African American Pioneers of Arizona

Featuring compelling documentaries based on interviews, this presentation shares stories about prominent African Americans who contributed to the life and culture of Arizona.  Such luminaries include the late Dr. Eugene Grigsby, Betty Fairfax, Judge Jean Williams, Rev. Warren Stewart, Councilman Calvin Goode, and Carol Coles Henry.  Each individual’s life is contextualized using prominent events that have taken place in Arizona and the impact his/her work had on the social, cultural and political lives of the state is discussed.

Akua Duku Anokye, Associate Director of SHArCS and Associate Professor of Africana Language, Literature, and Culture in Arizona State University’s New College, is past chair of the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC), and co-chair of the College Board’s Advanced Placement English Language and Composition Development Committee.  Anokye’s research centers on African Diaspora orality and literacy practices, folklore, and oral history focusing on Ghanaian culture, religion, storytelling, and dance. Her work in oral history on community mothers has led to the production of several documentaries on African American women activists including Jean and Betty Fairfax, and Judge Jean Williams in Arizona.