«The Brownies’ Book»: Inspiring Racial Pride in African-American Children

‘The Brownies’ Book:’ offers a descriptive analysis and interpretation of America’s first magazine for young African-Americans. Published by W.E.B. Du Bois in cooperation with Jessie Fauset and Augustus Granville Dill, the monthly hoped to foster a new African-American identity by (re)connecting «the children of the sun» with Africa, by turning them into proud Americans, and by educating them to be global citizens. The editors turned the crow into a positive symbol of blackness and provided photographs which proved that «black is beautiful» to increase the self-esteem of black youths. The magazine was a harbinger of the Harlem Renaissance and served as a creative outlet for many African-American writers and artists, among them many women.

Christina Schäffer graduated from the University of Mainz in 2008 with a Master’s degree and the First Teacher’s State Exam in American and German Studies. She worked as a Foreign Language Assistant in England and studied at Washington College in Maryland. Between 2008 and 2011, she completed her PhD and is currently doing her teacher’s training.

«Revealing the ideological battles waged over the emerging category and genre of children’s literature in the period from 1920 to 1960, Schäffer and Schmidt shed new light on important chapters in children’s literature and culture.» (Michaela Keck, Amerikastudien / American Studies 62.3 2017)

Contents: Genesis of the magazine – Components – The Construction of Positive Images – In Search of a Usable Past (Africa, Slavery, Lynching and Racism, the South, Euro-American Traditions, Black Culture Heroes) – The Three Dimensions (Africa, America, the Global Community) – Demise and Legacy (Effie Lee Newsome, Harlem Renaissance). Inhaltsverzeichnis