Catholic News Service, the USCCB-owned print syndication, has established a new Black Catholic history column, "The Griot's Cross", written by Dr. Shannen Dee Williams of Villanova University.
The name plays off the griot storytelling tradition of West Africa and the diaspora, and the first column in the series appeared today in The Central Minnesota Catholic (out of the Diocese of St. Cloud), covering the long history behind Saturday's appointment of Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the first African-American cardinal.
The column will appear once a month.
I'm so happy to announce the launch of my new @CatholicNewsSvc column, "The Griot's Cross," on this final day of #BlackCatholicHistoryMonth. In my inaugural offering, I reflect on the meaning of @WashArchbishop as the nation's 1st Black cardinal. https://t.co/A6qFsgqLoR
— Shannen Dee Williams, Ph.D. (@BlkNunHistorian) November 30, 2020
Dr. Williams, a history professor who has a forthcoming book on Black Catholic nuns in the United States (based on her dissertation), has been a leading figure in the current push for more recognition of Black Catholics in schools, churches, forums, and other events.
The creator of the #BlackHistoryIsCatholicHistory, #BlackCatholicHistoryMatters, and #BlackCatholicHistoryAlwaysMatters hashtags, she is one of the preeminent online voices advocating for Black Catholics.
She writes regularly for Catholic news outlets on the topic, and has also been quite vocal online about the shortcomings of both Catholic and secular media in covering it.
Yesterday, I wrote @americamag about the missing context of the recent @nytimes and @washingtonpost stories re: nuns & slavery. At the intersection of these stories' erasure of black Catholic scholarship and activism is the fiercely contested history of the nation’s #blacknuns. https://t.co/hav62qaRtL
— Shannen Dee Williams, Ph.D. (@BlkNunHistorian) August 7, 2019
There are longstanding and powerful #BlackCatholic communities in Philly, Savannah, and Detroit. Solicit the expertise of #BlackCatholic scholars. We know this history well. We ARE these people. #BlackCatholicHistoryMatters
— Shannen Dee Williams, Ph.D. (@BlkNunHistorian) November 7, 2020
I'm looking forward to all the news stories on & profiles of #BlackCatholic Democratic voters in #Detroit, #Philadelphia, & #Savannah (#Chatham county GA) who played a leading role in the election of the 2nd #Catholic president in US history! #BlackHistoryIsCatholicHistory
— Shannen Dee Williams, Ph.D. (@BlkNunHistorian) November 7, 2020
The newly-established Cyprian Davis, O.S.B., Prize for research on Black Catholicism was also the result of her advocacy and direct recommendation.
Throughout the pandemic, she has led webinars on the topic of Black Catholic history, both at her own institution and elsewhere, and it would appear that this won't be stopping anytime soon.
Join me every month at "The Griot's Cross" via @CatholicNewsSvc, where I intend to honor the legacy of Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman by telling “true truths” about the Catholic Church and its longstanding Black faithful. # BlackHistoryIsCatholicHistory pic.twitter.com/oVGxM2by5F
— Shannen Dee Williams, Ph.D. (@BlkNunHistorian) November 30, 2020
Nate Tinner-Williams is co-founder of Black Catholic Messenger, a priesthood applicant with the Josephites, and a ThM student w/ the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA).
