Angela Yvonne Davis

Angela Yvonne Davis is an African-American female born on January 26, 1944 in the South. Particularly in Birmingham, Alabama. I think being born during this time period and in this particular place it progressed her fight for equal rights. She is well known for her activism under gender equality, civil rights and political issues dating back to the earliest dates of the late 1960s. Her activism sheet would stand as long from being jailed, removed from buildings, joining “radical” organizations and groups to even leading The Black Liberation Movement. The movement, or rather army according to Wikipedia, states that it was a run-off/continuation of the Black Panther Movement.

Ms. Davis is in movies and is also a well-known book writer on the exact issues that she has been though and fought for all her life. Her first book was published in 1974 titled as, Angela Davis: An Autobiography. Over 42 years she has written 11 books and one that was published this year! From titles like The Black Family: The Ties That Bind (By Angela Davis and Fania Davis), Women, Culture and Politics (Angela Davis) and Beyond the Frame: Women of Color and Visual Representation (Angela Davis) it is clear that she talks about topics we have surface leveled discussions about in class. She has a career currently at the University of California: Santa Cruz teaching under the title of Distinguished Professor Emerita in the Feminist Studies Department.

Through my research, I’ve come to learn that Ms. Davis still speaks out about her struggles through the political black movement in the 70s and 60s. As her number one movement sparking debate and a sentence of 18 months in jail for being linked to a murder of a jail guard by an associate, George Lester Jackson. Him and a few others were also later a part of The Black Liberation Movement with Davis. Yet, prior to this correspondence she was apart of the Che-Lumumba Club branch in the Communist Party. So this association to the party progressed her charges in the 18 month sentence.

In conclusion, Angela Yvonne Davis was a prominent figure in the change and advancement of women, race, class and culture all over the spectrum.  Beginning in the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing in Birmingham, to which she lost friends in up to today’s fight for equality. Although she is 72 she still speaks out to the public, writes books and poetry that all talk about the same problems she was addressing 42 years ago to date her first writing. This goes to show that our problems and things that were heavily fought for by many African-Americans, Women and Low/Middle-Class citizens haven’t changed very much. My mother is 46 and in terms of the amount of years Ms. Davis has written proves that many Americans, specifically African-Americans have lived through this fight since we were born. It was sparked before you and I were in this world, it is continuing as we live through it now and it is a chance that it will still be here after you and I perish. The only way to change this is by fighting and voicing our opinion for justice and equal rights just as Angela Davis does still today.

Works Cited

1. History.com Staff. "Angela Davis." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 01 Jan. 2009. Web. 24 Mar. 2016. <http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/angela-davis>.

2. "Angela Davis." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2016. <http://www.biography.com/people/angela-davis-9267589#early-life>.

3. "Angela Y Davis." Feminist Studies. University of California: Santa Cruz, n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016. <http://feministstudies.ucsc.edu/faculty/singleton.php?singleton=true&cruz_id=aydavis>.

4. "Angela Davis on Not Endorsing Any Presidential Candidate: "I Think We Need a New Party"" Democracy Now! N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016. <http://www.democracynow.org/2016/3/28/angela_davis_on_the_fascist_appeal>.

5. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Liberation_Army>.

6. "Angela Davis Resource Guide: Publications by Angela Davis." Publications by Angela Davis. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2016. <http://guides.library.cornell.edu/davis/publications>.

Timeline

1. 1963: Angela was dearly affected by the Birmingham church bombing. In addition she formed the ideas very young that she wanted to help those who were black and poor, later noted in her book.

2. 1968: Angela joined the Communist party (Che-Lumumba Club) and was also question to being in the Black Panther Party. However, the sources on her association with the group was never documented or proven.

1. “the only path of liberation for black people is that which leads toward complete and radical overthrow of the capitalist class.”

3. 1969: UCLA of Santa Cruz tried to fire her illegally for her affiliation to the communist party.

4. 1970: Davis is arrested for a connection to the Soledad Brothers and the conspiracy of helping the kidnapping and murder of a guard. Sparking a worldwide protest and political campaign for her freedom.

5. 1981: She is acquitted of her charges about 8 years earlier and writes a book titled “Women, Race and Class.”

6. 1983: Angela seem to be on a streak of presenting the world with books about gender equality. She then drops a book titled “Femmes, race et classe.” Which I have inferred, from her trip to Paris back in the 1960s, she learned and titled the book in French. I question if it is in actual French although.

7. 1985: It begins to seem like every 2 or so years Ms. Davis publishes another beautiful book about her analysis on gender, race and culture in America + the entire world. This time she produces a text called “Violence Against Women And The Ongoing Challenge To Racism.”

8. 1989: Davis continues her flow of writing books by publishing “Women, Culture and Politics.”

9. 2006: Being that Davis has been an activist for gender, race and culture it’s not surprising that she dedicated one book to specifically children of color. To input that it is a girls’ children of color book titled “Prinsetta.” It details how to deal with prejudice, low-self esteem and even teasing, according to Google Books.

10. 2012: Angela Davis speaks in an interview about gender, equality and racism at the Hotel Metropole Brussels on May, 15th 2012.

1. “The wages that men receive compared to women, if one looks at women of color (black women) or latino women, the education achievement, the job achievements… All the issues that you see there, there is proud inequality.”

Creative Piece

• I will do a poster for my creative piece

”Each strand of her curls, stands for every fascinating thing Angela has done!”