Black, LDS priests before 1978 in 'I Am Jane' | Entertainment Picks | Salt Lake City Weekly
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June 10, 2010 Culture » Entertainment Picks

Black, LDS priests before 1978 in 'I Am Jane' 

Wednesday June 9 - Saturday June 19

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Those who know that blacks were denied the LDS priesthood before 1978 may not realize that blacks had been granted the priesthood by Joseph Smith before Brigham Young succeeded him as church president. What would it have been like to be an early black convert, only to see your church pronounce you cursed?

Margaret Blair Young’s award-winning I Am Jane tells the true story of Jane Manning James, who walked as a 20-year-old black woman from New York to Nauvoo with her family, eventually following Brigham Young to Utah. There, the pioneer’s faith was challenged not just by the racism and sexism of her time, but by facing the persecution of the church for which she had sacrificed so much.

Salt Lake Community College’s Grand Theatre presents this production, which helps support the nonprofit I Am Jane Foundation’s mission of educating about the histories of various cultures in the early LDS Church. 

I Am Jane @ SLCC Grand Theatre, 1575 S. State, 801-957-3322, June 9-19, $25-$35. The-Grand.org

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Scott Renshaw

Scott Renshaw
Bio:
 Scott Renshaw has been a City Weekly staff member since 1999, including assuming the role of primary film critic in 2001 and Arts & Entertainment Editor in 2003. Scott has covered the Sundance Film Festival for 25 years, and provided coverage of local arts including theater, pop-culture conventions, comedy, literature,... more

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