tell her story.
This Christmas, I am personally thankful
to her for the gift of Coming of Age in Mississippi. I am also grateful to
Jackie Robinson for encouraging her to write the book. She died in 2015 at the
age of 74, but her book lives on.
Over
the past few weeks, news reports in Mississippi have touched on the state’s
civil rights history. Some of this interest was generated, no doubt, by news of
the official opening of the Civil Rights Museum in Jackson, which occurred on
Saturday, December 9, 2017. While it was certainly important to discuss the
contributions of Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,
and other civil rights workers/leaders, it would have been good, I think, to give
more attention to Moody.
Moody’s
book was originally published in 1968. According to her sister, Frances
Jefferson, and Random House, the hardback edition rolled off the press on
December 3, 1968. Next year will be the book’s 50th anniversary.
“Coming
of Age was a big deal when it came out, and it’s still a big deal now, nearly
fifty years later,” wrote civil rights author M.J. O’Brien. “It is read in
literature and history classes in high schools, colleges and universities
throughout the country, indeed, around the world. It is one of those rare sorts
of books that has never gone out of print. It is a modern-day classic.”
O’Brien
is the author of We Shall Not Be Moved: The Jackson Woolworth's Sit-In and the Movement It
Inspired (University Press of Mississippi, 2013). Earlier this
month, he visited a Mississippi prison where Moody was being recognized by a
state senator. He commented: “It’s high time that she gets that kind of
recognition.”
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Visit
here to see how we’re
working to
keep her legacy alive!
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Despite
the extraordinary success of Moody’s book, including her work as a civil rights
pioneer, her name is noticeably absent in many discussions about history in
general and civil rights in particular. That is unfortunate.
As
a number of people have observed, Moody has not been given the attention she
deserves. In an opinion piece published in The Natchez Democrat, Publisher Kevin Cooper noted, “For many Americans, her name may be unfamiliar, but for
Mississippians her name should be familiar, but sadly it’s not as well known as
it should be.”
A
similar view is shared by Darrell S. White, director of the Natchez Museum of
African American History & Culture, who believes that more should be done
to recognize Moody. In a September 2017 email, he wrote, “The motto of the
museum is ‘WE exist to tell our story,’ --
the story of Ann Moody deserves far more exposure than what has been
previously offered.”
That
sentiment was also echoed by Tracy Carr, director of the Mississippi Library
Commission. In an interview earlier this year, Carr stated she was surprised at
the lack of attention that had been given to Moody’s work. She commented: “I was a little shocked that she hadn’t
gotten the recognition she deserved.”
With
the aforementioned views in mind, I want say that one of my Christmas wishes
this year, and for the foreseeable future, is for Anne Moody to get the
recognition she deserves. May she receive all of the credit she is due.
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Visit here to see the timeline of important
events in Anne Moody’s life history!
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For more information:
See the Anne Moody
page here.
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,
simply follow this blog or follow AMHP on Twitter
(@AnneMoodyHP). #ComingOfAgeinMississippi
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