Association of Black Women Historians

The Association of Black Women Historians (ABWH) is a nonprofit professional association based in Washington, D.C., devoted to supporting Black women working in history and related fields. The organization emerged from conversations among Black women historians in 1977 and was formally established in New York in late 1979. Its creation reflected both the expansion of African American women's history as a field of study and the need for a professional network that addressed the specific barriers faced by Black women scholars. ABWH's founding framework identified four central purposes: building connections among members, advancing Black women within the historical profession, circulating information about professional opportunities, and encouraging research on subjects and archival repositories relevant to Black women's experiences. These aims positioned the association as both a professional network and an intervention in the production and circulation of historical knowledge. The organization has worked to make Black women's scholarship more visible, support scholars at different career stages, and connect academic research with wider public conversations about history and memory. Before its formal launch, organizers held meetings in several parts of the United States, including Cincinnati, California, and Massachusetts. A committee was established to select the association's name and create a newsletter. The publication was named Truth in honor of Sojourner Truth, linking the new professional organization to the legacy of Black women's activism, public speech, and historical agency. The first executive committee included Darlene Clark Hine, Rosalyn Terborg-Penn, Janice Sumler-Lewis, Bettye J. Gardner, Sharon Harley, Cheryl Johnson, Juanita Moore, Sylvia M. Jacobs, Maria A. Brown, and Cynthia Neverdon-Morton. ABWH has organized research conferences, annual luncheons, publications, and recognition programs. Its first research conference took place at Howard University in 1983 under the theme "Women in the African Diaspora: An Interdisciplinary Perspective." The annual luncheon, begun in 1981, combined professional fellowship, featured speakers, and fundraising. The association has also produced books addressing African American women's history and culture, including In Spite of the Double Drawbacks: African American Women in History and Culture and The Truth Worth of Race: African American Women and the Struggle for Freedom. An anthology was also issued in connection with the organization's twentieth anniversary. The association's awards honor women of African descent whose work engages historical issues, with attention to emerging scholars and community contributors as well as established academics. Named awards include the Letitia Woods Brown Memorial Publication Award, the Lillian Hornsby Memorial Award, the Drusilla Dunjee Houston Award, the Rosalyn Terborg-Penn Junior Faculty Award, and the Lorraine Anderson Williams Leadership Award. ABWH has also used public statements to challenge inaccurate or minimizing representations of Black women's history, most notably its 2012 criticism of the film The Help. The organization continues to combine professional support, historical scholarship, public education, publications, and advocacy for a more accurate account of Black women's lives and contributions.

The Association of Black Women Historians was developed in 1977 amid efforts by Black women scholars to create stronger professional support and to expand recognition of Black women's historical scholarship. Elizabeth Parker, Eleanor Smith, and Rosalyn Terborg-Penn conceived the organization. Its formation responded to the limited visibility of Black women in the historical profession and to the need for a network capable of sharing opportunities, research resources, and strategies for professional advancement. Preparatory meetings took place in Cincinnati, California, Massachusetts, and other locations before the association was formally launched in New York in late 1979. During this period, organizers developed the group's constitutional goals, selected its name, and planned a newsletter. The newsletter, Truth, invoked Sojourner Truth and expressed the association's connection to the longer history of Black women's intellectual and political work. The initial executive committee included Darlene Clark Hine, Rosalyn Terborg-Penn, Janice Sumler-Lewis, Bettye J. Gardner, Sharon Harley, Cheryl Johnson, Juanita Moore, Sylvia M. Jacobs, Maria A. Brown, and Cynthia Neverdon-Morton. The association's stated purposes were to establish a membership network, promote Black women in the profession, circulate information about opportunities, and encourage research topics and repositories. These objectives gave ABWH a dual role: it supported historians as professionals while also helping shape the subjects, sources, and interpretive frameworks used to study Black women's history. ABWH began its annual luncheon program in 1981. The luncheons provided opportunities for professional exchange and fundraising and featured speakers including Nell Irvin Painter, Elizabeth Clarke Lewis, and Mary Frances Berry. In 1992, then-presidential candidate Bill Clinton also delivered brief remarks at an ABWH luncheon. The association held its first research conference at Howard University in 1983, focusing on women in the African diaspora from an interdisciplinary perspective. Over time, ABWH expanded its work through publications, conferences, awards, and public commentary. It published or sponsored works including In Spite of the Double Drawbacks: African American Women in History and Culture and The Truth Worth of Race: African American Women and the Struggle for Freedom, and produced an anthology commemorating the twentieth anniversary of its founding. Its awards program recognizes historical scholarship, leadership, and community work by women of African descent, with several awards named for important figures associated with Black women's history. The association also intervenes when popular culture or public narratives treat Black women's history inaccurately. In 2012, it published a statement criticizing The Help for what it described as a distorted, minimizing, and trivializing portrayal of Black domestic workers. In the contemporary period, ABWH has continued to present itself as a national professional organization with regional leadership, publication activity, digital communications, graduate-student representation, and public-facing historical programming.

• 2012

  Public statement on The Help

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  The association challenged the film's representation of Black domestic workers and its treatment of their historical experiences.

• 1992

  Presidential candidate addresses luncheon

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  Bill Clinton gave brief remarks at an ABWH luncheon while campaigning for the presidency.

• 1983

  First research conference

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  The first ABWH research conference was held at Howard University on women in the African diaspora from an interdisciplinary perspective.

• 1981

  First annual luncheon

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  ABWH began its annual luncheon tradition, combining featured speakers, professional fellowship, and fundraising.

• 1979

  Formal founding in New York

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  After preparatory meetings in several parts of the United States, the association was formally launched in New York late in the year.

• 1977

  Organization conceived

  [1]Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org

  Elizabeth Parker, Eleanor Smith, and Rosalyn Terborg-Penn developed the idea for a professional association serving Black women historians.

A mission-driven professional association centered on Black women historians and the preservation, production, dissemination, and public interpretation of Black women's history.

• Newsletter · 1979

  Truth

  ABWH's early newsletter was named for Sojourner Truth. It was intended to circulate professional information and strengthen communication among members, reflecting the association's founding commitment to networking and opportunity sharing.

• Historical publication

  In Spite of the Double Drawbacks: African American Women in History and Culture

  A publication associated with ABWH that addresses African American women's historical experiences and cultural contributions. It represents the organization's role in disseminating scholarship beyond individual academic careers.

• Historical publication

  The Truth Worth of Race: African American Women and the Struggle for Freedom

  A book associated with the association's publication program, focused on African American women and struggles for freedom. Its subject matter aligns with ABWH's effort to foreground Black women's historical agency and intellectual work.

• Professional recognition

  ABWH Awards Program

  The association recognizes scholarship, publication, leadership, and community work by women of African descent. Awards include the Letitia Woods Brown Memorial Publication Award, Lillian Hornsby Memorial Award, Drusilla Dunjee Houston Award, Rosalyn Terborg-Penn Junior Faculty Award, and Lorraine Anderson Williams Leadership Award.

• 2012

  Criticism of The Help

  ABWH publicly criticized The Help, arguing that the film distorted, overlooked, and diminished the experiences of Black domestic workers. The statement reflected the association's broader role in challenging popular representations that conflict with historical scholarship.

  Source

Read more

• 2012

  Issue a historical critique of The HelpOther

  Background

  The release of The Help prompted debate about the film's portrayal of Black domestic workers and the historical setting in which their labor and relationships were presented.

  Action taken

  ABWH published a statement objecting to the film's treatment of Black domestic workers' experiences.

  Aftermath

  The statement positioned ABWH as a public scholarly voice in debates about historical representation and popular culture.

  Source

1. 1Association of Black Women Historiansen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Association of Black Women Historians official websiteabwh.org