Pleasure and Pedagogy: The Role of Humor in Florynce Kennedy's Political Praxis

This article explores how pioneering Black feminist Florynce "Flo" Kennedy (1916–2000) deployed humor as a political tool, as well as the meaning and effects of her humor, both for herself and her audiences. Drawing upon a range of printed, recorded, and archival materials, this article argues that Kennedy's humor served to provide pleasure, to express her political ideas and remedies, and to educate diverse publics. Kennedy frequently stressed that politics was fun to her, and that it should be fun—indeed, that this sense of fun could be instrumental in inspiring new adherents to a cause, and could keep them committed by strengthening bonds of solidarity through laughter and song. However, Kennedy's words and actions were not merely funny and entertaining; in fact, they helped articulate and amplify her serious political insights. For Kennedy, humor served an important pedagogic purpose. Specifically, humor served as a framing device, that is, a way of recasting reality for varied publics. In addition to teasing out the meanings embedded in Kennedy's humor, this paper also assesses its impact using the limited, and admittedly problematic, sources available, including the news media.