Cheyney McKnight
Cheyney McKnight is an African-American historical interpreter and educator, known for her interpretation company and online handle Not Your Momma's History.[1]
Early life and education
[edit]McKnight grew up in Atlanta and was interested in history from a young age, particularly her family's stories of the Civil Rights Movement.[2]
She graduated from Simmons University, where she studied political science, in 2011.[2][3]
Historical interpretation
[edit]McKnight works as a historical interpreter at locations such as Colonial Williamsburg,[4] Genesee Country Village and Museum,[5] Historic Richmond Town,[2] and Museum of the American Revolution[6] to teach people about the lives of African Americans in American history, particularly during the 18th and 19th centuries.[1][7][8] She also works with museums and their staff to create resources and improve staff's ability to educate visitors on slavery and African American history.[7][9] McKnight is a member of the New York Historical Society.[10][11]
McKnight began interpreting in 2013.[12] Her first event was a reenactment of the Battle of Gettysburg, where she portrayed a 22-year old free woman.[2] As she began participating in more events, she became disappointed with how African Americans were portrayed or discussed, often only in relation to who owned them rather than their own internal lives and experiences.[2][13] In 2014, in response to these experiences, McKnight founded Not Your Momma's History, which offered workshops of her own making for museums and schools.[2]
In 2017 McKnight officially began working solely on Not Your Momma's History.[2] That same year, she staged a reoccurring work of performance art in Manhattan called #SlaveryMadePlain, during which she held a sign saying “What to a Slave Is the Fourth of July” while wearing historical dress.[1][3]
In 2019 McKnight was included in the book The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Beauty, where she spoke on enslaved people's dress and hair.[8][14]
In November 2020 McKnight dressed as an enslaved mother and stood outside the U.S. Capitol to call attention both to how emancipated African Americans struggled to find their relatives after the Civil War, and the separation of families at the United States' southern border.[12]
In 2021 McKnight was chosen as an African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund Fellow by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. As part of this, she created a project titled "The Ancestor’s Future: An Afrofuturist Journey Through History", which was staged at the Woodlawn & Pope-Leighey House as "both a piece of performance art and a conversation inspired by Afrofuturism".[15]
In 2022 McKnight set up a portable table in different locations in New York City a few times a month, and encouraged passersby to speak to her and ask questions about slavery and its history in the city.[1][7]
As of April 2023[update] McKnight's YouTube channel has 239,000 subscribers and more than 7.45 million total views.[16]
Personal life
[edit]McKnight is a direct descendent of enslaved African Americans.[1] As of 2022, she lives in Harlem.[7] McKnight also chooses to wear some historically inspired clothing in her day to day life, which she has referred to as a type of afrofuturism.[1]
External links
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f Spellings, Sarah (2023-03-08). "For These Women of Color, Historical Dressing Is a Modern Art Form". Vogue. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g Beery, Zoë. "Say goodbye to your happy plantation narrative". The Outline. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ a b "Changing the Narrative of Slavery with Cheyney McKnight '11 | Simmons University". www.simmons.edu. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "Historic interpreters are changing the conversation about race". Travel. 2020-09-25. Archived from the original on February 18, 2021. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ Rafferty, Rebecca. "Genesee Country Village & Museum reckons with representation". CITY News. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "'Meet the Revolution' Series Sheds Light on the Lives of Revolutionary-Era Black Women and Men this Summer". Museum of the American Revolution. 22 July 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ^ a b c d Nadal, Emily (2022-06-13). "Cheyney McKnight just wants to relax and celebrate on Juneteenth". www.audacy.com. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ a b Endter, Kelsey (2021-04-27). "Historical Interpreter Brings Black History Into The Spotlight". Cosplay Central. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ Fernando, Christine (27 March 2021). "Many history interpreters of color carry weight of racism". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "Living History: Cooking Spooky Treats with Ms. Cheyney". www.nyhistory.org. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "LET'S LEARN: Objects and Money from Long Ago". PBS. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ^ a b Rougeau, Naomi (2021-07-22). "Are You Over Normcore? Meet Its Fancy Sibling, Regency-Core". ELLE. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "This Woman Is Making Sure Historical Reenactments Get Slavery Right". Racked. 2018-02-14. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "Introducing "The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Beauty"". American Duchess Blog. 2019-06-03. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ McKnight, Cheyney (25 April 2022). "An Afrofuturist Journey Through History". National Trust for Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ "NotYourMommasHistory". YouTube. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- 1990s births
- Living people
- 21st-century African-American educators
- 21st-century African-American women
- 21st-century American educators
- 21st-century American women educators
- American TikTokers
- Educators from Georgia (U.S. state)
- Educators from New York City
- People from Harlem
- American performance artists
- Reenactment of the late modern period
- Simmons University alumni
- YouTubers from Atlanta
- YouTubers from Manhattan