Found 12 collections related to African American poets

The Harlem Writers Guild was established in 1950 and is the oldest organization of African-American writers in the United States. Originally founded as the Harlem Writers Club by John Henrik Clarke, Rosa Guy and John Oliver Killens, it was created as a forum for emerging African-American writers in New York City who felt alienated from the white literary mainstream. The Guild helped nurture African-American literary talent since its inception. Prominent members include Maya Angelou, Amiri Baraka, Terry McMillan, and Louise Meriwether. The Harlem Writers Guild Press was established in 2000 as an imprint to publish the literary works of its members. The Harlem Writers Guild Records collection consists of the work of two Guild members, Grace F. Edwards and K.C. Washington. The collection contains nine manuscripts of published books and unpublished material, including three annotated manuscripts, spanning circa 1998 to 2009. Edwards is the author of the popular Mali Anderson Mystery series. The collection contains three annotated manuscripts: A Toast Before Dying (1998), Do or Die (2000), and The Viaduct (2003). It also includes the manuscript for No Time to Die (The Cereal/Serial Killer) (1999). The collection also includes a manuscript of Washington's debut novel Mourning Becomes Her, which was first published by Harlem Writers Guild Press in 2006, as well as two unpublished manuscripts: "Beauty" (2009) and "Mad River" (2000-2005). less

The Wallace Bass Boyd collection is comprised of forty-seven journals, biographical accounts and geographical descriptions of Black life in the South, as well as drafts of his writings from 1985-2007. The journals primarily capture Boyd's day-to-day experiences spanning across his undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate years. Four of the forty-seven journals are written to family members and aspiring artists. Notations about art and his artistic practice can also be found throughout the collection. less

This collection includes Witherspoon's published and unpublished poetry, including his best known works: An American Haiku Novel and On the Stair, both in his signature style of linked-haiku or renga. A travel journal kept in Africa, a critique of the Kenyan educational system, a play about the Black hijacker of a bus, an educational program report, various printed material, notebooks, and miscellaneous correspondence complete the collection. less

Gary Batson is a playwright. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from Fordham University, and two Masters of Arts degrees from Teachers College of Columbia University in education and communications. He is pursuing a Ph.D. in Education Administration from the University of Maryland. In the 1980s, Batson was a member of the Frank Silvera Writers Workshop and involved with the Negro Ensemble Company. His plays have been produced at a variety of theaters in New York City, Westchester County, and Rockland County; a few were directed by Arnold Beauchamp. In 2008, he co-founded the Mount Vernon Theater Company in New York, now known as Phoenix Arts, for which he is the Executive Producer. Additionally, Batson has published fiction and poetry, and he was a news reporter and editor. He currently teaches writing at Touro College, and he is a public relations consultant with Batson Communications. The Gary Batson collection consists principally of eight playscripts of his produced plays, written between 2004 and 2011. All except "A Fact of Matta" were produced. Announcements and news clippings discuss the plays productions. Also included are "Flawless: A Collection of Love Poems" (2007) and Batson's curriculum vitae. less

Joe Johnson (1940-2019) was a poet and writer who was a member of the Umbra Poets Workshop, a group of young Black writers who met on New York City's Lower East Side from 1962 to 1965 to conduct readings and discuss writing and politics. The Joe Johnson papers consist largely of writings—mostly poetry and fiction, with some drama and nonfiction—by Johnson, as well as notebooks, personal and professional files, and printed material. less

The Djola Branner papers, 1983-2010, document his personal life and professional career as a writer, poet, dancer, choreographer, actor, and educator. The collection reflects how his identity and experiences as a gay Black man informed much of his creative work. less

Julio Galer (1925-2006) was an Argentine professor of English and a Spanish language translator, notably translating a number of Langston Hughes's works into Spanish. Langston Hughes (1902-1967) was an American poet, writer of short stories, novelist, playwright, essayist, and lyricist. The letters and related materials that Hughes sent to Galer showcase the relationship between writer and translator. These materials include manuscripts (with and without annotation); published musical scores, printed matter, and news articles; programs and playbills; and a small number of photographs of Hughes. The collection also contains drafts of Galer's translations of Hughes's poems. less

The Maya Angelou papers documents the literary career and personal life of poet and memoirist Maya Angelou (1928-2014) through her writings of autobiographies, essays, and poetry and children's books. The collection holds correspondence, manuscripts, computer generated typescripts, galleys, notes, financial and legal documents, and printed matter. less