There were a significant number of white women who crossed the barriers of sex and race in the 1920s in New York but so little is known about them that rather than being known by their individual names, they are simply known by the collective moniker of “Miss Anne.” Now a new book by Carla Kaplan about these women strives to tell the story, and in doing so, paints a nuanced portrait of racial and gender relations in the early part of the American 20th century. The book is entitled Miss Anne in Harlem: The White Women of the Black Renaissance. Kaplan is the Davis Distinguished professor of American Literature at Northeastern University, and author of Zora Neale Hurston: A Life in Letters.

Uprising host Sonali Kolhatkar spoke with Carla Kaplan about her new book Miss Anne in Harlem.

Watch a video of the interview here:

Bipasha Shom recorded this interview.