Barbara Smith

Original photograph used for Alumnae Quarterly article.

Dated 1969.

From left to right: Barbara Smith, Sharyn Ainsworth, and Sheryl McCarthy, all class of 1969.

“When another life is recognized, it is only recognized as a problem, e.g. the ‘problem’ of poverty, the ‘problem’ of the cities, the ‘problem’ of discrimination… keeping one’s self detached and therefore deluded about the part he has played in creating them.”

-Barbara Smith, Alumnae Quarterly Spring 1969.

Barbara Smith is an author, scholar, and theorist of Black feminism. She has remained active on the frontlines working for social justice. She was critical in influencing student protests and activities at MHC in the late 1960s following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

By Leo Rachman

Please see the Archives and Special Collections' exhibit Barbara Smith's Mount Holyoke Years for more information about Barbara Smith.