“They Carried Us” Highlights The Power of Black Women’s Leadership in Philadelphia
Cover of the book, They Carried Us: The Social Impact of Philadelphia’s Black Women Leaders by Dr. Allener M. Baker-Rogers and Fasaha M. Traylor. Cover art, "Ubiquitous Presence" by Barbara Bullock.
By Jaimee A. Swift
In their dynamic work, authors and activists Dr. Allener M. Baker-Rogers and Fasaha M. Traylor center and uplift the lives, leadership, and legacy of historical and contemporary Black women activists in the “City of Brotherly Love”.
The city of Philadelphia has such a rich and profound history. As the nation’s first capital, in popular culture and imagination, the city is often associated with the Liberty Bell, cheesesteaks, water ice, sports, and the Rocky movie franchise. In terms of political memory, the city is often remembered as the site of the MOVE Bombing, where the police in 1985 dropped a bomb on a West Philadelphia neighborhood with the specific intent of targeting the Black liberation group known as MOVE.
Known as the “City of Brotherly Love”, Philadelphia also has a robust legacy of radical Black politics and movement building. What is often erased and overlooked in the context and content of political organizing in the city is the critical work of Black women as agents of socio-political change in Philadelphia. With this, who are the Black women who have shaped the social, political, and even economic dynamics of the city? How has Black women’s leadership contributed and continues to transform the political and cultural landscape of Philadelphia and beyond?
These are some of the questions that authors and activists Dr. Allener M. Rogers and Fasaha M. Traylor interrogates in their new book, They Carried Us: The Social Impact of Philadelphia’s Black Women Leaders. This much-needed work highlights the historical and contemporary leadership, lives, and legacy of Black women in Philadelphia who fought and continue to fight for equity, human rights and dignity, and the self-determination of their communities. Examining texts and resources in libraries, archives, digital resources, and more, Rogers and Traylor garnered over 200 hours of original audio interviews of 50 contemporary Black women leaders and researched the lives and activism of 50 historical Black women leaders who shaped the city. More importantly, this book details the significant stories of Black women in Philadelphia who carried us and whose pivotal work continues to carry us even today.
Black Women Radicals spoke with Rogers and Traylor about what prompted them to write They Carried Us; their thoughts on why Black women’s activism and leadership are overlooked in Philadelphia; what a Black Woman Radical means to them; and more.
What prompted you to start and create this project on honoring the work of Black women activists and leaders in Philadelphia?
Allener M. Bakers-Rogers (ABR): “What launched the project was a Black women’s history project I did in February of 2012 or 2013. I just started my consulting business, which is about working with mid-career professional women and I wanted to do something for Black History Month that was different. In all praise due and given to our ancestors and our long legacy of Black people who have made America what it is, I didn’t want to talk about the same people who we hear about. We know those names because they are the first ones everyone says. So I said to the young woman who was working with me, Jasmine Allison, go find me 30 Black women who have really made a difference in the city of Philadelphia. That was a Facebook project we did where we profiled Black women during Black History Month. The interest in the project blew me away. What I mean in terms of interest were the number of hits that we were getting every single day because we were highlighting Black women who lived and worked amongst us in Philadelphia who nobody talked about. After that, I pursued Fasaha. She and I were colleagues on a non-profit board in Philadelphia called Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth but now they are referred to as Public Citizens for Children and Youth. I went to Fasaha and I asked her whether or not this was something she would be interested in working with me on as a book. And that is how we got started!” [Laughs]
Fasaha Traylor (FT): “She didn’t really say that this project would take five years to do and that it would take up all our time! She left that part out. [Laughs] It was a long time sitting at our desks and interviewing for five years. It actually may have been a little more than five years. The book is structured and loosely organized around what we call forerunners and contemporary women. It was not long before we realized that the women we were interested in profiling, they spilled over from history to the present because the forerunners who came before––along with the contemporary women we interviewed––they frequently were pursuing some of the same things and working on the same issues. It is really mind boggling when you think about it––that someone from 2017 would be working on the same issues as someone from the 1800s. We developed an interview protocol and we interviewed over 49 contemporary women and asked them about all kinds of things. We decided this would be a cross-sectorial book. In other words, we wanted to survey Black women across a number of sectors. That is the structure we worked on all this time.”
“These women were hell-bent on making a true impact in their career sectors.”
ABR: “We did not want to start at where they are at now in their lives. What our interview protocol did was actually reach back to their childhood. With the stories in our book you will find began with our interviewees’ childhood and family backgrounds. What we wanted to lay out was where they came from, what their family lives were like, what growing up for them was like, and how all of that shaped them over time, and led them to the work they wanted to be involved in. I say the word ‘work” loosely because this is a book about women who have been on a mission in many of the fields they are involved in. These women were hell-bent on making a true impact in their career sectors.”
FT: “One of the real issues we had was first, we had to develop a criteria on how we are going to choose which women we are going to put in the book. We both agreed there are more women who are outside of the book than in the book who deserve to be in it. When we were developing this criteria, what caused the most thinking on our part was that we were looking for women who made a social impact. In other words, if there was a woman who was a great business person or did something for her family, we were not really looking for that. We were looking for women who made a difference in community and in civic life in and around Philadelphia, the region, and in some cases, the world.”
Ora Mae Washington (1899-1971)
Ora Mae Washington (1899-1971) was an exceptional athlete in the early twentieth century, excelling in both basketball and tennis. She was from the Germantown section of Northwest Philadelphia.
Photo: Ora Mae Washington after winning the 1939 Pennsylvania Open. July 30, 1939. Temple University Libraries, Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection. Photo Credit: John W. Mosely.
Why do you think or feel Black women historical and contemporary leaders do not receive as much attention in regards to their political activism?
ABR: “That question has so many tentacles. The simplest thing to say––even though it is powerful within itself––is because we are not noticed. I know it may be simple or trite but there is so much power in that statement. Many of our interviewees talked about this. It is the construct of being unseen. We are there but we are not seen. What we definitely explored with the women in the book was how does that phenomenon impact their career trajectories? How did they push past that? I am not talking about the simplistic notion of the glass ceiling. I am talking about how our society and the world of business, leadership, education, and all those perspectives, how they frame the presence of Black women.”
FT: “This was born out of the stories of many of the women. We sort of vacillated back and forth of being seen and unnoticed and being targeted. By being targeted I mean––let me just give you one example. Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield was a classical concert singer. She was targeted about how she looked, how she sang, and the fact that she hadn’t gone to any kind of reputable music school. But her voice was amazing to the point that Queen Victoria was really exclaiming over her. The way that Black women are seen, it sort of goes back and forth of being unnoticed and being targeted.”
ABR: “I really want to talk intently about the fourth chapter because you do not really have a lot of people writing on or about Black women in sports. They experienced sexism and gender bias. They were viewed as out of place and not in the realm of where they should have been. There is this one woman in particular––her name was Ora Mae Washington. She was incredibly talented to the point where she held major records in tennis and in basketball. No matter how she excelled as an athlete, this woman worked everyday as a domestic. That speaks to the value of her life in how people saw the kind of work they wanted her to be relegated towards. Ironically, she was honored by the City Council of Philadelphia recently. That is huge. That is certainly something that would have not happened back in her day.” “One of the contemporary women we interviewed was talking about her aunt in three’s: she was a woman, she was Black, and she was talented as well. The fact that we have to cast ourselves in that way––white women don’t have to cast themselves in that way. But we do. As much as we have broken through a lot of the sort of weightiness that society puts on us, you will see in these interviews that these women experience a lot of the same things––even down to their hair. That is a whole story within itself as well––Black women’s hair.”
“We were looking for women who made a difference in community and in civic life in and around Philadelphia, the region, and in some cases the world.”
FT: “I wanted to emphasize another aspect of the Philadelphia story. When we first got started, we were thinking alot about the work of Darlene Clark Hine and Jessie Carney Smith. We thought a lot about the work of Paula Giddings and the Combahee River Collective and all kinds of women scholars who are really unearthing a lot about Black women all over the country. It seems to us that one of the things that has not been done is what happens when you are looking at what Black people are doing in a particular place? Most of these women knew one another as contemporaries and were inspired by many of the forerunners. Many of them were role models for one another and they assisted one another. What we were trying to focus on was that these Black women were not just important as individuals. They are really important in a social context. We wanted to try to bring that out as much as we could.”
Clara Ward (1924-1973)
Clara Ward was a gospel artist who achieved great artistic and commercial success during the 1940s and 1950s, as leader of The Famous Ward Singers.
Photo Credit: The Ubuntu Project.
It is so interesting thinking about Black women’s activism in Philadelphia because I am from the area. Black women’s activism is everywhere in the city but it is so overlooked. I remember vividly as a child and as a teenager being on Broad Street and while my parents were driving, seeing a mural of a Black woman off of Broad and Clearfield. Her name was Roxanne H. Jones. I had no idea for the longest time she was the first Black woman to be elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate. I also think about the Black women in my life who live in Philadelphia who do so much work but do not get the accolades they so truly deserve and how their work is often taken for granted. Then you start thinking about your surroundings––who are the names of Black women in Philadelphia who resisted, educated, and organized that I do not know about? How many times have I walked down a street or passed a mural named after or in honor of a Black woman in Philadelphia that I never knew or never thought to learn about?
FT: “What you are saying is bringing so much to mind because there are two women in the book who are both contemporaries––Dr. Emma Chappell and Dr. Shirley Dennis. It was Emma Chappell who founded the first bank that was created to service Black and other minorities in the city of Philadelphia. It was Shirley Dennis who tackled the issue of redlining. The work those two women did in those areas many people don’t know about. It was Lurline Jones, one of our sportswomen, who took on the School District of Philadelphia and said back in the seventies that girls should have access to the same opportunities in sports and athletics as boys in the city’s public schools. People don’t know those pieces of history. And one last one––and there are 95 of them so we could go on forever! [Laughs]––but people know the name of Octavious Catto. When you look in the history books, they talk a lot about how he was involved in the fight to get Black people equal access to riding street cars but also helping Black men get jobs. Well, in fact it was Caroline LeCount who took on that fight. However when we read her story, his name [Octavious Catto] always comes up. I understand why his name comes up but you don’t hear the accuracy about her or her efforts. That is why this book is important specifically as it relates to Philadelphia because all of those things needed to change. There were systemic issues that were negatively affecting the lives of Black Philadelphians.”
What was some information you found most fascinating while doing research and conducting interviews for the book?
“Back in the day, there were also gay women and they played really important roles in the community and in this city.”
FT: “One of the things I thought was really important to bring out was just like today and even in history, there were hints of sexuality. In today’s time, everywhere you look, you will find gay women. Back in the day, there were also gay women and they played really important roles in the community and in this city. People really didn’t know about them. I am thinking particularly of one of the most important principals who was in the Germantown area of the city. Her name was Nellie Rathbone Bright. Even though we do not know exactly what her sexual preferences were, there were hints about it. It is important for people to know about that. It is important for people to know that people have accomplished an awful lot of things and that there are role models across gender. Clara Ward is another person that people know about but few people know she was bisexual. It is important for us to keep in mind the human dignity our community has been famous for fighting for needs to extend to everyone.”
“Whether those women were mothers, grandmothers or aunts, just seeing how women were supporting each other was and is so important.”
ABR: “That is one of the beautiful things about research is that you find out about different things you are not sure about. For me, one of the things that just resonated with me was how women support each other along the way. Just about every story there were other women in the background who were pushing women to move forward. Pushing them not to give up and pushing them to be the best they could be. Whether those women were mothers, grandmothers or aunts, just seeing how women were supporting each other was and is so important. If you read our stories, you will find the links. I think about myself and having been a teenage mother. It was the women in my life––starting with my mother––and the ‘play moms’ and ‘play aunts’ I had that always had my back. They were determined I was going to succeed at whatever I chose to do. That point definitely resonates in the book.”
FT: “I was thinking about another thing I was surprised about in our research. When looking at the 1700’s and 1800’s, I was really surprised at how independent a lot of the women were. When I mean independent, I just don’t mean in a physical sense but they were independent minded. I was thinking of Grace Bustill Douglass, whose father was a caterer for George Washington. She became a milliner. One of the things she decided was that she was not going to use her money for conspicuous consumption. She was not going to buy a lot of fancy clothes. Her thing was, ‘I need to save money to help support the ‘free people’ of Philadelphia’ who although ‘free’, were nonetheless really impoverished. That was an unusual stance for anybody to take. Her mental independence sort of extended to her husband as well. In fact, he was a founder of the African Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. But she was not; she remained a Quaker. It had to do mainly with the struggle the Quakers were going through around the question of slavery. It was just very interesting to see how these women could be and how most of these women were so mentally sharp. They were so sharp––I can’t even describe how sharp these women were.”
ABR: “These women were unafraid. If there is one thing I want a young, Black girl to get out of this book, it is the importance of looking inside of herself and being unafraid. These women were unafraid. They were proud and they believed in themselves and their mission. Even when they weren’t sure, they had this kind of mental stamina that kept them going. Those are characteristics or personality traits I would like to see a lot more of in our young Black women and girls. That whoever you are, you can do and be. That might sound simplistic but I am telling you it is hard.”
Nellie Rathbone Bright
(1898-1977)
Nellie Rathbone Bright was an educator, poet, and author. She taught in Philadelphia public schools, becoming a principal in 1935 and serving until her retirement in 1952. During the 1920s, she was part of a literary group known as the Black Opals.
Photo Credit: Philadelphia Inquirer.
When you think about the book and the activism of the Black women you researched, do you think about your individual activism as a part of this grander legacy of Black women’s activism in Philadelphia? How do you see yourselves in the women you researched and interviewed?
ABR: “Without a doubt, I know we both are individually yoked to these women. We came to our forms of activism from different vantage points. Nonetheless, I do believe that separate from They Carried Us that we each continued and picked up that torch. Our work creating and authoring They Carried Us contributes to that. I see a number of women in the book who grew up in West Philadelphia just like I did. I read about the places they’ve been and the things they’ve done. While those women, of course, were from a different time, what they did is there nonetheless. Fasaha’s daughter [was] coordinating our book launch and she sent a message to us. In the email she said, ‘The two of you need to be in a book!’ I responded to her and said, ‘We are in a book––we are in this book!’ [Laughs] I very much believe that our work in They Carried Us is an extension of that. Another thing I believe is that we very often don’t know why a person comes into our lives. I am thinking about Fasaha and I and how we met professionally, working on a board of a youth advocacy organization. Was it the mid-nineties or something like that?”
FT: “Yes, it was.”
ABR: “Well, that tells you we are a little old! [Laughs] Some of us are older than others! [Laughs] I had no idea––and neither did she––that when we met, we would be doing this powerful work together. That is all true [Laughs]. Where I am going with this is the notion of where you find yourself. There’s often other people around you who believe in the same change you do and want to do the same work you do. They Carried Us is our contribution and our continuation of that important work.”
FT: “Whenever anyone would ask me what I was working on, I would tell everybody my favorite woman is always the woman I am working on then. What that really speaks to is that there is something in every one of these women’s stories that deeply moves me and that I really feel compelled to share. It really is like a compulsion. There are important things in the lives of these women that more people need to be made aware of. They are all my favorite women but I see myself in almost every one of them. So no matter where these women were working their magic, I identify with them. I do. Other Black women and girls need to have the opportunity to identify with them as well.”
What does a Black Woman Radical mean to you?
ABR: “I very much identify as a Black Woman Radical. It means to me that if the box is too tight, I am going to get out of it. If I am expected to frame myself or society in such a tight and rigid way, I don’t and I won’t do it. I think about the impact of so many people whose lives can be different and better if it weren’t for being boxed in. This is a very serious question for me. I can even hear it in my voice just changing and thinking about it. I consider myself growing up as a Black Woman Radical. I was the first person on my block to bring home a white friend from school and have everyone looking at her and looking at me like, ‘Woah, what is going on?’ She was my friend. I am lesbian. I come from a very staunch and Christian upbringing. I like to tell people that all my grandparents were ministers. My brother is a minister. My great-great grandfather was the 25th bishop of the AME church. None of that brands who I am. Not to be disrespectful at all but I walk my path and my path is the one that says that I need to be good to everybody. I need to do my best to make people around me whose lives are not good, I need to make them better. For me, being a Black Woman Radical is something that I wear very proudly on my sleeves. To me, a Black Woman Radical means to be unafraid. I am unafraid but that doesn’t mean that I am not afraid! [Laughs] I will be the first one in the room to challenge and I will be the first person in the room to stand up for myself as well. If young women can get that out of this book, then I am all for it.”
FT: “I think if you are a Black woman and you are not radical, I think you have a problem. Black women’s very presence is radical. We have to adopt a radical way of being in the world because people put us in those boxes and we have to deal with it in whatever ways we have to deal with it. I bet if you scratch the surface of any Black woman, I bet you would end up feeling like she was radical. When I think of radicalism, I think of Ona Judge. Ona Judge was an enslaved Black woman who made up in her mind that she was no longer going to be enslaved. She didn’t care who it was. Not even George Washington could stop her. Long before Harriet Tubman, Ona Judge just set it off. I think the way we live radicalizes us.”
About the authors:
Dr. Allener M. Baker-Rogers is a native West Philadelphian. Prior to early retirement due to disability, she was a civic advocate in Philadelphia. Sissy is an honorary board member and former president of the Philadelphia child-advocacy organization, Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY). She served on mayoral advisory committees, and was a governor’s appointee and board chair of the Philadelphia County Assistance Office (PCAO). She is a past recipient of the Cecil B. Moore Community Service Award and a long-time volunteer with the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania. A lifelong educator, and having earned a doctorate in higher-education leadership from Widener University in 2003, Sissy is a former academic-department director and assistant professor of educational research.
Fasaha M. Traylor has been an educator, activist, writer, administrator, board chair and foundation officer. She founded and directed an independent school, operated programs to link the resources of a local university with community needs and taught in public alternative- education programs. She was a copy editor at a major metropolitan newspaper, served on the board of a national human-rights organization—the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and was board chair of Grantmakers for Children, Youth and Families as well as Public Citizens for Children and Youth. She cofounded the Ain’t I a Woman Network—an activist group formed in the wake of the Clarence Thomas/Anita Hill hearings—and is a principal of Lift Ev’ry Voice. The recipient of many awards and fellowships, she received a National Science Foundation fellowship, the Art Peters Memorial Fellowship (journalism) and the Temple University Urban Fellowship.
You can purchase They Carried Us here.
You can follow They Carried Us on Twitter.