"First Wave" Friendships: Ann Plato and Black Feminist Praxis

Abstract:While second wave US feminism is thought to hold claim to the bold proposition that "the personal is political," nineteenth century early Black feminists had long underscored the relationship between varied intimate, interior experiences and the sociopolitical landscape. This article focuses on Ann Plato, the first documented Black woman essayist in the United States, who wrote about the death of four friends: Louisa Sebury, Julia Ann Pell, Eliza Loomis Sherman, and Elizabeth Low. Plato and her writings are an opening to examine the role of Black friendship in "first wave" feminism and interrogate who feminist theorists have come to consider as early feminists. The article de-centers preoccupations with bringing 19th century Black women and Black women's political subjectivity into view through the institution of the club. Excavating the multitude of ways that Black women, such as Plato, participated in political relationships offers a different lens to understand nineteenth century feminist sociality.