Charles L. James

(April 12, 1934 – March 15, 2022) Charles L. James, Sara Lawrence Lightfoot Professor Emeritus of English Literature at Swarthmore College, died of Alzheimer’s disease on March 15 in Media, PA, at the age of 87.

Born and raised in Poughkeepsie, NY, “Charlie,” as he was known to family and friends in New York, or “Chuck,” as he was known after arriving in Swarthmore, was always an avid reader, earning the nickname “The Professor” early on from his siblings because, as they said, “his nose was always in a book.” It was thus no surprise that his chosen profession was sharing that love of books with the students he so thoroughly enjoyed.

Following his graduation from high school, Charlie briefly worked at I.B.M. before volunteering for the draft rather than waiting to be drafted. After serving two years on active duty in the Army, he matriculated at SUNY New Paltz in 1957, followed several years later with further education at SUNY Albany. His professional career in education began in 1961 in the Spackenkill School District, continued at Dutchess Community College and SUNY Oneonta, and concluded at Swarthmore College, from which he retired in 2005 after 32 years.

The racial turbulence that Chuck experienced, from his childhood during Depression-era Poughkeepsie through his service in Southern Army bases and beyond, had a profound impact on the trajectory of his life and career. He dedicated himself to addressing inequities in all their forms and used literature as a means to teach his students to do the same. As a teacher, Chuck was as well-known for the force of his intellect as for his sharp wit and fierce devotion to his students’ growth. As a mentor, including to his children, grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews, Chuck strove to help others imagine possibilities and to shatter boundaries. “Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do something because you’re a girl,” he’d tell his daughters, and it went without saying that they should respond similarly to racial discrimination.

As a colleague, Chuck was tireless in his efforts to make space for marginalized perspectives. His long-time colleague Phil Weinstein described Chuck’s impact this way: “He was never under any illusion about the racial history of this country. But what he did with that knowledge was the remarkable thing. He used it as a map rather than a weapon, a source of light rather than of heat.” In his 2005 baccalaureate address at Swarthmore, Chuck shone a light on our nation’s racialized history and enjoined students to “engage the virtues of ethical intelligence” to address ongoing inequities.

Chuck’s professional achievements were many, including authoring myriad articles on the Harlem Renaissance and the book From the Roots; receiving numerous fellowships and teaching awards; becoming the first Black faculty member to earn tenure at Swarthmore; being honored with a literary prize in his name; and serving as the College’s inaugural Coordinator of the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program. He also served on numerous committees at Swarthmore and held positions on several, including Chair of the Black Studies Committee, Chair of the Division of Humanities and, from 1998 to 2003, Chair of the Swarthmore College Department of English Literature. Chuck was especially proud, however, of his students’ accomplishments, particularly those who went on to become educators.

In spite of the seriousness of his pursuits, Chuck loved to laugh, particularly at life’s absurdities. Yet what brought him the most joy was spending time with family and close friends and listening to jazz. Fittingly — with a nod to one of his favorite jazz musicians, Thelonious Monk, and to William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar — his death came “’Round Midnight” on the ides of March.

Charles Lyman James was the fifth of seven children born to Stanley James and Ethel Romaine (Cooley) James. In 1960, Martin Luther King, Sr. officiated at his wedding to Rose Jane Fisher, with whom he had three children: Scott Franklin James, Sheilah Ellen James (Sarah Donovan), and Terri Lynn James Solomon (I’man Solomon). He is predeceased by his infant son, parents, and siblings, Anna Eudora, Madeline Elnora, Stanley Foster, Geraldine Anita, Cortland Nathaniel and William. In addition to his wife and daughters, Chuck is survived by his grandsons, Yusuf Solomon and Omar Solomon, and many nieces, nephews, and beloved friends and colleagues.

In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes donations in Chuck’s memory to the Alzheimer’s Association.