I could not have completed this work without the love, labor, and support of five incredible Black women who helped anchor this project. First, thank you to Linda Miller and Shalana Harris for trusting me without question to care for and preserve your family’s legacy. I am truly honored. My research assistant, the newly minted Dr. Ashley Clemons, meticulously captioned videos, listened to and transcribed numerous interviews, and provided invaluable feedback on my writing. My mother and best friend, Carolyn Steverson, assisted me in conducting several interviews with Phillips’s family and was pivotal in organizing the thousands of documents, photos, and artifacts that would become the Phillips archives. Thank you for believing in me, being my rock, sharing my triumphs, and comforting me through failures. There has perhaps been no other person who has made a greater impact on my growth and trajectory as a scholar than Dr. Trudier Harris. Even as a graduate student, I knew I just had to convince you to be a part of my first book project, and I’m so delighted that now you are! Thank you for pushing me to think deeper, strive for excellence, and not accept mediocrity.
I’m so thankful that this project has a home at the University of Georgia Press, as I believe Delores would find it fitting that it is published in her home state. I’m particularly grateful to Nate Holly, who believed in the project from its inception and who has consistently been kind, responsive, a great listening ear, and a detailed and incredibly sharp editor. Thank you for making this process manageable and enjoyable!
I am also blessed to have an exceptional support system at the University of Florida that has sustained me in vital ways throughout this journey. Stephanie Birch was instrumental in helping me find and access Phillips’s published poems and newspaper articles, while Cera Keene patiently guided me through using the microfilm machines. Flo Turcotte taught me useful practices on how best to preserve Phillips’s archives. Barbara Mennel and Sophia Acord at the Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere read several drafts of my research proposal that led to funding. I’m so grateful for my senior colleagues, especially Leah Rosenberg, Steve Noll, Pamela Gilbert, Debra King, Marsha Bryant, Kenneth Kidd, Malini Schueller, and Jodi Schorb, who have all mentored me in distinct ways and have really made me feel like family over the years. Uwem Akpan, Laura Gonzales, Victor Del Hierro, Rae Yan, Paige Glotzer, Rachel Gordan, Ivana Parker, and Margaret Galvan have been inspiring writing partners. Having consistent writing dates (even when I didn’t want to) ensured I remained accountable for the work, and I am so appreciative of that. LaToya O’Neal, Della Mosley, Dillon Vrana, Tanya Saunders, Jillian Hernandez, Chris Busey, Rebecca Hanson, and Vincent Adejumo—your kinship has consistently nourished me since the first day I moved to Gainesville. Thank you for sharing your extraordinary scholarship, creativity, and friendship with me. My heart is so full.
Several people in the Cleveland area were crucial in helping me piece together various biographical aspects of Phillips’s life. Leonard Trawick, Neal Chandler, David Weizman, and Jeff Karem were instrumental in filling in the gaps of her college years at Cleveland State University. La’Tia Adams, Vanessa Bradfield, and the Cuyahoga County Clerk of Courts located several records of Phillips’s life. Donna Marchetti graciously scoured her notes from decades ago to locate her interview with Phillips. Delores’s youngest brother, Gregory Green, openly shared his memories of his sister with me. Outside Ohio, many others gave me a platform to share widely about Phillips’s life and works. Caroline Lieffers hosted me on the Disability History Association Podcast for a rich discussion on The Darkest Child. Thank you to Chris Krentz and the Journal of Literary and Cultural Disability Studies for housing my first article on Phillips. My graduate students in my fall 2019 Gender and Sexualities in African American Literature course offered fresh perspectives on Phillips’s work.
Finding Phillips’s published poems was a tedious process, and I am incredibly grateful to the University of Michigan, Auburn Avenue Research Library in Atlanta, and Bowling Green State University for access to the Black Times. I must thank my close friend Chantal Revere for taking time out of her workday to help me read through several hours of microfilm. Laurie Rossi and Andrew Majcher at Brown University helped me gain access to Jean’s Journal. Paul Oliver and Amara Hoshijo at Soho Press—which published Phillips’s The Darkest Child—were instrumental in providing me with every review of Phillips’s novel that they had archived over the years.
This project was funded by the Rothman Faculty Summer Fellowship at the University of Florida, which allowed me to travel to Cleveland for research. Additionally, the Career Enhancement Fellowship through the Institute for Citizens & Scholars granted me a much-needed one-year sabbatical to finish the project. Special thanks to fellow recipients Jamall Calloway and Erica Richardson for writing with me during this time.
My dad, Dennis Steverson, continues to give me spiritual guidance that strengthens me and gives me the will to persevere. My brother, DJ, always makes me laugh and never hesitates to be there when I need him, even if it’s just to take a mental break to play some video games. My friends Charmaine Morrow and Jeremy Donald are always on my side.
I must give a special thank you to my dear friend and colleague Kemeshia Randle Swanson, who first introduced me to Phillips because she thought The Darkest Child would make a great addition to my dissertation. Even though I was too tired by the end of that grueling process to even consider another chapter, when I did finally read the novel, I knew immediately why you recommended it. Thank you for connecting me to my kindred spirit in Phillips and for all those warm and encouraging “when’s that book coming out?” inquiries. You have always been one of my loudest cheerleaders and I love you for that.
Finally, this project would not exist without the brilliance of Delores Faye Phillips, a quiet powerhouse throughout her entire life. Thank you for sharing your brilliance with the world. Even though I never had the privilege to meet you, I thank God that he placed you in my life. I hope this project makes you proud.
Delia Steverson