Thursday, October 31, 2019

“Bringing Her Home: Commemorating Anne Moody in Southern Public Culture”

My proposal for the 18th Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, Genders and Sexualities (2020)

By Roscoe Barnes III, PhD
Chairman, Anne Moody History Project
Copyright (c) 2019

#AnneMoody
#ComingOfAgeinMississippi


Anne Moody (1940-2015)
Author, Coming of Age in Mississippi
(Photo by Jack Schrier)


I am so happy to report my paper on Anne Moody has been approved for the 18th Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, Genders and Sexualities. The conference is set for May 28-31, 2020, at Johns Hopkins University. My paper is titled, “Bringing Her Home: Commemorating Anne Moody in Southern Public Culture.”

The session at which I will present is titled, “AnneMoody's Coming of Age and Beyond: The Astonishing Influence of an Elusive Civil Rights Activist in the Long Civil Rights Movement.” It was organized by Dr. Leigh Ann Wheeler of Binghamton University.

The proposal for my paper is shown below, followed by my bio.

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Bringing Her Home

Commemorating Anne Moody 
in Southern Public Culture

By Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D.

Coming of Age in Mississippi (1968) ends with Anne Moody boarding a bus and leaving her home state of Mississippi. For many years, she did not return out of fear for her own life and the lives of her loved ones. Even when her mother became ill in 1976, she was afraid to go home.

Although much is known about the early years of Moody’s life, including her success as an author, little is known about her life beyond her book. Unfortunately, little information or recognition of her legacy can be found even in southwest Mississippi, the place where she grew up.

This paper addresses the issue of commemoration as it relates to Moody’s contributions as a civil rights pioneer—and as a way to welcome her home. Specifically, it discusses the process and strategy for honoring Moody in southwest Mississippi by employing principles of journalism and public history. In addition to civil rights literature and news reports, the study draws on primary source documents and interviews with Moody’s family and acquaintances, to show how a Mississippi prison is spearheading an effective effort to commemorate her.  It shows how the legacy of Moody can be revived, promoted, and preserved through practical ideas and principles found in journalism and public history.

This engagement of Moody presents a new way of looking at her legacy. The approach, which is interdisciplinary in nature, has practical implications relevant not only to Moody and her hometown, but also to other historical figures in communities throughout the United States.

BIO: Roscoe Barnes III is a former newspaper journalist, an independent scholar of Church History, and a correctional chaplain at Wilkinson County Correctional Facility (WCCF) in Woodville, Miss. He is the author of 12 books, including F.F. Bosworth: The Man Behind ‘Christ the Healer’ (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2009), Off to War: Franklin Countians in World War II (White Mane Publishing, 1996), and The Guide to Effective Gospel Tract Ministry (Church Growth Institute, 2004). He holds a Ph.D. in Church History from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, and a Master of Arts in Religion from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, Pa. Barnes is also the chairman of the Anne Moody History Project (AMHP), a community service project of WCCF.

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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

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