Young Betty Shabazz, A Powerful Model

Betty Before X by Ilyasah Shabazz, with Renee Watson, 2018, Square Fish, New York

      Before I read this book, I knew a lot about Malcolm X and little about Betty Shabazz. The phenomenon of women hidden behind their husbands is an old, unfortunate occurrence. I am grateful that Ilyasah Shabazz shares her mother with us and moves her out from behind the shadow of her father’s narrative. We get a generous look at the inner life of Betty Shabazz as a young girl during the years 1945-1948. The authors, Ms. Shabazz and her co-author Renée Watson, place Betty in the context of broader social events which adds a richness to the portrayal of that young life.   

     In describing Betty’s early years, Ms. Shabazz and Ms. Watson give us a portrait of a strong young girl, a girl who must make her way despite the difficulties of a sometimes troubled childhood. The authors convey Ms. Shabazz’s inner world as she confronts personal issues and as she experiences events from the world around her. I am glad this part of her story is out there and available for young people to see and to ponder. We get a sense of the struggles that Betty Shabazz must go through but, more importantly, we see her strength and her power as a young girl.

     The tale is told beautifully.

     In terms of that broader world, the authors tell us about the Housewives’ League, a real organization that once existed. The League sponsors a boycott of white businesses that did not hire blacks. The women who run the League proclaim, “Don’t buy where we can’t work.” We see how women in Betty’s Detroit community organize to support black-owned business. Betty becomes involved in the League.

      Betty and her best friend Suesetta go door-to-door, telling people about the  League. That part of the narrative brought to mind descriptions I have read of the great Ella Baker. She developed a unique organizing style. In the spirit of Mrs. Baker, Betty and Suesetta learn the importance of getting to know the people they canvas before making their pitch.

     Betty and Suesetta are picked to make a speech at the ceremony to honor Ms. Fannie Peck, the founder of Detroit’s Housewives’ League. Ms. Peck is a real person and she started the league in 1930 during the Great Depression. Ms. Peck wanted to help black businesses at a very difficult time. Before reading Betty Before X, I had never heard of Fannie Peck. Thank you Ilyasah Shabazz and Renée Watson for correcting that.

     There is so much to learn from this book; readers will find out about African-American life after WWII, about Detroit, about forms of activism. There is also much about the personal struggles a young African-American woman faced in post-WWII America and today, including questions like whether or not to lighten your skin or straighten your hair.

      So in addition to a wonderful coming-of-age story, we learn about the times in which Betty Shabazz grew up. A little history. But the presentation of Betty Shabazz as a young girl remains at the center of the book. That focus will draw young people in and then they will gather some important knowledge as they read.

      I do have one quibble. I’m uncertain as to why this book was called fiction. The book has strong biographical elements. I wish the authors had made clear how they fictionalized. There is much dialogue in the book and interior reflection. That would have to be constructed to some extent, but I wonder how closely the dialogue and interior monologue was based on some source, an interview or maybe a diary or even the memory of a conversation.

     In a closing section on Suesetta, Phyllis, and Kay, the authors explain that portraits of those friends “were inspired by the recollections of some of her adult friends as well as printed interviews” (237). What does “inspired” mean? That is a potent word. It implies to me that the authors started with concrete sources and then fictionalized to a large extent. Also, what is meant by “recollections?” Are they formal interviews? Informal conversation? And might the specific printed interviews be cited?

     As a social studies educator, I am concerned that students learn to think historically. In order to do that, to assess how truthful a piece of historical writing is, it’s important to know the source or sources used to present a portrait and also to know how aptly sources corroborate each other. Perhaps the authors could have added a brief section at the end explaining their historical method and their rationale for calling the book fiction.

     I want to conclude by again recommending this book. The wonderful writing, the richness of character, and the presentation of conflict will draw young people into an important story. Through that engagement they will encounter a smart, tough girl reflecting on her life and they will learn about historical events they are likely not to have encountered elsewhere. It is the sort of book we should be placing in the hands of middle-school kids so they can engage with important issues as well as discover the joys and the importance of reading. Actually, teens and adults too. I just have a place set aside in my heart for kids at that tender middle-school age. This is a special book, one that group deserves.