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Vera Mae Green
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Vera Mae Green
Vera Mae Green (September 6, 1928 – January 17, 1982) was an American anthropologist, educator, and scholar, who made major contributions in the fields of Caribbean studies, interethnic studies, black family studies and the study of poverty and the poor. She was one of the first African-American Caribbeanists and the first to focus on Dutch Caribbean culture. She developed a "methodology for the study of African American Anthropology" that acknowledged the diversity among and within black families, communities and cultures. Her other areas of research included mestizos in Mexico and communities in India and Israel. "[C]ommitted to the betterment of the human condition", Green also focused her efforts toward international human rights.
Vera Mae Green was born on September 6, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois, where she lived in poor urban areas and attended the city's public schools. She was an only child and an avid reader. Having developed an interest in anthropology at an early age, as a child she drew distinctions between the portrayal of Native Americans in Hollywood films and the actual Native American peoples and their cultures. Consequently, sometimes her friends avoided sitting next to her when watching films because they thought she might spoil the show.
Green's academic pursuits sometimes were delayed because of her lack of finances. However, she maintained an interest in social science. After receiving a scholarship, she went on to study sociology and psychology at William Penn College in Oskaloosa, Iowa. In 1952, she earned a B.A. in sociology from Roosevelt University, where she studied under anthropologist St. Clair Drake and sociologist and newspaper columnist Horace R. Cayton Jr., the co-authors of the seminal book Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City. "Drake encouraged Green to seek graduate study in the social sciences, but her lack of finances eliminated that possibility."
Prior to moving to New York City for graduate studies, she held several positions at various social welfare agencies in Chicago. While her work in direct services with some of the city's vulnerable populations was rewarding, she found it necessary to continue her studies. She enrolled in Columbia University. Under the direction of anthropologists Charles Wagley and Eleanor Padilla, Green studied the "relationship among social stress, health, and disease" in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York City. While at Columbia University, she also studied under Native American anthropologist Gene Weltfish, who was investigated during the McCarthy era. Amidst controversy, Green supported efforts to help Weltfish keep her position at Columbia University. Weltfish's position was terminated. "Standing up for Weltfish caused [Green] acceptance into Columbia University's doctoral program." But, she and Weltfish became friends.
In 1955, Green earned a Master of Arts degree in anthropology, from Columbia University. In 1969, she earned her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona. In 1980, the number of African Americans with master's or Ph.D. degrees in anthropology was below 100. Green was one of them.
Applied and social anthropologist Vera Mae Green made significant contributions to Caribbean studies, interethnic studies, black family studies and the study of poverty and the poor.
Prior to earning her master's in anthropology, Green held various social services positions in her hometown, Chicago. She worked as a "group worker, social welfare aide, [...] child welfare worker" and, in the city's housing authority, as "a community tenant-relations aide and social worker". After earning a Master of Arts in anthropology from Columbia University, Green returned to providing direct services to marginalized communities but, this time, her focus included international community development. In 1956, she worked with the United Nations in a community of mestizos in Mexico. For this, she became a "Fundamental Educator" with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). While in this role, she also focused on community development in India.
Green's personal experience, professional work on poverty and field work in East Harlem with Wagley and Padilla made her an ideal researcher for anthropologist Oscar Lewis's study of a poor urban area in Puerto Rico and in New York. In 1963, Green "served as one of Lewis's research assistants". Her "field notes from that project became Lewis' [book]", La Vida: A Puerto Rican Family in the Culture of Poverty—San Juan and New York. In 1967, Lewis won the National Book Award in Science, Philosophy and Religion for La Vida. After her experience on the project and with encouragement from Lewis, Green entered a doctoral program at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, where she earned a Ph.D. in anthropology.
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Vera Mae Green
Vera Mae Green (September 6, 1928 – January 17, 1982) was an American anthropologist, educator, and scholar, who made major contributions in the fields of Caribbean studies, interethnic studies, black family studies and the study of poverty and the poor. She was one of the first African-American Caribbeanists and the first to focus on Dutch Caribbean culture. She developed a "methodology for the study of African American Anthropology" that acknowledged the diversity among and within black families, communities and cultures. Her other areas of research included mestizos in Mexico and communities in India and Israel. "[C]ommitted to the betterment of the human condition", Green also focused her efforts toward international human rights.
Vera Mae Green was born on September 6, 1928, in Chicago, Illinois, where she lived in poor urban areas and attended the city's public schools. She was an only child and an avid reader. Having developed an interest in anthropology at an early age, as a child she drew distinctions between the portrayal of Native Americans in Hollywood films and the actual Native American peoples and their cultures. Consequently, sometimes her friends avoided sitting next to her when watching films because they thought she might spoil the show.
Green's academic pursuits sometimes were delayed because of her lack of finances. However, she maintained an interest in social science. After receiving a scholarship, she went on to study sociology and psychology at William Penn College in Oskaloosa, Iowa. In 1952, she earned a B.A. in sociology from Roosevelt University, where she studied under anthropologist St. Clair Drake and sociologist and newspaper columnist Horace R. Cayton Jr., the co-authors of the seminal book Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City. "Drake encouraged Green to seek graduate study in the social sciences, but her lack of finances eliminated that possibility."
Prior to moving to New York City for graduate studies, she held several positions at various social welfare agencies in Chicago. While her work in direct services with some of the city's vulnerable populations was rewarding, she found it necessary to continue her studies. She enrolled in Columbia University. Under the direction of anthropologists Charles Wagley and Eleanor Padilla, Green studied the "relationship among social stress, health, and disease" in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York City. While at Columbia University, she also studied under Native American anthropologist Gene Weltfish, who was investigated during the McCarthy era. Amidst controversy, Green supported efforts to help Weltfish keep her position at Columbia University. Weltfish's position was terminated. "Standing up for Weltfish caused [Green] acceptance into Columbia University's doctoral program." But, she and Weltfish became friends.
In 1955, Green earned a Master of Arts degree in anthropology, from Columbia University. In 1969, she earned her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona. In 1980, the number of African Americans with master's or Ph.D. degrees in anthropology was below 100. Green was one of them.
Applied and social anthropologist Vera Mae Green made significant contributions to Caribbean studies, interethnic studies, black family studies and the study of poverty and the poor.
Prior to earning her master's in anthropology, Green held various social services positions in her hometown, Chicago. She worked as a "group worker, social welfare aide, [...] child welfare worker" and, in the city's housing authority, as "a community tenant-relations aide and social worker". After earning a Master of Arts in anthropology from Columbia University, Green returned to providing direct services to marginalized communities but, this time, her focus included international community development. In 1956, she worked with the United Nations in a community of mestizos in Mexico. For this, she became a "Fundamental Educator" with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). While in this role, she also focused on community development in India.
Green's personal experience, professional work on poverty and field work in East Harlem with Wagley and Padilla made her an ideal researcher for anthropologist Oscar Lewis's study of a poor urban area in Puerto Rico and in New York. In 1963, Green "served as one of Lewis's research assistants". Her "field notes from that project became Lewis' [book]", La Vida: A Puerto Rican Family in the Culture of Poverty—San Juan and New York. In 1967, Lewis won the National Book Award in Science, Philosophy and Religion for La Vida. After her experience on the project and with encouragement from Lewis, Green entered a doctoral program at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, where she earned a Ph.D. in anthropology.