The Tara Lake Show

Thank you for joining me this week for the conclusion of this special series on poet, author, activist, and educator Frances E.W. Harper. Just last week, we marked the 196th anniversary of Frances E. W. Harper, on September 24. As we continue to celebrate her impact as a visionary leader and thinker during this season of gratitude and remembrance, it’s an honor to bring you this special interview with Dr. Utz McKnight. Dr. McKnight is Associate Professor in Political Science and Chair of the Department of Gender and Race Studies at the University of Alabama. His book Frances E. W. Harper: A Call To Conscience, was published in December of 2020 on Polity Press.

Dr. McKnight discussed the enormity of Harper’s legacy as a a thriving activist, literary artist, author, orator, community leader, and educator. He highlighted the role of race and gender in her reception by the general public and by leaders in Nineteenth Century African American protest movements, and he also discussed Harper’s most popular fictional work, revealing more about what it offers for readers today.

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Link: Dr. McKnight’s Web Page

Dr. McKnight’s Book: Frances E. W. Harper: A Call To Conscience

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Welcome back to the Tara Lake show!

This is the third installment of my series on Frances E.W. Harper, which celebrates the oratory of the Nineteenth Century Philadelphian and African American poet, author, abolitionist and suffragist. It has been an honor to share this series in recognition of Harper’s amazing work, which spanned decades, crossed two centuries, and continues to impact us so meaningfully today. This series ran from the spring through the fall of 2020, and this third and final installment coincided with the occasion of America’s Election Day weekend in November, 2020. I created this series — serving as writer, editor, producer and voice performer — to illuminate the power of Harper’s language in her extraordinary, decades-long crusade for justice. Harper’s speeches provide a unique perspective into the political, social, and cultural landscape of the Nineteenth Century. Frances E.W. Harper’s steadfast commitment to truth allowed her to call out injustice and racism in ways that are rarely heard even today.

Please visit www.TaraLakeShow.com for more information.

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Thanks so much for joining me for this week’s episode of the Tara Lake show.
Today, as part of this special eight-episode season, I’m excited to share the second installment in my three part series on poet, author, and activist Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. Last week, we learned a bit more about this inspiring pioneer and her role in history, and we explored some of her poetry. Harper began publishing in poetry in 1845, at the age of 20, and later became known for her fiction as well. She utilized her fiction to inspire, uplift, and educate audiences — and to dramatize the social issues that motivated her work and activism. Frances E.W. Harper lived and worked in Philadelphia for decades in the Nineteenth and early Twentieth Century, and I produced this project for Philadelphia radio audiences. As producer, writer, editor, voice performer, I added elements of audio theatre to this production. We are truly fortunate to have Frances E. W. Harper’s work with us today. More than 130 years on, Harper’s serialized novels speak powerfully to the present.

Please visit www.TaraLakeShow.com for more information.

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Thanks so much for returning for another episode of the Tara Lake Show.

This week’s episode provides an introduction to, and the first installment of, a three part series on the life and work of Frances E.W. Harper — poet, author, orator, and visionary of the 19th Century who lived from 1825 to 1911. Frances E.W. Harper was a trailblazer in the anti-slavery movement and in Civil Rights and Social Justice Movements for African Americans and Women in the United States — distinguishing herself in the temperance, African American suffrage, and Women’s Suffrage movements. This episode celebrates Frances E.W. Harper’s poetry, considers Harper’s work in the context of a lineage of African American women in working in Freedom Movements in the United States, and takes a look at the highlighting of these women in recent visibility efforts.

Mentioned in this episode:

Link to Eyes on the Prize: Hallowed Ground
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