Gurmehar Kaur

MGMT 1030
Section T

Article Review - To Do a Work That Would Be Very Far

Reaching by Shennette Garrett-Scott

Word count: 755

 American author, Shennette Garrett-Scott attempts in her article, ‘To Do a Work That

Would Be Very Far Reaching,’ to draw attention to the spectrum of structural issues that

Minnie Geddings Cox faced in being a black female entrepreneur in the late 19th and early

20th century. Garrett-Scott emphasises the layers of race and gender that made it

tremendously strenuous. Cox formed one of the largest black-owned insurance companies -

Mississippi Life, which did not previously exist for black people due to social stereotypes,

and eventually came to the end of its life when it was sold by Heman E. Perry. Garrett-Scott,

using a variety of sources, seems to have a one-sided argument for most of the article before

offering insight on behalf of the opposite viewpoint to showcase what led to the downfall of

Cox and Mississippi Life.

The author makes a straightforward case about the way Cox functioned and why she

made certain decisions that led to the rise and success of Mississippi Life as the, “first

black-owned company to offer whole life insurance benefits.” (483) The Jim Crow economy

and systems of laws made it tougher for blacks; to excel as businesspeople, especially

women. Majority of the article highlights the key struggles that Cox faced as a woman having

to hide behind other male leaders, and how insurances were constantly denied to people of

colour due to ‘scientific evidence’ that claimed that they were susceptible to diseases and

have a higher mortality rate because of skin colour. But, were unable to consider the overall

disadvantage due to lack of healthcare and education. The repetition of ideas that outlined the

obstacles that Cox had to overcome while starting the company shows how Garrett-Scott

wanted to underline the era-specific issues that existed from the very beginning - the

misogynistic and racist business environment.

The article is generally well-written, but there is some repetition of points when she

speaks about the problems in starting up the company in terms of gender and racial

disparities. From the beginning to the end of the company, she speaks of the motivational
business environment such as the, “Golden Age of Black Business.” (478). However, the

repetition of points made the article seem exhaustive at times - “... They meant businessmen,”

(479) followed by, “...Promoted masculine responsibility and duty..” (479) This made certain

points of the article unnecessarily lengthy as there was no new information input.

The author was able to go into vivid detail about every event, and used a variation of

sources including books, articles, newspapers and magazines, court cases, government

publications, encyclopaedias, archives to avoid bias and gain extensive information to give

the most effective insight. The great diversity of sources that the author has used helps

diminish bias in the writing. Yet, at first glance, it seems that the article seems very defensive

towards the Mississippi Life company. When given suggestions to adapt reforms and change

certain things about the company, the author claims that reforms in general were impossible.

Near the end of the article, the author begins to point out the few mistakes that Cox made

such as making decisions out of potential, “Frustration,” (495). This leads to a sort of balance

between both arguments. Garrett-Scott criticises the Cox family for not contributing enough

to social reform and believes that they should have been at the forefront of change. This

creates an overall balanced article, outlining the great successes in terms of racial

representation in the 19th and 20th century, alongside highlighting the many other

contributions that could have been made with the financial and social power they held in

society.

All in all, the article is mostly balanced, showcasing both perspectives wherein Cox

faced multiple challenges in starting up and functioning as the leader of the company, as

compared to her gender and race playing a large role in making it difficult for her to do so.

Yet, by the end of the article, I had many unanswered questions such as - Did Mississippi Life

effectively balance out the social responsibilities of offering insurance of black people while

capitalising from it? And, did Cox being a female leader of a large organisation have a larger
social impact as compared to actively being a part of human rights societies? I believe that

there was additional information the author could have provided to help uncover unanswered

questions. Despite that, the exceedingly detailed article is able to cover several points of

views and understands the numerous factors that contribute to starting up and functioning a

business and is a pleasure to read.

Bibliography

Garrett-Scott, Shennette. "To Do a Work That Would Be Very Far Reaching." Cambridge
University Press 17, no. 3 (2016): 473-514. Accessed January 26, 2023.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/26568031.