Mamie Clark (1917-1983) · Mapping Migration

Summary Label: Mamie Clark was a famous African American social psychologist.; Mamie and Kenneth Clark were married African American Psychologists that conducted research in children and were very active in the Civil Rights Movement.
Title: Mamie Clark (1917-1983)
Date of Birth: April 18, 1917
Date of Death: August 11, 1983
gender: Male
Hometown or Region: Hot Springs, Arkansas
Freedom Status: Free
Occupation: Psychologist
Biography: Mamie Phipps Clark (1917 – 1983) was an African-American Psychologist specializing in child psychology, whose research impacted the Civil Rights Movement. Mamie was born and raised in Hot Springs, Arkansas. She met her husband, Kenneth, at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. Both of them studied under Francis Sumner, who was an influential African American Psychologist. Kenneth and Mamie were a trailblazing couple that laid the foundation for future Black American Psychologists. Some of these milestones include Mamie being the second African American and the first African American woman to graduate with a PhD in Psychology. Kenneth and Mamie Clark's "Doll Test" research helped lawyers (Thurgood Marshall, Constance Baker Motley, Robert Carter, Charles Houston, etc.) testify and win in the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court case. The most important impact they left was the path they made for modern-day African American Psychologists, and helping to highlight the importance of African American children finding their sense of self. Mamie Clark passed away from lung cancer on August 11, 1983, at the age of 66 in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.; Click here to review the map on Mamie Clark.
Connected Historical Actor(s): Charles Houston, Jack Greenberg, Robert L. Carter, Francis Sumner & Henry E. Garrett; Kenneth Clark (1914-2005); Thurgood Marshall (1908-1993)
Student Researcher: Maggie Barker