I am delighted to see Living with Lynching reviewed by yet another publication targeting traditional historians! The Journal of American History (JAH) is the official publication of the Organization of American Historians (OAH). It is recognized as "the leading scholarly publication and the journal of record in American history."
The reviewer's conclusion: "Mitchell’s analysis recovers a complex array of strategies that African Americans honed over decades to cope with the reality of lynching." Also, "Mitchell’s most powerful chapters focus on lynching’s impact on family life. The figure of the mother/wife ... best instantiates the complexities of 'living with lynching.'"
For more, please see Journal of American History 99.3 (December 2012): 958 - 59.
For more on OAH, visit http://www.oah.org/
When I give lectures based on the research that produced Living with Lynching, someone always asks what inspired me to study this material. Some of the most honest answers to that question are now published in a volume that honors Toni Morrison. Released this month, Toni Morrison: Forty Years in the Clearing is a lovely volume that includes contributions from Barack Obama, playwright Lydia Diamond (who adapted Morrison's The Bluest Eye for the stage), black feminist theorist Farah Jasmine Griffin, and artists Mendi + Keith Obadike.
My contribution to this collection is titled "Belief and Performance, Morrison and Me." It details experiences I had in high school and college that led me to want to pursue a PhD. Morrison's work was key to how I understood those experiences. Her work continued to guide me years later when I had painful encounters as a young professor at a Research I institution. Not only did the lessons I learned from Morrison help me understand those experiences; they also helped me navigate the interactions successfully enough to avoid being derailed as I wrote Living with Lynching.
My essay can be downloaded from my Selected Works site, and the pdf includes the table of contents for this wonderful essay collection. Free access here.
ASCENT magazine, published by the College of Arts & Sciences at Ohio State University, interviewed me about my book. I had a lovely conversation with communications professional Victoria Ellwood, and we talked about all kinds of things. I had no idea what she would write, but I could not be more pleased with the outcome! She really captured the link between my scholarly work and my
community efforts to encourage women to become and remain physically
active. I will always cherish this story! I'm sure you'll enjoy "Making Strides" too!
The picture above, which you'll also see in "Making Strides," is from the 2012 Capital City Half Marathon. It is an absolutely wonderful event, and participants can choose to walk or run 13.1 miles (half marathon), 6.55 miles (quarter marathon), or 3.1 miles (5K). I'm so excited in this picture because the founders of Black Girls RUN! made this race a national meet-up in 2012, so we had more than 160 women registered with our team. Wherever you are, consider coming to Columbus the first weekend of May for this fabulous event!
Besides running the Capital City Half Marathon again in 2013, I'm running a half marathon on January 27th and devoting the effort to charity. Please visit my site, consider donating, and SHARE the link! http://bit.ly/YnCE8f
Again, thank you for being on this journey with me!
