Arthur Fauset
Encyclopedia
Arthur Huff Fauset was a noted civil rights activist, anthropologist, folklorist, and educator.
. He was the middle of three children of Redmon Fauset, a black Presbyterian minister, and Bella Fauset, a white woman from a Jewish family who converted to Christianity with three children from a previous marriage. He was born to a Black man and a White woman but never identified fully with either group though he was legally considered Negro or Black.
Arthur's father Redmond Fauset was a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church
, and known for being outspoken about his views of society. Coupled with his dedication to educating oneself and belief in that writing was a vital discipline undoubtedly influenced his family and his son Arthur.
Bella Fauset, Arthur's mother, a white woman of a Jewish family who was a devout integrationist. She wanted to create interracial peace within her home that she wished to see in the outside world. She also emphasized the importance of education as did Arthur's father and carried on with the disciplined upbringing after Arthur's father died. Arthur Fauset took on the same dedication to educating himself that his father had though he only knew him or four years prior to his death. In his adult life, contrasting his father, Fauset broke away from religion and proclaimed himself a "free thinker." He also continued to not identify in either racial classification of Black or Negro or White.
in Philadelphia then went on to the Philadelphia School of Pedagogy for Men where he received his Teaching Credential he took his first teaching position in 1918. After taking Principal exams he Became principal of John Singerly School until 1946. As he began practicing anthropology, Alain Locke became his mentor and friend, emphasizing scholarship to guide his activism.
Fauset pursued education in order to feed and develop his intellect rather than simply to graduate as many students still do to this day. In addition to apathy towards degrees for the sake of earning them, Fauset was discouraged from teaching at the university level because of his race. Black people were banned from teaching in most places at this time, however Fauset did teach at an elementary school where he was Principal for 20 yrs.
Central High School Philadelphia
Philadelphia School of Pedagogy for Men
Teachers Credential
University of Pennsylvania
:
, though he was overshadowed by his half-sister Jessie Redmon Fauset
(1882–1961), a well-known editor, poet, essayist and novelist.
Frank G. Speck interested him in anthropology and Fauset went to Nova Scotia in the summer of 1923 to collect some folklore. He belonged to the Philadelphia Anthropology Society, the American Anthropological Association
, and the American Folklore Society
, which published his Nova Scotian findings in their Memoirs in 1931. Elsie Clews Parsons
supported him throughout his career in anthropology and with her support Fauset published his Ph. D. on Negro cults of Philadelphia, New York and Chicago, Black Gods of the Metropolis in 1944.
In 1932-1933 he participated in the reorganization of the teachers' union in Philadelphia as vice president of the union.
He also joined the National Negro Congress
.
Family background
Fauset was born in 1899 in Flemington, New JerseyFlemington, New Jersey
Flemington is a borough in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 4,581. It is the county seat of Hunterdon County....
. He was the middle of three children of Redmon Fauset, a black Presbyterian minister, and Bella Fauset, a white woman from a Jewish family who converted to Christianity with three children from a previous marriage. He was born to a Black man and a White woman but never identified fully with either group though he was legally considered Negro or Black.
Arthur's father Redmond Fauset was a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the A.M.E. Church, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination based in the United States. It was founded by the Rev. Richard Allen in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1816 from several black Methodist congregations in the...
, and known for being outspoken about his views of society. Coupled with his dedication to educating oneself and belief in that writing was a vital discipline undoubtedly influenced his family and his son Arthur.
Bella Fauset, Arthur's mother, a white woman of a Jewish family who was a devout integrationist. She wanted to create interracial peace within her home that she wished to see in the outside world. She also emphasized the importance of education as did Arthur's father and carried on with the disciplined upbringing after Arthur's father died. Arthur Fauset took on the same dedication to educating himself that his father had though he only knew him or four years prior to his death. In his adult life, contrasting his father, Fauset broke away from religion and proclaimed himself a "free thinker." He also continued to not identify in either racial classification of Black or Negro or White.
Education
Fauset attended Central High SchoolCentral High School (Philadelphia)
Central High School is a public secondary school in the Logan section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Central, the second-oldest continuously public high school in the United States , was founded in 1836 and is a four-year university preparatory magnet school...
in Philadelphia then went on to the Philadelphia School of Pedagogy for Men where he received his Teaching Credential he took his first teaching position in 1918. After taking Principal exams he Became principal of John Singerly School until 1946. As he began practicing anthropology, Alain Locke became his mentor and friend, emphasizing scholarship to guide his activism.
Fauset pursued education in order to feed and develop his intellect rather than simply to graduate as many students still do to this day. In addition to apathy towards degrees for the sake of earning them, Fauset was discouraged from teaching at the university level because of his race. Black people were banned from teaching in most places at this time, however Fauset did teach at an elementary school where he was Principal for 20 yrs.
Central High School Philadelphia
Philadelphia School of Pedagogy for Men
Teachers Credential
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
:
- B.A. 1921
- M.A.1924
- Ph.D. in 1942
Published works
- For Freedom. Franklin Pub. and Supply Co., 1927.
- Folklore from Nova Scotia, Memoirs of the American Folklore Society, Vol. 24, 1931. Reprint: Corinthian Press, 1988.
- Black Gods of the Metropolis; Negro Religious Cults of the Urban North. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1944. Reprint 1971. Reprinted 2001 (with an introduction by John Szwed and a foreword by Barbara Dianne Savage).
- Sojourner Truth; God's Faithful Pilgrim. Russell & Russell, 1971.
- with Nellie Rathbone Bright: America: Red, White, Black, Yellow. Franklin Pub. and supply Co., 1969.
Accomplishments
Fauset was an active figure in the Harlem RenaissanceHarlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement", named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke...
, though he was overshadowed by his half-sister Jessie Redmon Fauset
Jessie Redmon Fauset
Jessie Redmon Fauset was an American editor, poet, essayist and novelist. Fauset was most known for being the editor of the NAACP magazine the Crisis. She also was the editor and co-author for the African American children magazine called Brownies' Book...
(1882–1961), a well-known editor, poet, essayist and novelist.
Frank G. Speck interested him in anthropology and Fauset went to Nova Scotia in the summer of 1923 to collect some folklore. He belonged to the Philadelphia Anthropology Society, the American Anthropological Association
American Anthropological Association
The American Anthropological Association is a professional organization of scholars and practitioners in the field of anthropology. With 11,000 members, the Arlington, Virginia based association includes archaeologists, cultural anthropologists, biological anthropologists, linguistic...
, and the American Folklore Society
American Folklore Society
The American Folklore Society is the US-based professional association for folklorists, with members from the US, Canada, and around the world. It was founded in 1888 by William Wells Newell, who stood at the center of a diverse group of university-based scholars, museum anthropologists, and men...
, which published his Nova Scotian findings in their Memoirs in 1931. Elsie Clews Parsons
Elsie Clews Parsons
Elsie Worthington Clews Parsons was an American anthropologist, sociologist, folklorist, and feminist who studied Native American tribes—such as the Tewa and Hopi—in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico. She helped found The New School...
supported him throughout his career in anthropology and with her support Fauset published his Ph. D. on Negro cults of Philadelphia, New York and Chicago, Black Gods of the Metropolis in 1944.
In 1932-1933 he participated in the reorganization of the teachers' union in Philadelphia as vice president of the union.
He also joined the National Negro Congress
National Negro Congress
The National Negro Congress is an organization which was put into place by the Communist Party of the United States of America in 1935 at Howard University. It was a popular front organization created with the goal of fighting for Black liberation and was the successor to the League of Struggle for...
.
External references
- http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/information/biography/fghij/fauset_arthur.html
- http://www.libertynet.org/fdipmm/rediscov.html#CHIV
- http://www.africanamericans.com/HarlemRenaissance.htm
- http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/articles/pages/4230/Fauset-Arthur-Huff-1899-1983.html