In this episode launching on Juneteenth, come on a trip down the road from Selma, Alabama - home of the 1960s Selma Voting Rights Movement and the Selma to Montgomery marches - to the tiny little enclave of Gee’s Bend, situated in a bend of the Alabama river. This is the home of the famous Gees Bend quilters.
The community of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, traces its roots back to the enslaved individuals who toiled on Joseph Gee’s cotton plantation established in 1816. After the Civil War, ancestors continued to live and work on the plantation as sharecroppers. The economic downturn of the 1930s, marked by plummeting cotton prices, threatened the community's survival. In response, the Federal Government intervened during the Depression, purchasing ten thousand acres of the former plantation. They offered loans to the residents, enabling them to own and cultivate the land their forebears once worked unpaid. The people of Gee’s Bend managed to keep their land and homes, preserving and cultivating cultural practices… Such as quilt-making.
In the 1960s, inspired by a visit from Martin Luther King Jr., the Gees Bend community became active in the Civil Rights Movement, traveling by ferry to Camden to register to vote. In retaliation, authorities discontinued the ferry service, isolating Gee’s Bend from essential services. During this challenging time, local women established the Freedom Quilting Bee, a cooperative that provided vital economic opportunities and political empowerment.
Despite this past filled with hardship, the quilting tradition of Gee’s Bend, which began in the 19th century, has survived and flourished. The New York Times has praised Gee’s Bend quilts as “some of the most miraculous works of modern art America has produced.” These quilts represent a significant chapter in American art history and are now part of the permanent collections of over 30 major art museums.
Set against this historical backdrop is the conversation I had with Loretta Pettway Bennett. Loretta is a celebrated member of the Gee's Bend quilters, a group of (mostly) women whose incredible works not only bring their beauty to museum walls but have also weave important stories of Black American history, culture, and vision. Listen to hear about Loretta's stories and experiences growing up in this incredible arts community.
