Since this is my own blog I have a wee bit of leeway to toot my own horn.  In becoming more active in social networks there are few effective ways for people to know what you are into and what you do without them seeing it.  Reading bio’s and profiles are ok but I belong to the group that ascribes to the seeing is believing mantra.

With that in mind, the following is my first  published article.  It was published in the Claflin Panther -  school paper for Claflin University. As a member of the writing staff I have been engaged to write book reviews and this is the first one I wrote – the following copy is the original version prior to being edited for  inclusion in the paper.  Feel free to leave feedback and comments

 

This is the first in a series of book reviews that will appear periodically in the Panther News. It is therefore fitting that we begin with a review of the book “The Warmth of Other Suns” by Pulitzer Prize winning author Isabel Wilkerson. This book was selected to be read by the book club on the campus.  We will additionally be blessed with a visit by the author, Ms. Wilkerson on October 20, at the W.V. Middleton Fine Arts Center. The lecture will start at 7PM a reception and book signing will follow the lecture at the Arthur Rose Museum on campus.

This book follows in the tradition of African American literature in that it gives a voice to our stories that do not generally get heard through conventional means.  It is then, left to historically black campuses, like Claflin, and others to present forums and opportunities for those who would tell our stories, to tell them to us directly.

The book focuses on the northern migration of blacks from the South. The period referenced is 1915 through 1970.  Through telling the stories of three individuals: Ida Mae Gladney, George Starling Jr., and Robert Pershing Foster, the author discusses the societal, economic, and other factors that led to the mass exodus of African Americans from the south to the north and how it has shaped the culture in the African American communities in both places.

The book does segue into historical data and information presented to reinforce the stories of the individuals as told by the author.  The stories encompass the time leading up to and including their exodus from the south, but also talks about their lives afterward and the changes they encountered up “North”. Most leaving the south for better opportunities or to escape the clutches of   a “Jim Crow” south, were surprised to find in many instances, a more insidious form of racism that while hidden in many cases was just as brutal if not more so than what they thought they had left behind in the south.

Ms. Wilkerson illuminates the stories behind the individuals and how, in some cases, the six degrees of separation played into their lives once they left the south. We see  Robert Pershing Foster’s brush with greatness in treating Ray Charles, Ida Mae Gladney attempting to see Martin Luther King speak when he came to her neighborhood in Chicago, and the run-in’s George Starling had with people and places from his past in  Florida all come into play.

We are becoming desensitized to the stories of slavery and all the related indignities that have been visited upon blacks in this country since we were brought here. It is not unusual to hear comments like “oh well that was so long ago” or “need to get over that now”. Many of those making these statements have not lived under a Jim  Crow south and do not have those experiences from which to draw upon. Telling these stories takes on new significance from the perspective of understanding not only how things were at that time, but also to understand how things are right now and how these past situations helped to shape where we are right now.

 

This book brings the migration into discussion at a time that is perhaps very provident. According to current census data, there actually is a reverse migration taking place and many of the descendants of those who “went north”, are returning to the south.  This perhaps makes this book even more relevant and timely in that it goes a long way to discuss the issues that blacks faced in the south and the sense of desperation many felt that drove them to leave.

It is important to understand the role that the migration played in the African American community and how that has influenced those of us here today.  This book is hopefully the first of several literary discussions about something that has fundamentally changed not only the population demographic in many regions in this country, but has been the basis for many cultural and societal issues that the African American community struggles with today. Understanding how these changes affect our communities now will provide us with the needed insight to develop our communities now no matter where they are.  In order to develop business, education and services for our community and to affect policies and legislation that provides services for us to grow and be productive, an understanding and dialog about issues like this are required.