ERIC Number: EJ1215758
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-2984
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Zora Neale Hurston and the Brown Debate: Race, Class, and the Progressive Empire
Marcucci, Olivia
Journal of Negro Education, v86 n1 p13-24 Win 2017
The Orlando Sentinel published a 1955 letter to the editor from Zora Neale Hurston. In it, she condemns the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education and the leadership of the Black intelligentsia in the decision. Using Timothy Parsons' myth of a progressive empire, this article emphasizes Hurston's central thesis: that forced desegregation leads to spiritual and cultural oppression, disguised within the ostensibly progressive Brown. The analysis also examines Hurston's class-straddling perspective in the construction of her argument and analyzes the role of class in the Brown strategy. Hurston's argument, understood through the lens of progressive empire, has implications for current educators of Black students.
Descriptors: Race, Social Class, Desegregation Litigation, School Desegregation, Racial Attitudes, Racial Relations, Debate, African American Students, Persuasive Discourse, Newspapers
Howard University School of Education. 2900 Van Ness Street NW, Washington, DC 20008. Tel: 202-806-8120; Fax: 202-806-8434; e-mail: journalnegroed@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.journalnegroed.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Florida (Orlando)
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Brown v Board of Education
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A