Advancing the Field: Cambridge Studies on Black Women in the United States

Session Submission Type: Roundtable

Abstract

This roundtable features the editors of newly commissioned Cambridge History of Black Women in the United States (CHBWUS) and the new book series "Cambridge Studies on Black Women in US History." The editors will discuss both new projects and the ways in which they advance the field of Black women’s history.

The five volumes of the CHBWUS will be a landmark opportunity to reflect seriously on the state of scholarship on Black women in the United States, as well as reshape our thinking about their impact on American society. We want to showcase the best work of recent years, as well as point the way forward for a new generation of scholars and readers. We see this as a scholarly project that aims to lead the field, and to educate and engage a broad audience of non-professionals.

The new book series "Cambridge Studies on Black Women in US History will publish manuscripts on African descended women from colonial times to the twenty-first century. The series will publish books that analyze Black women’s experiences in the US with a focus on the lives, labors, war-time experiences and legal battles of Black women in the United States and their self-making practices, which allowed them to navigate slavery, freedom, Jim Crow segregation, and the turmoil of the Civil Rights and post-Civil Rights era. It will expand the range of sources and voices with regard to the history of Black women and examine how Black women overcame the gendered conventions of their environment.

Sub Unit

• 109th ASALH Annual Conference

Chair

• Alison Marie Parker, University of Delaware

Presenters

• Karen Cook-Bell, Bowie State University

• Felicia Thomas, Morgan State University

• Crystal Lynn Webster, University of British Columbia

• Ashley Robertson Preston, Howard University

• Crystal R. Sanders, Emory University

• Kelly Houston Jones, Arkansas Tech University

• Hettie V Williams, University of Massachusetts, Boston