First published in 1993, this is a new edition of the classic text in which Clenora Hudson-Weems sets out a paradigm for women of African descent. Examining the status, struggles and experiences of the Africana woman forced into exile in Europe, Latin America, the United States or at Home in Africa, the theory outlines the experience of Africana women as unique and separate from that of some other women of color, and, of course, from white women. Differentiating itself from the problematic theories of Western feminisms, Africana Womanism allows an establishment of cultural identity and relationship directly to ancestry and land. This new edition includes five new chapters as well as an evolution of the classic Africana womanist paradigm, to that of Africana-Melanated Womanism. It shows how race, class and gender must be prioritized in the fight against every day racial dominance. Africana Womanism: Reclaiming Ourselves offers a new term and paradigm for women of African descent. A family-centered concept, prioritizing race, class and gender, it offers eighteen features of the Africana womanist (self-namer, self-definer, family-centered, genuine in sisterhood, strong, in concert with male in the liberation struggle, whole, authentic, flexible role player, respected, recognized, spiritual, male compatible, respectful of elders, adaptable, ambitious, mothering, nurturing), applying them to characters in novels by Hurston, Bâ, Marshall, Morrison and McMillan. It evolves from Africana Womanism to Africana-Melanated Womanism. This is an important work and essential reading for researchers and students in women and gender studies, Africana studies, African-American studies, literary studies and cultural studies, particularly with the emergence of family centrality (community and collective engagement), the very cornerstone of Africana Womanism since its inception.

AFRICANA WOMANISM: RECLAIMING OURSELVES poses new challenges for the feminist movement. In fact, in the words of Delores P. Aldridge it is "unquestionably a pioneering effort whose time has come. It provides an exciting & fresh approach to understanding the tensions existing among the mainstream feminist, the Black feminist, the African feminist & the Africana womanist." Hudson-Weems examines the perceptions women in the African diaspora have of their historical & contemporary roles. It is within this comparative framework that the work advances the state of knowledge on the lives of women in color. Since the initial appeal of feminism was & continues to be largely for educated, middle-class white women & not black working class women, the onus of responsibility for the destiny of the Africana woman rests on her. The growing need to be self-named & self-defined, the desire for reclamation of her historical past, the search for a stronger sense of belongingness & the greater call for cultural rootedness provide the rationale & justify the urgency for a new direction. AFRICANA WOMANISM is timely, theoretically fitting & intrinsically advantageous to the Africana woman. In the triple marginality of black women, race rises above class & gender. Distributors: Baker & Taylor; Midwest Library Service.

"By placing Africana womanism, an evolutionary Africana paradigm, within a literary context, this book expands the layered meanings of this family-centered, race-based theory and applies them to the works and ideas of renowned international literary figures such as Toni Morrison, Paula Marshall, and Buchi Emecheta."

Comprehensive in its coverage, The Womanist Reader is the first volume to anthologize the major works of womanist scholarship. Charting the course of womanist theory from its genesis as Alice Walker’s African-American feminism, through Chikwenye Okonjo Ogunyemi’s African womanism and Clenora Hudson-Weems’ Africana womanism, to its present-day expression as a global, anti-oppressionist perspective rooted in the praxis of everyday women of color, this interdisciplinary reader traces the rich and diverse history of a quarter century of womanist thought. Featuring selections from over a dozen disciplines by top womanist scholars from around the world, plus several critiques of womanism, an extensive bibliography of womanist sources, and the first ever systematic treatment of womanist thought on its own terms, Layli Phillips has assembled a unique and groundbreaking compilation.

Following on the heels of The Womanist Reader, The Womanist Idea offers a comprehensive, systematic analysis of womanism, including a detailed discussion of the womanist worldview (cosmology, ontology, epistemology, logic, axiology, and methodology) and its implications for activism. From a womanist perspective, social and ecological change is necessarily undergirded by spirituality – as distinct from religion per se – which invokes a metaphysically informed approach to activism.

Obama's American Dream--Non-Discrimination, Economic Salvation & Humanity A Blueprint for the Restoration of America's Global Image and Leadership Columbia, MO-Africana Womanism & Race & Gender in the Presidential Candidacy of Barack Obama, advocating unity as a panacea for all societal ills, expounds on an authentic paradigm for all African Diaspora women. Clenora Hudson-Weems, PhD, uses Africana Womanism as a template for interpreting political activity, particularly the current controversial debates surrounding the Nation's 1st Black nominee for the Democratic Party for President of the United States of America, Barack Obama. The story of authenticity, human survival, economic security & racial healing for all, this book logically moves from the proper naming & defining of the Africana woman in Part One, to commentaries in Part Two on the biggest obstacle for our society--racism. The book exposes how this phenomenon insidiously impacts upon personal & public relationships, culminating in the current historical moment, as it unfolds in the ascendance of a Black man, Senator Barack Obama, to candidacy for presidency of the USA with his wife, Michelle, the potential 1st Lady. With the mission of restoring America's image and leadership once again in the global world, he has the potential of becoming one of the best U. S. Presidents ever. President & CEO of Hip Hop Caucus, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr.'s Foreword refers to Clenora as "profound in her discourse;" Atty. Alvin O. Chambliss, Jr.'s Afterword quotes her as saying "There is a great difference between discrimination by privilege & protection, and discrimination by deprivation & exclusion;" Lillian Smith, Emmy Award Winner as former 20-year producer of T.V. Talk show, DONAHUE, acknowledges Clenora's "spiritual sense of genuine sisterhood;" & Barry Morrow, Oscar Award-Winning Co-Writer of Rain Man, calls her "a seasoned social, cultural, and political thinker [whose message represents] things worth fighting for."