Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a method for practitioners of archaeology to hear the voices of women of African descent throughout the diaspora. It also provides a more detailed chronicle of journey to archaeology and the ways the foundational structure of Black intellectual thought combined with Black feminism positively informs new and innovative approaches to understanding the lives and histories of women of African descent in the United States. A Black Feminist Archaeology is not a formula. It is a methodology that combines aspects of anthropological theory, ethnohistory, the narrative tradition, oral history, material culture studies, Black and African-descendant feminisms, and critical race and African Diaspora theories. To be an archaeologist at this moment comes with an enormous responsibility; there are competing expectations and conflicting loyalties.