Conditions Governing Access
Accruals
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Alternate Forms Available
Biographical Note
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Preferred Citation
System of Arrangement
Processing Information
Scope and Content of Collection
Conditions Governing Use
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: VeVe A. Clark papers
Creator:
Clark, Vèvè A.
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 2009/102
Physical Description:
8 linear feet
(6 cartons, 1 card file box)
Date (inclusive): approximately 1943, 1964-2007
Abstract: The VèVè A. Clark papers document her research, teaching, and professional career. The collection is divided into nine series:
Photographic Materials; Audiovisual Materials; Teaching and Course Materials; Administrative Materials; Correspondence and
Personalia; Katherine Dunham; Maya Deren; Writings; and Professional Activities.
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Language of Material:
English
, French
, Creoles and pidgins
.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Accruals
No future additions are expected.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The VèVè A. Clark papers were given to The Bancroft Library in 2008 by Ula Y. Taylor.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternative forms of this collection.
Biographical Note
VèVè Amasasa Clark (December 14, 1944-December 1, 2007) was a scholar, author, and expert in African and Caribbean literature.
She helped create the nation's first doctoral program in African Diaspora Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.
Clark was raised in Queens, New York and received her B.A. and M.A. from Queens College. She completed her Ph.D. in French
and ethnology at UC Berkeley in 1983. After earning tenure at Tufts University, Clark returned to Berkeley as an associate
professor in the Department of African American Studies. She was a faculty member for 16 years, serving as a mentor to and
champion of Black undergraduate and graduate students across all disciplines. Clark focused on retaining and supporting Black
students in her department, as well as those who specialized in African American, African and Caribbean studies. Clark was
fluent in French, Spanish, and Creole, and conversant in Wolof. Trained in literary theory and anthropology, her approach
was interdisciplinary, and she sought to foster social justice through the academy. Some of Clark's areas of expertise included
African and Caribbean literatures, Afro-Caribbean folklore, African diasporic theater, African American dance history, and
critical pedagogy. Clark taught some of her department's most popular classes, including Marasa: Caribbean Literatures by
Women, The Negritude Movement in French African/Caribbean Literatures, African Women Writers, and Introduction to the University
(AAS 39B), a course that helped prepare students for academic and extracurricular life at UC Berkeley. Clark coined the term
"diaspora literacy" in one of her best known essays, and helped define African Diaspora Studies. She was also widely recognized
for her research and publications on African American dancer, anthropologist, and social activist Katherine Dunham and avant-garde
filmmaker Maya Deren.
This brief biography was adapted from the obituary for Clark written by Ula Y. Taylor, Sara E. Johnson, Trica D. Keaton, and
Lisa Ze Winters. For more on Clark's life and work, see https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/inmemoriam/html/veveclark.html
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Access to audio-visual materials may be restricted due to technical limitations.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], VèVè A. Clark papers, BANC MSS 2009/102,The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
System of Arrangement
Arranged to the folder level.
Processing Information
Processed by Marjorie Bryer in 2021.
Scope and Content of Collection
The VèVè A. Clark papers document her research, teaching, and professional activities. The collection includes materials from
her tenure at UC Berkeley and Tufts University. The collection is divided into nine series: Photographic Materials; Audiovisual
Materials; Teaching and Course Materials; Administrative Materials; Correspondence and Personalia; Katherine Dunham; Maya
Deren; Writings; and Professional Activities. The Correspondence and Personalia series is small. Original folder titles were
retained when available.
Conditions Governing Use
Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction
of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions,
privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond
that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be
commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from, or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted to The Bancroft Library.
See: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/permissions.html
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Clark, Vèvè A. -- Archives.
Clark, Vèvè A. -- Correspondence.
Dunham, Katherine.
Deren, Maya
University of California, Berkeley. Department of African American Studies -- Faculty,
Tufts University -- Faculty.
African Americans -- Study and teaching -- California -- Berkeley.
African Americans -- Research -- California -- Berkeley.
African diaspora -- Research -- California -- Berkeley.
African diaspora -- Study and teaching -- California -- Berkeley.
African American college teachers--California--Berkeley
African American women educators -- California -- Berkeley.
Ethnologists -- United States.
Caribbean literature