Ajia Riley Gunn
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Lakisha Simmons
Research Mentor School/College/Department: History & Women’s and Gender Studies / LSA
Program: UROPF
Session: Session 4 (1:40pm – 2:30pm)
Authors: Lakisha Simmons, Ajia Riley Gunn, Adesewa Ojo
Abstract
How did Black women take care of themselves and their families in the transition from slavery to freedom? Our research investigates the lives and labors of African Americans who experienced years of hard work and forced servitude. After emancipation, many African Americans continued to search for ways to support their families, experiencing economic instability and racism. By following the lives of particular families, we consider how women continued to work until they died, even after freedom. The goal of examining the narratives of formerly enslaved African Americans through the lens of Social Reproduction Theory, is to show that slavery affects the way African Americans interact with work within society and how they found spaces of care in a world that often saw them as disposable.
