Unlearning the Hush

Oral Histories of Black Female Educators in Mississippi in the Civil Rights Era

By: Marlee S. Bunch, Christopher M. Span (Foreword by)

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Paperback | 7 October 2025

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Paperback
168 Pages

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15.2 x 22.8 x 1.5

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Listening to Black women share their life experiences as educators Despite significant challenges and historical opposition, Black female teachers stood at the forefront of advocating for and providing education to Black students. Their dedication not only improved opportunities for Black communities but also influenced changes in U.S. laws and societal expectations. Marlee S. Bunch draws on oral histories to illuminate the interior lives of Black female educators who taught before and after desegregation in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. In their own voices, these women detail the hurdles they faced guiding students through Jim Crow laws and Civil Rights-era desegregation. Bunch unearths the personal stories of teaching and activism during a historic time that included the Brown v. Board of Education decision and whites' massive resistance to desegregation. The educators highlight the significance of the Black community and the role of Black homes in fostering student success and community cohesion. In addition, Bunch looks at the legacies of Black educators and the work still to be done. Visual artwork and poetry complement the text. Inspiring and immersive, Unlearning the Hush blends personal memory with Civil Rights history to document the pivotal role Black women played in education during a transformative and charged period in American history.

Industry Reviews

"This book broadens our understanding of Mississippi and deepens our understanding of its roots. Dr. Marlee Bunch's creative exploration of Hattiesburg, one of the most important movement centers, shows how local 'cultures of opposition' were rooted in community, and Black women educators were often its nurturers." -Charles M. Payne, author of So Much Reform, So Little Change: The Persistence of Failure in Urban Schools "In Unlearning the Hush, Marlee Bunch inspires a new generation of scholars to continue to forge a new curriculum and analysis because that is what our world demands of us. Unlearning the Hush brings us back to a truth that Mississippi and its deep history and enduring legacies are part of our entire education system. If we can see how and why we connect to this history, we are on the right path to perfecting this democracy for everyone." -Jon Hale, author of A New Kind of Youth: Historically Black High Schools and Southern Student Activism, 1920-1975

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