The Voice of the African American Woman
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The article touches on various aspects of race, gender, and ethnicity. Griffin uses the voice of African American women to display the injustices that black people endured in America. She talks of the shootings in Littleton by racist white people, socioeconomic inequalities in the army between the white and other minority groups, absence of inclusion of the African American people, among others. Griffins depict that voice of the black women singing in the event of such crises was to criticize the injustices or give hope to the minorities for a more inclusive America. The article talks of the segregation of the sixties and the civil war and shows how the voice of the black woman helped African Americans in the south to cope with the challenges. Lastly, Griffin shows the role of black women in fostering the “black voice” that has received backlash, such as it impossible to find characters that can vocal it but has been helpful African American writers like Fredrick Douglass.
Griffin also touches on distinct instances of musical labor when evaluating the black voice. For example, she maintains that “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To” and “ Be My Husband” are examples of songs that African American women sang while working. In the absence of their husbands, the black women were able to sing beautiful songs that made the working experience more bearable. Griffins also appreciate Douglass for writing about the black women singing as they endured forced labor during slavery periods. From Griffin’s evaluations, it is evident that the singing of black women allowed them to convey the pains felt by their people or call the people to action.