Anne Braden’s work in the name of justice spans more than five decades and crosses paths with both the legendary and the unsung heroes of the southern freedom movement. Her talent as a journalist and passion as an activist makes for a dynamic combination of not only relaying the stories of injustice in the world but also working to change them.

Born in 1924 in Louisville from a long line of Kentuckians, Braden spent her Depression-era childhood in Mississippi and Alabama. After attending Randolph-Macon Woman’s College, she returned to her native Kentucky in 1947 to pursue a career in journalism. She specialized in reporting courthouse trials, but it didn’t take long for Braden to realize that the real stories were not the trials but the grave injustices perpetrated by courts themselves. Her curiosity and outrage propelled her into ever-broader circles of social justice work and exposed her and her husband, Carl Braden, to the red-baiting that was often used to discourage white southerners from participation in the freedom movement.

From 1957 until 1973, she worked with the Southern Conference Educational Fund (SCEF), an interracial organization across the South whose mission was to bring whites into the activities of the civil rights movement, and edited its publication, The Southern Patriot. Despite being the target of frequent attacks from mainstream political groups as well as governmental agencies, the SCEF proved to be extremely resilient and is often credited with playing a key role in the dissolution of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in 1975. Nonetheless, the impact of the red-baiting and being labeled subversives took its toll on the SCEF and on the Bradens, turning some other civil rights groups against them for fear of being labeled in the same way. Since 1975, Braden has worked with the Southern Organizing Committee for Economic & Social Justice (SOC) as well as several other regional and national organizations.

Anne and Carl Braden shared a deep concern for racial and economic justice and the two of them where a frequent target of attacks. In 1954, as a method of protesting the rigid practice of racial segregation in neighborhoods, the Bradens arranged to purchase a house in an all-white neighborhood of Louisville and deed it over to Andrew Wade and his wife, who were African American. White supremacists lashed out at this act and tried to intimidate the Wades with cross burnings and bombings. Anne carefully chronicled the ordeal and used it as the basis for her book The Wall Between, which was published in 1958 and was runner-up for the National Book Award that year. As a result of their actions, Carl Braden was charged with sedition, since working for racial integration was interpreted by many southern whites as an outright sign of communist support. He was sentenced to 15 years and ended up serving eight months before he was released on the highest bond ever set in Kentucky up to that time. In 1967, the Bradens were again charged with sedition for protesting the practice of strip-mining in Pike County, Kentucky. Fortunately, they were able to use this case to test the Kentucky sedition law, which was eventually ruled unconstitutional.

Like her teacher, Miles Horton, at the Highlander School, Braden has dedicated her life to impelling whites into the cause of justice for all people. Since her husband’s death, she has remained active in networks of anti-racist work and has provided inspiration for many who did not otherwise see themselves as part of the movement as they understood it. She worked on Jesse Jackson’s presidential campaign during the 1984 and 1988 elections, and is an active member of St. George’s Episcopal Church in Louisville. Her story encourages a sense of the connectedness of peace and justice struggles across a wide range of communities.

William Fulton, Staff Writer, VOHP