By: Dr. Tiffany Caesar
On Sunday November 23, 2025 at Marcus Books in Oakland, Dr. Ashley D. Farmer shared her new work, Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and The Untold Story of Audley Moore with long-time Bay Area scholar-activist, Mama Ayanna. Marcus Books named after the Honorable Marcus Garvey, the nation’s oldest black bookstore, was the last leg of her extensive book tour. The owner of Marcus Books, Blanche Richardson shared, “It was one of the best author events we had in the store…”.
Who Is Queen Mother Moore?
Born in New Iberia, Louisiana in 1898 and passing in 1997 in New York, Dr. Ashley D. Farmer describes in her recently released book, Queen Mother Audley Moore is “one of the most consequential Black Nationalists of the twentieth century”.
Farmer continued, “We are talking about somebody that lived the entirety of the 20th century and was there for every major moment in the Black Freedom Movement”. The attentive crowd learned that Queen Mother Moore met Marcus Garvey, mentored Malcom X and the founders of the Republic of New Afrika – an organization she created the blueprint for.
In the well attended author’s talk at Marcus Books, Dr. Ashley D. Farmer shares the history of Queen Mother Moore creating the Universal Association of Ethiopian Women with her sisters, her contribution to the creation of the Republic of New Afrika, and her extensive work on advocating for reparations.
Queen Mother Moore was also honored by many African dignitaries including Nelson Mandela, Winnie Mandela, Julius Nyerere, and Sékou Touré as Farmer mentions in her book. The author even mentioned the complicated relationship that she had with Idi Amin. Queen Mother Moore was an enemy of the state, Farmer shares that the FBI spied on the mother of reparations for 50 years!
It is clear that Queen Mother Moore’s continuous advocacy for black liberation for almost a century has made her a noteworthy person to write about.
An Author’s Journey
It took Dr. Farmer 10 plus years of reconstructing Queen Mother Moore’s life before she was ready to release her highly anticipated book. In discussing her process, she remembers “everytime I went to an archive, I searched for her…”
She remembers writing her book Remaking Black Power, throughout the interview process of 40 black men and women, “Almost everybody had a story about Queen Mother Moore”. She recalls through her ongoing research that Queen Mother Moore “taught me the science of struggle and how to do the day to day work of organizing”.
Farmer was surprised that though she came from a family that was intentional on teaching Black History, she never heard of Queen Mother Moore. The enthusiastic scholar told the audience that Queen Mother Moore “collected her own material…she was her own bibliophile”. In this statement Queen Mother Moore is rooted in a Black Womanist Archival Tradition according to Dr. Tiffany Caesar. A Black Womanist Archival Tradition is “revolutionary as it is centered in self-preservation and the emancipatory practices of black people” as defined in the Callaloo Journal Special Issue titled, The Phillis Wheatley Poetry Festival 50th Anniversary.
Dr. Ashley D. Farmer’s vigor and tenacity to finish an extensive compilation of Queen Mother Moore’s life demonstrates her own care for the preservation of black women in the archives and the need for black liberation.
A Discussion With A Bay Area Hero
There was a full audience, as the author discussed with the moderator, Ayanna Davis – longtime revolutionary woman, scholar-activist in the bay area, and “seasoned elder in the New Africa Independence Movement”. She was also a former student of Dr. Ray Richardson at San Francisco State University, founder of Marcus Books with his wife Dr. Julia Richardson. This revolutionary woman was a part of the national black human rights commission which later became the Malcom X Grassroots Movement, a leader within that movement for the last 30 years. Mama Ayanna Davis was also a co-founder and thought leader in the Black August Movement.
Mama Ayanna Davis began the book talk with a wonderful introduction, she shared her family participation with the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) that was started by the Honorable Marcus Garvey. Before introducing, Dr. Ashley D. Farmer – she mentioned when she was a teenager she would go to the Black House, an independent black school in West Berkeley that held the office for the Republic of New Afrika between Harmon and Fairview.
Mama Ayanna mentioned she learned about Queen Mother Moore through her mentor Baba Mayor Chokwe Lumumba, a founding member of the Republic of New Afrika. In addition, she took the Republic of New Afrika creed at a Kwanzaa ceremony. Marcus Books provided space for the community, but it was also an underground hub for the New Afrikan Independence Movement.
Mama Ayanna Davis represents so many women like Queen Mother Moore who give of themselves freely to an ongoing revolution of decolonization and liberty. She described Queen Mother Moore as a “Saint”. Through the tireless efforts and research of Dr. Ashley D. Farmer, we are able to witness her efforts and why “Queen Mother” was a fitting title for so many reasons and considered sacred.
Get The Book!
Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and The Untold Story of Audley Moore is a conscious effort to preserve the story of an Africana revolutionary woman of many hats, sew together the fragments of her life that were scattered across the globe, and humanize a woman who – though was Queen – wanted love and to live a life of liberty just like the rest of us.
Marcus Bookstore holds monthly events, to see the next authors talk please follow their instagram @marcus.books. Of course, you can purchase Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and The Untold Story of Audley Moore online at www.marcusbooks.com or go to the wonderful store at 3900 Martin Luther King Jr Way, Oakland, CA 94609. If you have never been to the golden reservoir of black history and culture in-person – I highly recommend you go.
Dr. Tiffany Caesar is an Oakland-based writer, scholar, artist and activist. Her work emphasizes the preservation of Black cultural heritage institutions, Africana women and leadership, pan-African political movements, reparations and self-care. She is currently an assistant professor of Africana Studies at San Francisco State University, where she teaches African American History and Black Lives Matter: Race and Social Justice Movements. Dr. Caesar also serves as the SF Bay View Volunteer Student Internship Coordinator. She can be reached at drcaesar@sfbayview.com.
