Why you should know about Ann Petry, one of the first major Black woman fiction writers

WATERFORD — While some Connecticut authors are still well known, including Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe, others deserve to have more recognition, including late Old Saybrook resident Ann Petry, who was one of the first major Black woman fiction writers, said José Gonzalez, member of Waterford Residents for Inclusion and Social Equity.

Waterford RISE will hold a panel Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Waterford Public Library in honor of Ann Petry and her body of work. The panelists include Gonzalez, an English professor at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, historian and Norwich NAACP member Lonnie Braxton, and Connecticut College English professor Kate Rushin.

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The idea to have this talk came from Gonzalez. He first read Petry’s work as a Brown University student in 1991. He was awestruck realizing someone of such literary talent lived so close to him in Connecticut, he said.

“Since that time, I made a point to spread the word about her as much as possible,” he said.

Ann Petry biography

Petry was born in 1908 in Old Saybrook. Starting as a pharmacist in her aunt’s pharmacy, she got married and moved to Harlem in 1938. Petry began her writing career in journalism for Black newspapers in New York City, such as The Amsterdam News and The People’s Voice.

After publishing a short story in the NAACP’s magazine The Crisis, she won a fellowship to write for publisher Houghton Mifflin. The first of those books, "The Street," sold over a million copies.

While she continued to write, she disliked fame, and returned to Old Saybrook in 1947. She was an active member of the community, from stopping the high school from using blackface in a play, to serving on the Board of Education and League of Women Voters. She was added to the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame in 1994, and passed away in 1997, according to connecticuthistory.org.

The works of Petry themselves take inspiration from the experiences of real people, including looking at Black women's experiences in terms of race, gender and class. With "The Street," the topics include the surveillance of Black bodies and the idea of the American Dream, and how attainable it is, Gonzalez said.

“When somebody has many strikes against them, and society isn’t there for them, it’s not exactly as simple as that,” he said about the latter point.

Petry's writing also included fictionalizations of Connecticut towns, like one of Old Lyme.

Waterford RISE has held events in the past at the Waterford Public Library. An event on Jan. 21 had 19 registered attendees, but 85 people showed up. The organization expects a similar amount of people to show up on Saturday, Waterford RISE Chair Mary Childs said.

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The Waterford Public Library has titles from Petry in their collection, though they’ve all been checked out or are on hold leading up to the discussion, though Books A Million will be bringing copies of some of her books for sale. The library also enjoys working with Waterford RISE, Library Director Christine Johnson said.

“We agree with their ideals of bringing community together, and we’re happy to support them and do more projects with them going forward,” she said.

While Petry is celebrated in literary circles, Gonzalez wants her work to be taught in schools across the state. This includes Old Saybrook High School, as Gonzalez challenged the students to read Petry’s work when he found they didn’t recognize her name.

“Within the high school, you all can do something to make sure her name is well-known,” he said.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Black author Ann Petry panel discussion at Waterford Public Library