Mary Ruth Warner
dreamed of growing up to become a Renaissance woman. As the first
recipient and namesake of the University of Delaware’s Department of
Women and Gender Studies’ Mary Ruth Warner Award, she’s achieved that
and so much more. Warner, an alumna and former faculty member, received
the award during the inaugural Ida B. Wells Lecture on March 7, 2023,
recognizing her contributions to social justice on the UD campus and
beyond.
“I was surprised. Of course, I didn’t do any of it to get an award,”
said Warner. “I see it as honoring the people who raised me.”
Warner credits her parents for instilling in her the value of
education and helping her find her voice at a young age. Growing up in
Wilmington in the 1950s, she attended segregated schools, and her family
faced housing discrimination. As she reached adulthood in the
mid-1960s, Warner got involved with the change and unrest sweeping the
nation, driven by the civil rights movement and the war in Vietnam.
“I saw college as a place where I could go and meet other people who
were thinking about similar ideas and to continue my larger political
education,” Warner said. “Across the country, campuses were erupting.
Something was in the air. It was a generational moment.”
Warner first began her college career at Lincoln College, a
historically Black college in Pennsylvania. There, she was introduced to
consciousness-raising around non-violent demonstrations, colorism and
global issues like colonialism in Africa.
“It was a learning experience, and it confronted me with issues that the Black community was facing,” she said.
Among her other formative experiences, Warner attended a Vietnam War
discussion group at a local coffee shop sponsored by UD’s Students for a
Democratic Society (SDS) chapter. University professors were invited
there to speak about the history of Vietnam, and it sparked Warner’s
interest in joining the anti-war movement.
When she transferred to UD in 1966, she reconnected with those SDS members and began organizing Black students.
“There were so few of us on campus that you could walk around all day
and not see another Black person,” Warner said. “It was important for
us to find one another to talk, laugh and be ourselves. We started
meeting informally to learn from each other and discuss issues. “
In 1968, Warner became the founding president of UD’s Black Student
Union (BSU) amid marches, protests and sit-ins across campus. Following
the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., the BSU presented a list
of demands to the University, including increasing the number of Black
professors, creating a Black cultural center and offering courses on
African American and African history.
In response, UD President Edward A. Trabant formed an advisory
committee tasked with recommending policies to improve the campus
climate for Black students and other minority groups. He insisted that
students and faculty serve on the committee to help build a framework
for making change at UD, and Warner was among its contributors.
The committee presented its recommendations in The Scarpitti Report,
named after its chair Dr. Frank Scarpitti, a professor who became one of
Warner’s mentors. The report greatly influenced increasing the
recruitment of minority students and faculty and ensuring their
representation on the Board of Trustees.
Despite this progress, tensions remained between students and
administrators as the University was slow to adopt BSU’s full list of
demands.
“Even though we had our scuffle, I give credit to President Trabant,”
Warner said. “He pulled students in and gave us ownership. We didn’t
get our way, but he allowed us to speak our minds. He was a good man.
When my mother died while I was a student, he attended her memorial
service. I was moved by that.”
After graduating from UD in 1971, Warner left Delaware for several
decades and taught at universities around the country as a folklore and
music scholar. She returned to the University to earn a graduate degree
in 2001 and became a professor in the Department of Women and Gender
Studies. Even with her legacy of social justice leadership, she wanted a
new generation of students to find their own journey to political
engagement.
“When I came back to UD, I kept a low profile. I wanted students to
do what they felt they needed to do. It’s their time,” she said. “When I
was in college, it was a particular moment when the whole universe was
turned upside down, no matter what campus you went to.”
When asked about the future of the Mary Ruth Warner Award, she said
she would like for it to highlight Black alumnae that are devoted to
making change.
“I hope future recipients have activism in their soul,” Warner said.
“I hope the award goes to someone who puts their time and energy into
making others’ lives better and becoming a more well-rounded person. You
have to be willing to let your life go in a different direction based
on the people you meet.”
To learn more about the Mary Ruth Warner Award and the Ida B. Wells
Lecture, please visit the Department of Women and Gender Studies event website. If you would like to support the series, you can make a gift through the Delaware First Campaign.