{"id":45262,"date":"2025-03-25T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/?p=45262"},"modified":"2025-03-22T14:54:44","modified_gmt":"2025-03-22T14:54:44","slug":"amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives – review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n

Title:<\/strong> Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author:<\/strong> Nydia A. Swaby<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher:<\/strong> Lawrence Wishart<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Year:<\/strong> 2024<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Bravo to Nydia A Swaby for Amy Ashwood Garvey and the<\/em> Future of Black Feminist Archives<\/em>. Through archival documentation and imaginative reconstruction, Swaby delicately leads us through the story of early internationalist Amy Ashwood Garvey, highlighting her relationship with the Jamaican pan-African leader Marcus Garvey<\/a>, her quest to remain free from the domestic burdens that often plague women\u2019s lives and her political and socially engaged work, while inviting us to interrogate the nature of archival practice. As a poet and founder and keeper of Nottingham Black Archive<\/a>, Swaby\u2019s work in foregrounding Ashwood Garvey resonates with me both personally and professionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swaby\u2019s book brings us closer to Ashwood Garvey\u2019s life and our understanding of her as a 20th-century independent black woman. The use of portraiture to share and illustrate Ashwood Garvey\u2019s narrative lifts her from the pages and into our hearts. I found myself poring over the photographs, imagining how Ashwood Garvey must have felt wandering continents too. It serves, as Swaby points out, \u2018as a powerful reminder of the untapped potential within our historical narratives\u2019 and also of the power when black women speak for each other. This is so important because, like many black women in history, \u2018Ashwood Garvey was often sidelined in the very movements she helped to build, particularly within male-dominated pan-African circles.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strolling through the four chapters, preceded by an introduction in which Swaby sets out her aim and hopes for writing a visual biography of Ashwood Garvey\u2019s life, is an absorbing and immersive read which allows the reader to open \u2018new avenues for understanding and celebrating black women\u2019s contributions across different spheres\u2019. I am impressed and deeply touched by Swaby\u2019s thoughtful and passionate work which invites us to reconsider Ashwood Garvey\u2019s life through a black feminist lens, rejecting the often slanted tropes that have long hindered and overshadowed black women\u2019s progress. If the archive is bound in patriarchal privilege, then Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives<\/em> seeks to rupture this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am impressed and deeply touched by Swaby\u2019s thoughtful and passionate work which invites us to reconsider Ashwood Garvey\u2019s life through a black feminist lens<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swaby, with style, interrupts the discourse that often marginalises the efforts and contributions of black women and gives us more than a glimpse into Ashwood Garvey\u2019s political and personal life as we are invited to also reflect on the future of black feminist archives and archival practice. Following the introduction, \u2018Archival assemblages\u2019, in which Swaby outlines her biographical and methodological approach, are four chapters that dig deeper into feminist archival practice and Ashwood Garvey\u2019s life. The first, \u2018Auto\/biography as archival activism\u2019, builds and expands on previous research. Chapter two, \u2018The city as a living archive\u2019, introduces us to the finds from Swaby\u2019s \u2018street strolling\u2019 as she meanders through urban spaces, observing and interacting with the environment. At times I felt I was walking beside Swaby too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter three, \u2018Towards a visual archive of diaspora\u2019, digs \u2018beyond surface impressions to uncover a deeper significance embedded within the visual narrative\u2019. The final chapter, \u2018The future of black feminist archives\u2019, brings to light Ashwood Garvey\u2019s efforts to \u2018embrace a broader, more inclusive vision of solidarity, one based on shared histories of colonialism, displacement and struggle rather than just skin colour\u2019, while also exploring the historical and contemporary contributions of women of African and Asian descent to social justice movements in Britain. Here we are introduced to practitioners such as artist Barby Asante<\/a> and curator Aleema Grey<\/a> among many as Swaby seeks to foreground other \u2018sisters\u2019 in the field to show \u2018how the past informs the present and inspires future generations of black feminist thought and activism\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nydia A Swaby provides an opportunity for us to interrogate \u2018the subtle undermining of black women\u2019s contributions in academic and curatorial spaces\u2019 and her intention to ensure that Ashwood Garvey\u2019s \u2018image and voice echo through the corridors of history\u2019 is both admirable and necessary in a largely monocultural heritage sector. Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archive<\/em> is a welcome and much needed contribution to the work that still needs to be done to make black histories visible in ways that can be understood and accessed by all. I found it a profoundly uplifting read and its worthwhile endeavour to elevate the voices of black women, who are often ignored and overlooked, critical. I highly recommend it as essential reading not only for those involved in archival practice, like myself, or for whom feminist research is a priority, but for all those who are interested in the power of multiple narratives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article first appeared in Issue #246\u00a0Extremely Online<\/em>. Subscribe<\/a> today to support independent socialist media and get your copy hot off the press!<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In documenting the life and work of Amy Ashwood Garvey, Nydia A. Swaby offers a window into the inspiring and overlooked story of black womens’ history, writes Panya Banjoko<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":45263,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[278,103,89],"tags":[2972],"class_list":["post-45262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa","category-books","category-feminism","tag-panya-banjoko"],"yoast_head":"\nAmy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Red Pepper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gerry Hart\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gerry Hart\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Gerry Hart\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb\"},\"headline\":\"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives – review\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\"},\"wordCount\":834,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Panya Banjoko\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Africa\",\"Books\",\"Feminism\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\",\"name\":\"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb\"},\"description\":\"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"A blue plaque dedicated to Amy Ashwood Garvey at her former home at 1 Bassett Road in Ladbrook Grove, London CREDIT: SPUDGUN67 VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Culture\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Books\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives – review\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/\",\"name\":\"Red Pepper\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb\",\"name\":\"Gerry Hart\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper","description":"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper","og_description":"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko","og_url":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/","og_site_name":"Red Pepper","article_published_time":"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Gerry Hart","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gerry Hart","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/"},"author":{"name":"Gerry Hart","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb"},"headline":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives – review","datePublished":"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/"},"wordCount":834,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg","keywords":["Panya Banjoko"],"articleSection":["Africa","Books","Feminism"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/","url":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/","name":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives - review - Red Pepper","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg","datePublished":"2025-03-25T08:00:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb"},"description":"Nydia A. Swaby highlights the inspiring story of black womens' history in documenting the life of Amy Ashwood Garvey, writes Panya Banjoko","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Amy-Ashwood-Garvey.jpg","width":1200,"height":600,"caption":"A blue plaque dedicated to Amy Ashwood Garvey at her former home at 1 Bassett Road in Ladbrook Grove, London CREDIT: SPUDGUN67 VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/amy-ashwood-garvey-and-the-future-of-black-feminist-archives-review\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Culture","item":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Books","item":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/culture-media\/books\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Amy Ashwood Garvey and the Future of Black Feminist Archives – review"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/","name":"Red Pepper","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/3e41cf1d33479333ab0e03fdfcfed0bb","name":"Gerry Hart"}]}},"type_of_article":[{"ID":35478,"post_title":"Review","post_content":"","post_excerpt":"","post_author":"50","post_date":"2023-09-14 20:10:26","post_date_gmt":"2023-09-14 19:10:26","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"review","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-02-21 17:19:45","post_modified_gmt":"2025-02-21 17:19:45","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/?post_type=type_of_article&p=35478","menu_order":0,"post_type":"type_of_article","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","comments":false,"id":35478}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45262"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45268,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45262\/revisions\/45268"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redpepper.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}