Spelman College - Reflections Yearbook (Atlanta, GA)

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Spelman s Helen T Albro Guest House was the scene for a few precious and poignant moments with poet Sterling A Brown During his brief visit to the campus Mr Brown spoke with members of Spelman s English department including his own former student Ms Teta Banks Spelman English Instructor During his mformal talk with students staff and friends Mr Brown read a few of his poems In addition to being a poet he is also known for being a great teacher a brilliant scholar and a critic Through his national lectures his critical essays and books and his personal contact with young black writers he has been credited with bemg a key person to influence and direct the course of Negro American writing The author of Southern Road 119323 Negro Poetry and Drama f1937l and the Negro in American Fiction 119375 Mr Brown taught at Virginia Seminary and College Lincoln University flvlissouril Fisk University and Howard University where he is Professor Emeritus of the English department Mr Brown holds a B A from Williams College where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa and has his M A in English from Howard University Third World Cinema, a film festival of twenty-five films produced and directed by Third World filmmakers, was presented free to the public October through early December on Spelman's campus. Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the City of Atlanta lDepartment of Cultural Affairsl, the series represented filmmakers from Cuba, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Senegal, Angola, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. One of the largest film audiences gathered near the close of the festival to hear well-known political activist Angela Davis and filmmaker Larry Clarke discuss his Afro-American film, Passing Through f1977l. Mr. Clarke represents a new generation of black American filmmakers. His work presents the Afro- American reality with creative and sensitively conceived images. The film is a testament to the lives of black musicians who have struggled to create their music free of the controls and constraints imposed by the recording industry, Clarke sighted how difficult it is to distribute films of the third world and the importance of developing audiences like the one at Spelman as an alternative. In her opening comments regarding this film on black musicians, Angela Davis said that In order to know where we are and where we're going, we have to know where we're coming from. She sighted the role of music as a form of communication in Africa and how African people who were brought to this country in chains continued to sing, Even though rituals were lost music lived on she pointed out. Even when the slave master didnt know what was going on. She recalled the history of work songs of black people as well as religious music and the birth of the blues which she said allowed black folks to survive at a time when we werent supposed to survive. 29

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CPE Kllllt' Rawls Smce she was eighteen years old Michele Wallace knew she would write a book about the sexual politics of the black experience in America She is now twenty seven years old and for nearly ten years she has been researching this topic and conducting interviews It was the striking similarity of responses to her questions by so many blacks which led her to suspect very definite patterns in the way they viewed themselves and their relationships On February 7 1979 The Dial Press pubhshed Ms Wallace s startling controversial work BLACK MACHO AND THE MYTH OF THE SUPER WOMAN In this book she tells us that black leadership has made a fatal mistake by defining itself in sexua rather than political and economic terms Equatmg power with manhood it has created a black macho mystique lt has been largely insensitive to the needs of women and children and has been mtent on the disastrous pursuit of its own gratification Michele Wallace s articles have often appeared in such publications as Esquire The Village Voice and Ms. which will be excerpting BLACK MACHO in its January edition and featuring the author on its cover. She is the third generation of her family to grow up in Harlem. Her mother Faith Ringgold is a well-known painter and sculptor as well as a college lecturer. Her father Earl Wallace was a classical and jazz pianist. Ms. Wallace began her college education at Howard University later transferring to the City College of New York where she graduated with a B.A. in English and Writing in 1974. From September 1976 through June 1978 she taught journalism at New York University and is currently on a leave of absence from that position. She has also been a research at Newsweek A dedicated jogger and tennis player Ms. Wallace lives in New York City. In addition to working on new projects for Rolling Stone and Ms she is at work an another book of nonfiction. Spelman College was one of four campuses selected by the United Negro College Fund QUNCFJ for their National television special to be aired in 1980. As a result Lou Rawls and a Hollywood production crew did a November filming at Spelman featuring the popular singer and Spelman s own Avis Bynum. Ms. Bynum a junior was selected by a panel to represent the Spelman woman for the film which highlights student life. She is vice president of Spelman s Student Government Association a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Miss Maroon and White Morehouse Homecoming Queen for 1979- The Spelman segment is part of the Lou Rawls Parade of Stars a television spectacular to be aired in the Atlanta area as well as in 24 other cities in the summer of 1980.

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,El +7 lllli sxetl Nowhere ns the sp1r1t of Thanksglvlng demonstrated more v1v1dly than at Spelman s annual Thanksgnvlng Day Celebratnon Th1s year Spelmamtes jonned together to donate over 30 boxes of food to needy nelghborhood famxlles Among the contrlbutnng clubs and orgamzatlons were the Student Government Assoclatlon sororltnes classes and dormltorles The Thanksglvmg Day Rally was held m Slsters Chapel Rev Nor man Rates College Mmlster was the speaker A heartwarmmg feature of the program was a musmcal presentatlon made by the chrldren from Spelman s nursery school lt was truly a day of glvmg thanks as the Spelman famnly celebrated their past successes and reflected upon the future X 1 as . . . 19 . v 1 v 1 Y ' a