Shauna Anderson

Shauna Anderson is a Native American/African/American restaurateur, author, historian, and business woman, whose work has been inducted into the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History.[1][2] Her autobiography Offal Great: Memoirs of The Chitlin Queen[3] is in the Smithsonian Anacostia Library and the Maryland Historical Society Library.

Early life and career

Shauna Anderson was born in Washington, DC to Geneva Anderson, a professional singer and piano player and Walter Christopher Holmes, a saxophone player. She was born at the historical Adams Hospital and was delivered by the notable physician Dr. Harry N. Jones. She was raised by her maternal grandmother, Virginia L. Battle.

For 15 years she worked as an Economic Statistician with the Internal Revenue Service,[4] eventually utilizing the accounting and wealth building skills she learned at the IRS to begin her entrepreneurial ventures.[5]

Shauna started working in the chitlin business in the early 1990s preserving the history and tradition of this southern cuisine. Shauna's Hand Cleaned Pork Chitterlings, earned her the moniker "The Queen of Chitlins" by former Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., and Saveur Magazine named Shauna "the" source for chitlins in 2007.

A political food

“Guts get some overdue glory.” [6] Chitlins (or chitterlings) are the small intestines of a pig which are boiled or fried in the US and are historically regarded as southern cuisine, with African American ties to slavery. Anderson developed her own guidelines to cleaning chitlins when she discovered that Maryland Health Department and the U.S. Department of Agriculture had no regulations for the cleaning process. Chitlins are a food that Shauna refers to as "trash to treasure." Slaves turned chitlins and other Offal into something delectable and it became a symbol of survival, pride, and family tradition.

The restaurant that never was

In 1995 Shauna opened The Chitlin Market in Prince George’s County Maryland.[7] Her business was depicted on an episode of ABC’s drama “Commander in Chief”, which sparked outrage from city officials. A 2007 news article from The Hill states the chitlins store became a prop for ABC’s "stereotype of a poor, dangerous black neighborhood,” and the show was denounced by then County Executive Jack Johnson.[8]

In 2006 Shauna sued the county for what she claims were deliberate, concerted efforts to shut down the Chitlin Market.[9] Her legal case was dismissed by Prince George's County Judge Sherri L Krauser and was investigated by Senator Barbara Mikulski's office.

Shauna is in the process of producing a documentary based on her short-lived business experience on Ager Road and the depiction of her business as “demeaning to the community.” She continues to sell chitlins online and directly to restaurants and churches, providing food products that the national soul and southern food communities have supported since 1995.

Shauna's work and story have been featured in Saveur Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Jet Magazine and featured on CNN.[10][11]

Books
  • Anderson, Shauna; Place, Elizabeth, Offal Great-A Memoir from the Queen of Chitlins, Hyattsville, MD 2006. ISBN 978-0-9792878-0-0

References
  1. Trescott, Jacqueline (April 23, 2003). "Guts Get Some Overdue Glory: Chitlin Merchant's Gift Feeds Museum's Plans". The Washington Post.
  2. "Chitlin Market and Company records - contents · SOVA". sova.si.edu. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  3. Anderson, Shauna R.; Latrobe, Elizabeth (2007-02-28). Offal Great-A Memoir from the Queen of Chitlins. The Shauna R Anderson Company.
  4. "Shauna Anderson LinkedIn". LinkedIn. 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  5. Lewis, Nicole. "Shauna Anderson is using real estate to create multiple streams of income". Emerge Magazine.
  6. Randle, Leila. "Newsletter May 2003". Soul Family Travels. Archived from the original Check |url= value (help) on September 27, 2007. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  7. Nicholls, Walter. "Guts to Glory". www.washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  8. Delaney, Arthur. "Queen of Chitlins wages war on PG County Council". www.thehill.com. The Hill. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
  9. "Maryland Businesswoman Sues County". Global Wire. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  10. Meyer, Eugene. "Cashing in on Chitlins". www.washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  11. Merida, Kevin (May 5, 2002). ""Gut Instinct Chitlins online seemed like a good idea at the time. And it still does"". The Washington Post.
  • Trescott, Jacqueline (April 23, 2003). "Guts Get Some Overdue Glory: Chitlin Merchant's Gift Feeds Museum's Plans." The Washington Post.
  • Lewis, Nicole. "Shauna Anderson is using real estate to create multiple streams of income". Emerge Magazine.
  • Randle, Leila. "Newsletter May 2003". Soul Family Travels. Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  • Nicholls, Walter. "Guts to Glory". www.washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  • Delaney, Arthur. "Queen of Chitlins wages war on PG County Council". www.thehill.com. The Hill. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
  • "Maryland Businesswoman Sues County". Global Wire. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  • Meyer, Eugene. "Cashing in on Chitlins". www.washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  • Merida, Kevin (May 5, 2002). ""Gut Instinct Chitlins online seemed like a good idea at the time. And it still does"". The Washington Post.
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