Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers, 1805-1998, bulk 1939-1975

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Summary

Creators:
Sibeko-Kouate, Sister Makinya, 1926-2017
Abstract:
The Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers document the personal and professional life of the educator and activist celebrated for her efforts to promote Black Studies curricula and popularize Kwanzaa. The collection includes materials related to her participation in the following: student government and the establishment of Black curricula at Merritt College and other schools; the Black student movement; community organizing; setting up early Kwanzaa celebrations; cultural events; the real estate business; and African American fraternal orders. There are also materials related to Sibeko-Kouate's family, particularly her mother, Willette Smith; photographs of family, friends, and social events; and home movies that document middle-class African American life in the mid-twentieth century. The collection also includes materials from Sibeko-Kouate's education at California State University, Hayward; her notes and writings; correspondence; personalia; political and cultural posters; publications; audio recordings of political speeches and rallys, classes, and conferences; and artifacts.
Extent:
42 linear feet (28 cartons, 4 flat boxes, 1 oversize folder), 190 sound tape reel , and 107 film reels
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers, BANC MSS 2019/135,The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Background

Scope and content:

The Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers document the personal and professional life of the educator and activist celebrated for her efforts to promote Black Studies curricula and popularize Kwanzaa. The collection includes materials related to her participation in the following: student government and the establishment of Black curricula at Merritt College and other schools; the Black student movement; community organizing; setting up early Kwanzaa celebrations; cultural events; the real estate business; and African American fraternal orders. There are also materials related to Sibeko-Kouate's family, particularly her mother, Willette Smith; photographs of family, friends, and social events; and home movies that document middle-class African American life in the mid-twentieth century.

The collection also includes materials from Sibeko-Kouate's education at California State University, Hayward; her notes and writings; correspondence; personalia; political and cultural posters; publications; audio recordings of political speeches and rallys, classes, and conferences; realia from fraternal orders, pollitical buttons, and pottery made by Sibeko-Kouate.

The collection is divided in 13 series: Merritt College; Black Curriculum; California State University, Hayward; Notes and Writings; Politics and Culture; Professional Career and Activities; Correspondence; Willette Smith/Family Papers; Personalia; Publications; Pictorial Materials; Audiovisual Materials; and Artifacts. Please note that there is a lot of overlap and duplication between series; this reflects the ways te different parts of Sibeko-Kouate's life intersected.

Biographical / historical:

Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate was born Harriet Smith in San Leandro, California on July 1, 1926. Her parents were Turner Smith and Willette Edythe Parker Smith (1903-1977). Her father and his family moved to California from New Orleans in 1907, and her mother's family came to California from Boston prior to 1860. Sibeko-Kouate grew up in South Berkeley, and graduated from Berkeley High in 1947. She studied music at, and got a teaching credential from, San Francisco State College in the early 1950s. She attended Merritt College from 1965-1968, where she studied business administration, real estate, and community planning. At Merritt, she helped develop the Black Studies Department and was the first African American person elected student body president. Sibeko-Kouate received her BA in Black Studies (in 1972) and her MA in Education (approximately 1975) from California State University, Hayward. She had a long career as a teacher and also worked as a potter, real estate agent, journalist, and radio host. According to various sources, Sibeko-Kouate helped popularize the holiday of Kwanzaa and was "made Queen Mother of Kwanza in December 2015."

Sibeko-Kouate married her first husband, Oddis Alvin Warner, in 1946. She and her mother, Willette Smith, were members of a number of social clubs and organizations, including the Court of Calanthe, the women's auxiliary of the Knights of Pythias; the Harmony Court Social Club, Mizpah Temple No. 18; the Improved and Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of the World (I.B.P.O.E. of W.); and St. Augustine's. Episcopal Church. Sibeko-Kouate's varied hobbies included photography and golf. She died at the age of 90 on February 4, 2017. For more on her life see: "Honoring Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate, Queen Mother of Kwanzaa, who brought Black Studies to the East Bay," February 23, 2017, https://blackbirdpressnews.blogspot.com/2017/02/wanda-sabir-on-transition-of-sister.html; and "In Memoriam: Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate," Africology: The Journal of Pan African Studies, 10(3), 1: https://jpanafrican.org/docs/vol10no3/10.3-4-Makinya.pdf

Acquisition information:
The Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers were purchased by The Bancroft Library in 2019
Processing information:

Arranged to the folder level.

Processed by Marjorie Bryer in 2024.

This finding aid contains original descriptive language or titles for materials that may contain racist, oppressive, or harmful language. This may include transcribed titles of printed works. The use of this description is not an endorsement of the language it contains. Original descriptive language has been retained to preserve the historical context in which it was created, to promote searchability and discoverability of the collections, and to provide examples of how African Americans reclaimed pejorative and oppressive language in affirmative and political ways.

Accruals:

No future additions are expected.

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.
Rules or conventions:
DACS

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: RESTRICTED fragile material. Access copies may be requested through Bancroft Public Services.

Terms of access:

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. For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Sister Makinya Sibeko-Kouate papers, BANC MSS 2019/135,The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Location of this collection:
University of California, Berkeley, The Bancroft Library
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000, US
Contact:
510-642-6481
bancref-library@berkeley.edu
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