Photo from The Veterans of Hope Project African American, Autoethnography, Spirituality, Activism Rosemarie Freeney Harding (1931-2004) Rosemarie Freeney Harding offers a detailed autoethnographic memoir of African American women’s beliefs and traditions during the Great Migration from Georgia to Chicago and about her spiritual journey as she engaged study through interfaith traditions. As a Mennonite, she …
Father-and-son mariachi musicians Roberto and Lorenzo Martinez. Arlington, Virginia, 2003. photograph by Alan Govenar Nuevo Mexicano, Music, Activism Roberto Martínez, Sr. (1929-2013) Roberto Martínez influenced generations of musicians through his songwriting, performances, and recordings, offering constant support and encouragement to younger musicians. Surrounded by traditional northern Nuevo Mexicano music, Martínez went on to form the …
Photographer unknown. Photo credit from thehindubusinessline.com, “Scanned in Chennai R.K.Sridharan” South Asian American, Literature, Linguistics, Folklore A.K. Ramanujan (1929-1993) Dr. Attipat Krishnaswami Ramanujan, widely known as A.K. Ramanujan, was a renowned scholar whose research spanned multiple disciplines including linguistics, poetry, mythology, translation, and folklore. Born in Mysore, India, in 1929, he pursued his education in …
Photo by Alan Govenar, 2006 Native Hawaiian, Dance, Cultural Activism George Na‘ope (1928-2009) Born in Kalihi, Hawaiʻi in 1928 and raised in Hilo, George Lanakilakeikiahialiʻi Naʻope was a foundational figure in the perpetuation, visibility, and celebration of Hawaiian culture. Affectionately and respectfully known as “Uncle George,” he was a revered kumu hula—a title that translates …
book cover Filipina American, Folklore, Journalism Mellie Leandicho Lopez (ca 1928-2017) Dr. Mellie Leandicho Lopez was a pioneer Filipina American folklorist whose influence extended beyond the academic world to the arts, journalism, and museum spheres. She was the first Asian to be enrolled in the interdisciplinary folklore program in the anthropology department of the University …
Photographer unknown; photo sourced from prabook.com African American, Ethnography, Anthropology John Gwaltney (1928-1998) John Langston Gwaltney was a native anthropologist and folklorist whose scholarship chronicled the everyday lives of marginalized communities. Gwaltney was born in 1928 in Orange, New Jersey, as one of five children, to John Stanley Gwaltney, a merchant seaman, and Mabel Harper …
Photo courtesy of SHI. Photo by Brian Wallace. Native American (Tlingit), Linguistics, Literature Nora Marks Dauenhauer (Keixwnéi) (1927-2017) Nora Marks Dauenhauer (Ḵeixwnéi) was a Tlingit Clan Mother of the Raven moiety, Lukaax̱.ádi clan, and of the Shaka Hít or Canoe Prow House, from Alsek River, an author, and a culture-bearer whose scholarship documents and shares …
Left: Lane Ryo Hirabayashi. Photo from the Los Angeles Times, by Jake Fabricius Photography. Right: James Hirabayashi. Photo from Nichi Bei Weekly Report Japanese American, Ethnic Studies, Activism, Museum Work James Hirabayashi, Lane Ryo Hirabayashi (1926-2012), (1952-2020) Father and son, James Hirabayashi and Lane Hirabayashi were anthropologists who often collaborated, but also pursued distinct areas …
Photo from The Korea Times Korean American, Museum Work, Material Culture Chang-Su Houchins (1925-2009) Chang-su Cho Houchins was a scholar and a museum specialist who contributed to making East Asian culture accessible to the American public. Born in 1925, in Pyongyang, Korea, she studied anthropology at Japan Women’s University in Tokyo during WWII. After coming …
In Search of Blueprints: The Making of an African American Literary Critic … Stephen E. Henderson : a Symposium on African American Literary and Intellectual Thought. Program in African American Culture, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, 1993. African American, Cultural Activism, Literary Theory Stephen E. Henderson (1925-1997) Dr. Stephen Henderson was an HBCU (historically Black …