Musette Brooks Gregory
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Musette Brooks Gregory | |
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| Born | October 10, 1876 Washington D.C. |
| Died | July 26, 1921 Mount McGregor, Saratoga County, New York, USA |
| Occupation | Suffragist |
| Known for | New Jersey Suffrage Ratification Committee, Working Girls’ Home, New Jersey Foundation of Colored Women’s Club, Colored Mission of the Diocesan Auxiliary of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People |
Musette Brooks Gregory (1876-1921) was an African American suffragist and civil rights activist.[1]
Biography
Musette was born on 10 October 1876 to Eugene and Oceanna Everett Brooks. Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). The family lived in Washington D.C., where Musette attended public school. While living in Washington D.C., Musette was a principal's clerk and the supervisor of first-year work for the 13th District public schools.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). As a clerk, Musette was exposed to teaching, and would later become a teacher herself. Musette was also very involved in community service. She held leadership positions in the Music School Settlement in New York and was a member of the board of the Old Folks’ Home of Newark. Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). She was a member and ex-President of the Phyllis Wheatley Literary Society of Newark.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). On June 23, 1904, Musette married Eugene Monroe Gregory, a Harvard University graduate. While Musette was teaching, Eugene was enrolled in Columbian University (now George Washington University), to study law.[6] Originally Musette and Eugene lived in Trenton, but the couple eventually moved to Newark in 1910. They had no children. Musette died on July 26, 1921 in New York.[2] Because of her significant achievements with civil rights and suffrage, the Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs named a scholarship after her.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page).
Suffrage Work
Throughout her career, Musette was involved with several women’s organizations. She was a member of many New Jersey suffrage organizations, although some of the events she attended were not documented. In addition to her work in New Jersey, she actively worked alongside social services in New York.[2] In 1919, she attended a rally in New Jersey, where she was elected to the executive committee for the New Jersey Suffrage Ratification Committee. The goal of the NJSRC was to help elect men that supported the 19th amendment. They wanted them to be in office before and during the election to get more voters. The NJSRC worked in partnership with organizations such as the New Jersey Suffrage Association, the State Federation of Women’s Club, the State Federation of Colored Women’s Club, and the State Women’s Christian Temperance Movement.[3] In addition to her suffrage work, Musette was the superintendent of the Working Girls’ Home in New York. [2]
Civil Rights Work
Civil rights work was important to Musette. She became the secretary and chairman of the executive board for the New Jersey Foundation of Colored Women’s Clubs, the oldest African-American secular organization in existence today. This organization is committed to addressing the needs of black women, no matter what the political climate may be.[4] One of Musette's main projects was her work with the Colored Mission of the Diocesan Auxiliary of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, which was located in New York. She pursed being the superintendent. Under this mission, she worked at the Home for the Working Girls at 132 West 131st Street, New York City, where she helped protect young working class African-American girls. The mission helped keep them out of prostitution by preparing them for work with cooking, sewing, and housekeeping. They also provided the girls counseling.[5] Significantly, Musette was highly involved with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She was the Vice President of the NAACP Newark Branch.[3]
References
- ^ "Biographical Sketch of Musette Brooks Gregory | Alexander Street, a ProQuest Company". search.alexanderstreet.com. Retrieved 2019-12-16.
- ^ a b Bois, William Edward Burghardt Du (1921). Crisis. Crisis Publishing Company.
- ^ a b "Biographical Sketch of Musette Brooks Gregory | Alexander Street, a ProQuest Company". search.alexanderstreet.com. Retrieved 2019-11-28.
- ^ Boehm, Randolph (1995). RECORDS OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLORED WOMEN’S CLUBS, 1895–1992. National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs. ISBN 1-55655-504-0.
- ^ "White Rose Home for Colored Working Girls (White Rose Mission)". Lost Womyn's Space. 28 June 2011.
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