She Came of Age in Mississippi

A Brief (Program) Biography of Anne Moody

By Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D.
Chairman, Anne Moody History Project
Copyright (c) 2019

#AnneMoody

Formal invitation from the Mississippi Department of Transportation

Anne Moody

(Sept. 15, 1940 -- Feb. 5, 2015)

Anne Moody was a civil rights activist and the respected author of the critically acclaimed memoir, Coming of Age in Mississippi.

She was born Essie Mae Moody on Sept. 15, 1940, to Fred Moody Sr. and Elmira “Too Sweet” Williams Moody in Centreville, Miss. Her parents worked for a time as sharecroppers on the Miller plantation.

Anne was the oldest of 10 children. Her siblings include Adline Moody, Fred Moody Jr., Kelvin Jefferson, Ralph Jefferson, James Jefferson, Vallery Anderson, Frances Jefferson, Virginia Gibson, and Leroy Jefferson Jr.

Anne and her former husband, Austin Straus, were the parents of Sasha Straus.

Anne became an activist in the early 1960s while attending Tougaloo College. She was a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). She participated in many historic nonviolent campaigns, including the Woolworth's sit-in protest in 1963, the March on Washington in 1963, and the Voter Registration Project in 1964.

In addition to incarcerations, Anne endured physical violence and death threats in her fight for freedom, justice, and equality for all. After a long and tenacious battle against the dark forces of racism, poverty, and discrimination in the Jim Crow era, she went on to become one of the most celebrated authors of the civil rights movement. She proved to be not only a woman of courage, but a woman of extraordinary talent.

Anne died on Feb. 5, 2015, at the age of 74.

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Want to know more about Anne Moody?

Visit here to see the timeline of
important events in her 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 Ph.D. 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