Social Justice from Outside the Walls

Social Justice from Outside the Walls: Catholic Women in Memphis, 1950–1970 by Ann Youngblood Mulhearn examines the intersections of faith, race, and gender within the social justice movements in twentieth-century Memphis, Tennessee. Weaving together the biographies of six Catholic women and drawing upon the activists’ own published writing and personal interviews, this book disrupts assumptions that racial and social justice was primarily a Protestant concern. Motivated by the tenets of their Catholic faith, these women, both Black and white, used existing social, political, and religious organizations to further the causes of racial and social justice. When these structures were not available, the women created them, transforming traditional women’s organizations into vehicles of social and political activism. As a small representation of progressive Catholics active in the South, these six Catholic women redefined their perceptions and expectations of themselves both as women and Catholics. In doing so, they challenged contemporary gender norms as well as the patriarchal hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Their intertwined stories highlight the significant contributions made by Catholics and Catholic theology to the civil rights movement on the local level and further refine our understanding of larger national movements.