I Ain't Your Jemima

I have grown up with some type of Aunt Jemima imagery in the home. My mother was an avid doll collector. Her family was originally from Virginia so she had a particular interest in southern things. She had the Daddy Long Legs collection of dolls. These dolls were beautifully crafted with realistic faces and dangly hands and feet and period clothing. (One of my favorites can be seen on the cover of my website.) Her Daddy Long Leg Collection was my favorite because it told a story of survival, perseverance, and often times joy.

She had many dolls. Most of them were African American, some with faces and some without. They almost always have plaits and ribbons in their hair. They all seemed to have little doll personalities of their own which may seem a little creepy to some but brought me comfort and still does. Mom procured a Mammy doll many years ago. Beautifully crafted, she stands at about 2 1/2 feet tall. Her base is a large wicker basket which her ample bodice is attached to. She is holding a basket and wears a traditional red and white gingham dress, complete with apron and head scarf. She is a vision.

I have admired her my entire life. Mammy was a symbol of wisdom, intelligence, strength, culinary excellence, mystery, and magic! She was my sister, mother, grandmother, and aunts all rolled into one.

While in her presence you sensed her tremendous purpose.. helper, healer, and problem solver. Mammy was revered in our home much like a special guest. Never to be touched, only to be admired from afar. I believe I equate many of my ideas about womanhood in part to this Mammy. You identify with the things that you see everyday. She was charged with so much loving energy from all of us that what is "was" became reality to me.

How ironic that American history paints a very different picture of the Aunt Jemima figure. One that is distorted and twisted into something sad, ugly, weak, diminishing. In the book the Jemima Code by Tony Tipton Martin lays a historical groundwork for understanding what the Jemima Code is siting that:

"Historically, the Jemima Code was a arrangement of word and images synchronized to classify the character and life's work of our nations black cooks as insignificant. The encoded message assumes hat black chefs, cooks and cookbook authors by virtue of their race an gender are simply born with good kitchen instincts; diminishes knowledge, skills, and abilities. . . and portrays them as passive and ignorant laborers incapable of culinary artistry. . . "

Martin's description continues by saying:

"The Mammy figure was a stereotyped caricature who was rotund, and head ragged, grinning broadly, speaking crude dialect, comforting white children and putting the needs of others before her own."

All of this was meant to ravage my self-esteem and diminish my cultural pride but it didn't, instead it reinforced it. My ancestors and my parents, by extension were remarkable people. They have always defined their lives on their own terms. They never allowed societal norms to dictate their thought process, thereby developing and maintaining a rich sense of pride and strength in everything that they did. I didn't realize it then, but now I understand that what was being conveyed was gratitude. Simply, an appreciation for all that was lost, given, earned, and maintained. When you look at life from that perspective you can't help but feel pride and joy. One seldom has time for anger when you are working to maintain what has been built. I am honored to have inherited this legacy. One that continuously builds strong foundations while reaching, teaching, and moving forward no matter the circumstances.

This brings me to the shirt: I Ain't Your Jemima. The imagery and words were "dropped" into my conscious. I think as a way to give others what I have received. An intense love of self, an appreciation and respect for what was endured in the past and a future that our mothers intended for us. One where we decide who we are and what we are worth. One where we claim ownership of ourselves for future generations.

I Ain't Your Jemima says:

I do not belong to you

I am beauty and wisdom.

I am strength and intelligence.

I am significant.

I am powerful.

I am to be honored and respected.

I am gifted.

I am worthy worthy of love and compassion.

I am the mother/sister of us ALL.