Imagining Black Womanhood: The Negotiation of Power and Identity within the Girls Empowerment Project

Imagining Black Womanhood

Imagining Black Womanhood The Negotiation of Power and Identity within the Girls Empowerment Project STEPHANIE D. SEARS Cover photo courtesy of Harry Cutting Photography Published by State University of New York Press, Albany© 2010 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu Production by Diane Ganeles Marketing by Anne M. Valentine Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Sears, Stephanie D., 1964Imagining Black womanhood : the negotiation of power and identity within the Girls Empowerment Project / Stephanie D. Sears. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4384-3327-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-4384-3326-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Womanism—United States. 2. African American girls. 3. Women, Black—United States. 4. Identity (Philosophical concept) I. Title. HQ1197.S43 2010 305.23089’96073—dc22 2009053987 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ...