Florynce Kennedy
Encyclopedia
Florynce "Flo" Kennedy was a U.S. lawyer
, activist, civil rights
advocate, and feminist
.
to an African American
family. Her father was a Pullman porter, and later had a taxi business. She had a happy childhood, full of support from her parents, though she was exposed to racism in her mostly white neighborhood, and experienced poverty in the depression. She graduated top of her high school class. After high school, she worked many jobs including owning a hat shop and operating elevators. After the death of her mother, Flo (as she was called) left Kansas for New York, moving to an apartment in Harlem with her sister Grace.
Of the move to New York she commented, "I really didn’t come here to go to school, but the schools were here, so I went." In 1942 she began classes at Columbia University
. She majored in pre-law. However, when she applied to law school in 1948, she was refused admission. In her autobiography Flo wrote, "The Associate Dean Willis Reese, told me I had been rejected not because I was a Black but because I was a woman. So I wrote him a letter saying that whatever the reason was, it felt the same to me, and some of my more cynical friends thought I had been discriminated against because I was Black." Flo met with the Dean and threatened to sue the school. They admitted her.
, helping her avoid drug charges during her final days. Florynce then came to represent Holiday's estate, and also that of Charlie Parker
. She made waves in her attempts to recover owed monies for these estates.
She worked as an activist for feminism and civil rights, and the law cases she took on increasingly tended to be related to these causes.
In the 1970s Kennedy traveled the lecture circuit with writer Gloria Steinem
. If a man asked the pair if they were lesbians — a stereotype of feminists at the time — Flo would famously answer, "Are you my alternative?" She was an early member of the National Organization for Women, but left then in 1970, dissatisfied with their approach to change. In 1971 she founded the Feminist Party
, which nominated Shirley Chisholm
for president. She also helped found the Women's Political Caucus.
She is known for her pro-choice activism on abortion, writing a book called Abortion Rap, and stating that "If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament." In 1972, Flo filed tax evasion charges with the Internal Revenue Service
against the Catholic Church, saying that their pro-life campaign violated the separation of church and state.
On the side of civil rights, Flo established the Media Workshop in 1966 to picket and lobby the media over their representation of Black people. She stated that she would lead boycotts of major advertisers if they didn't feature black people in their ads. She attended all three Black Power conferences and represented H. Rap Brown
and the Black Panthers.
Flo was known for her flamboyant dress (often in cowboy
hats and pink sunglasses
) and attitude. Once, to protest the lack of female bathrooms at Harvard, she led a mass urination on the grounds. When asked about this, she said "I'm just a loud-mouthed middle-aged colored lady with a fused spine and three feet of intestines missing and a lot of people think I'm crazy. Maybe you do too, but I never stop to wonder why I'm not like other people. The mystery to me is why more people aren't like me." In 1974, People
magazine wrote that she was "The biggest, loudest and, indisputably, the rudest mouth on the battleground."
(1970), she played Enid the Maid. In the independent political drama Born In Flames
(1983), she played Zella (credited as "Flo Kennedy").
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, activist, civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
advocate, and feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
.
Early life
Florynce Rae Kennedy was born in Kansas CityKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
to an African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
family. Her father was a Pullman porter, and later had a taxi business. She had a happy childhood, full of support from her parents, though she was exposed to racism in her mostly white neighborhood, and experienced poverty in the depression. She graduated top of her high school class. After high school, she worked many jobs including owning a hat shop and operating elevators. After the death of her mother, Flo (as she was called) left Kansas for New York, moving to an apartment in Harlem with her sister Grace.
Of the move to New York she commented, "I really didn’t come here to go to school, but the schools were here, so I went." In 1942 she began classes at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. She majored in pre-law. However, when she applied to law school in 1948, she was refused admission. In her autobiography Flo wrote, "The Associate Dean Willis Reese, told me I had been rejected not because I was a Black but because I was a woman. So I wrote him a letter saying that whatever the reason was, it felt the same to me, and some of my more cynical friends thought I had been discriminated against because I was Black." Flo met with the Dean and threatened to sue the school. They admitted her.
Activism
She graduated from law school in 1951. By 1954 she had opened her own office, doing matrimonial work, and some assigned criminal cases. She was a member of The Young Democrats. In 1956, she formed a legal partnership, which proved disastrous, and she was left with huge debts. Her partner had represented Billie HolidayBillie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
, helping her avoid drug charges during her final days. Florynce then came to represent Holiday's estate, and also that of Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
. She made waves in her attempts to recover owed monies for these estates.
She worked as an activist for feminism and civil rights, and the law cases she took on increasingly tended to be related to these causes.
In the 1970s Kennedy traveled the lecture circuit with writer Gloria Steinem
Gloria Steinem
Gloria Marie Steinem is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader of, and media spokeswoman for, the women's liberation movement in the late 1960s and 1970s...
. If a man asked the pair if they were lesbians — a stereotype of feminists at the time — Flo would famously answer, "Are you my alternative?" She was an early member of the National Organization for Women, but left then in 1970, dissatisfied with their approach to change. In 1971 she founded the Feminist Party
Feminist Party
The Feminist Party can be:*The Feminist Party of Germany*The Feminist Party of Canada *An alternative name for several parties called the Feminist Initiative, the Women's Party, or the Women's List....
, which nominated Shirley Chisholm
Shirley Chisholm
Shirley Anita St. Hill Chisholm was an American politician, educator, and author. She was a Congresswoman, representing New York's 12th Congressional District for seven terms from 1969 to 1983. In 1968, she became the first black woman elected to Congress...
for president. She also helped found the Women's Political Caucus.
She is known for her pro-choice activism on abortion, writing a book called Abortion Rap, and stating that "If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament." In 1972, Flo filed tax evasion charges with the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
against the Catholic Church, saying that their pro-life campaign violated the separation of church and state.
On the side of civil rights, Flo established the Media Workshop in 1966 to picket and lobby the media over their representation of Black people. She stated that she would lead boycotts of major advertisers if they didn't feature black people in their ads. She attended all three Black Power conferences and represented H. Rap Brown
H. Rap Brown
Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin , also known as H. Rap Brown, was chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the 1960s, and during a short lived alliance between SNCC , later the Justice Minister of the Black Panther Party...
and the Black Panthers.
Flo was known for her flamboyant dress (often in cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
hats and pink sunglasses
Sunglasses
Sunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that...
) and attitude. Once, to protest the lack of female bathrooms at Harvard, she led a mass urination on the grounds. When asked about this, she said "I'm just a loud-mouthed middle-aged colored lady with a fused spine and three feet of intestines missing and a lot of people think I'm crazy. Maybe you do too, but I never stop to wonder why I'm not like other people. The mystery to me is why more people aren't like me." In 1974, People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine wrote that she was "The biggest, loudest and, indisputably, the rudest mouth on the battleground."
Acting
Besides her legal and activist work, she also acted in two films. In The LandlordThe Landlord
The Landlord is a 1970 film directed by Hal Ashby, which was based on the novel by Kristin Hunter. The film stars Beau Bridges in the lead role of a well to do white man who becomes landlord of an inner city tenement, unaware that the people he is responsible for are low-income, streetwise residents...
(1970), she played Enid the Maid. In the independent political drama Born In Flames
Born in Flames
Born in Flames is a 1983 documentary-style feminist science fiction film by Lizzie Borden that explores racism, classism, sexism and heterosexism in an alternative United States Socialist Democracy.-Plot:...
(1983), she played Zella (credited as "Flo Kennedy").