Let Us Encourage and Uplift

For my blog on Going Against the Grain, I would like to focus on parts of the writing that show how past generations of African American women have become a literary backbone for future generations of Black females as well as the entire race. These past generations of women realized that they would have to strive in literacy in order to thrive in the United States. They recognized that in order for them to survive and be successful in the US, they would have to practice their literary skills. They also recognized that through achieving literacy and proper education they could make a difference in the African American community. “The quest for literacy was a symbolic manifestation of their desire for agency and autonomy…. In this quest they also accepted personal responsibility for securing their own rights and perceived their opportunities to learn to be an obligation to use the benefits of those opportunities for good and righteous work in solving an array of problems, not only for themselves but for the race as a whole(113).” As I read this part from Going Against the Grain I reflected on my literacy narrative and thought of the strong, black, literate females in my life who encouraged me to achieve literacy. My grandmothers, aunts, and my mother all took part in my learning how to read, write and comprehend the English language. As you continue reading Going Against the Grain think of the Black, literate women who have uplifted you and encouraged you to achieve literary skills and talents, and think of how you can pass that same encouragement to future generations of Black females.

Kirah Brace