Lynn Bolles


Augusta Lynn Bolles is an American anthropologist, professor Emerita of women's studies and affiliate faculty in anthropology, African American studies, American studies, comparative literature and the Latin American studies center at the University of Maryland, and co-chair of The Cottagers' African American Cultural Festival.

Biography

She graduated with an A.B. in English literature and anthropology from Syracuse University, and an M.A. in anthropology and a Ph.D. in sociocultural anthropology from Rutgers University. She is the daughter of Augusta Beebe Bolles and George Bolles. She married James Mackin Walsh on February 9, 1980, in the Kirkpatrick Chapel of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Bolles is credited as a path maker in Black feminist anthropology with theories focused on care and for paving the way for the Cite Black Women movement founded by Christen A. Smith. Prior to teaching at the University of Maryland, Bolles was a professor of sociology and anthropology and the director of African-American studies at Bowdoin College. She also served as president of the Association of Black Anthropologists, the Caribbean Studies Association, the Association for Feminist Anthropology, and the Society for the Anthropology of North America.

Selected publications

  • Bolles, A. L.. Decolonizing anthropology: An ongoing process. American Ethnologist, 50, 519-522.
  • Bolles, A. L., Boellstorff, T., Dudgeon, M. R., Khandelwal, M. R., Kingfisher, C., Kramer, E. A.,... & Theidon, K.. Mapping feminist anthropology in the twenty-first century. Rutgers University Press.
  • Bolles, A. L.. We paid our dues : women trade union leaders of the Caribbean. Howard University Press.
  • Bolles, A. L.. Sister Jamaica : a study of women, work, and households in Kingston. University Press of America.
  • Bolles, L. A.. Anthropological research methods for the study of women in the Caribbean. Women in Africa and the African Diaspora, 65-77.
  • Bolles, L. A.. Anthropological research methods for the study of women in the Caribbean. Women in Africa and the African Diaspora, 65-77.

Relevant Archival Collections

Cite Black Women Podcast interview

  • S2E15: A Conversation with A. Lynn Bolles on The History and Labor of Citational Practices.