Billie Jean Young Papers

Collection

Identifier: MSS-3417

Scope and Contents

The collection contains materials related to Billie Jean Young's one-woman show Fannie Lou Hamer: This Little Light… and other materials produced and gathered by Young.

Dates

1983 - 2002

Creator

Young, Billie Jean (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Due to the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access to certain materials may require additional advance notice.

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers are responsible for using the materials in conformance with United States copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any copyright claimants in collection materials. Copyright for official University records is held by The University of Alabama. The library claims only physical ownership of many manuscript collections. Anyone wishing to broadcast or publish this material must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of literary property rights or copyrights. Please contact Special Collections (archives@ua.edu) with questions regarding specific manuscript collections.

For more information about copyright policy, please visit: https://www.ua.edu/copyright/. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.

Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals without the consent of those individuals may have legal implications, for which the University of Alabama assumes no responsibility.

Biographical / Historical

Billie Jean Young was born on July 21, 1947, in Naheola, Alabama, near Pennington, on the Tombigbee River. Beginning in the 1960s, Billie Jean Young led development movements aimed at empowering and improving the lives of rural women, particularly African American women. Additionally, Young was a poet, dramatist, actress, and educator. One of her most notable works is the one-woman show Fannie Lou Hamer: This Little Light…. She has published a volume of poetry. Her essays have appeared in both popular and scholarly magazines and journals, and she has been honored with numerous awards for her artistic and civic achievements.

Young earned a BA from Judson College in 1974 and a JD from the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in 1978. In 1984 the MacArthur Foundation awarded her its MacArthur Fellowship, commonly known as the MacArthur Genius Grant.

Extensive biographical information may be found at http://www.billiejeanyoung.com/.

Billie Jean Young passed away on March 31, 2021.

Extent

0.58 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Overview

The collection contains materials related to Billie Jean Young's one-woman show Fannie Lou Hamer: This Little Light… and other materials produced and gathered by Young.

Custodial History

Gift of Billie Jean Young 2003

Related Materials

The University of Alabama Libraries Special Collections holds these publications and a manuscript collection featuring work by or about Billie Jean Young:

Southern Rural Women's Network Records, MSS3395

An Alabama Christmas: 20 heartwarming tales. Sweetwater Press, 2007. Call number: PS648.C45 A4 2007

Coughlin, Kenneth M., ed. Perspectives on the structure of American agriculture. Washington: Rural America, Inc., 1980. Call number S441 .R7

The future emerges from the past: Celebrating 200 years of Alabama African American history & culture. Pelham, Alabama: Whitman Publishing, 2019. Call number: E185.93.A3 F88 2019