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Seventeen writers, educators, and close friends of the late poet contribute their praise through this collection of brief anecdotes from actual encounters with Gwendolyn Brooks. The contributors relate the poet's influences on their art, their lives, and the world; expressing their indebtedness for the revolutionary language of her poems, her universal maternity, and her outstanding kindness. Some of Brook's most influential poems are included such that this tribute keeps her words and wisdom alive.

A series of essays discussing the reasons for and the solutions to the rioting that took place in Los Angeles in 1992 and the violence that grew out of it in Atlanta.

Poetry from Writers in Stateville Prison

Contemporary urban America comes alive in this eclectic compilation of short and flash fiction with an inner-city aesthetic filtered through the brevity of hip-hop culture.

The unprecedented prosperity and creativity of the Roaring Twenties acts as a striking counterpoint to the poverty of a young Southwestern town in this eloquent tale drawn from real sources of African American history. The hopeful residents of Greenwood, Oklahoma, are still suffering economically but plan to turn their lives around. Richard Rowland's love for Sarah Page worries his father and offends the sensibilities of the people who hold the power of life and death over him. L. J. McSpadden is the son of slaves who has overcome incredible odds to become a success and yet is the thorn in the side of men more powerful than he. And William Hogg is driven to build the greatest city in the Southwest. Many more men pass through town who help shape the economic and political standards of the time, but when their goals collide with the citizens of Greenwood, a conflagration ignites that terrifies some and excites others.

This short volume of poetry shows the inner self of an African American artist.

The poems in Emmett Till in Different States span more than 7 decades of events in Emmett Till’s legacy from the 1940s to the present. In them Philip Kolin shows how Emmett Till’s importance has expanded from being a Civil Rights martyr to becoming a choric, heroic commentator on the tragedies of Civil Rights injustices (e.g. Medgar Evers’s murder, the Freedom Riders, the murders of Chicago’s children, Trayvon Martin), and a voice of conscience for America to hear and heed. The title of this collection points to the multiple ways we can see Emmett Till through time and space (e.g. geographic, historical, psychological, and theological.) Kolin weaves other voices throughout the poems in this collection, most notably Mamie Till, Gospel great Mahalia Jackson who bought Till’s gravestone, an old black woman (Aunt Aretha) who meets Till in the Delta, Till’s fictionalized brothers (other black men who have been slain and their bodies left to rot), his fictionalized sister based upon the Shulamite woman in the Song of Songs, the Chicago River, and even Carolyn Bryant, the white woman whom Till was said to have offended. These voices–and Till’s as well–emerge from a variety of traditions–Biblical, the blues, classical mythology, spirituals. According to Natasha Trethewey, the 19th Poet Laureate of the United States, “In the history of a nation still on the long journey toward full realization of its creed, there are stories that need to be told again and again. The murder of Emmett Till is one such story; it belongs to all of us and should be sung by many different voices. In Emmett Till in Different States, Philip Kolin adds his voice—a necessary retelling so that we might be transformed by the listening.”

Intertwining wit, satire, sensitivity, and rich verbal imagery, this collection of free verse celebrates the triumph of Black culture.

A reexamination of Harold Cruse's classic ""Crisis of the Negro Intellectual, "" published in 1967 at the height of the civil-rights movement and now required reading in African American studies courses.

Emerging with a varied political sensibility, this book explodes the bourgeois self-indulgence of American culture to give a lambasting critique of its current global ultra-exploration and political repression. Exploring pressing and complicated social issues, the book incorporates humor, invective, and vigor while analyzing life, beauty, and the defiance of denial and despair.

The autobiography of Dolores Cross's journey from the housing projects of Newark, New Jersey, to her appointment as president of Morris Brown College. She tells of her journey out of poverty, through the tumult of the 60s and the civil rights movement

The symbiotic relationship between poems and paintings is explored in this stimulating volume. As a premiere example of convergence art, in which two or more different kinds of art react to and interact with one another, the collection draws a comparison between multidisciplinary art and multiculturalism by equating medium with race. By pairing the work of a renowned poet and public artist with the paintings of a beloved children's book illustrator, the book shows how effectively art can take a multimedia approach and yet convey a single message: how new historical and cultural possibilities can arise when differing disciplines work together, whether referring to different kinds of art or different kinds of people.

Featuring poetry, short plays, and short stories, this collection contains content written by young people as part of Chicago's Gallery 37 Project, an art education program for youths aged 14–21. The illustrations are also done by the participants in the 1998 Gallery 37 program.

A compilation of essays presenting the conditions and promises of the university for African American faculty and students that is enhanced by the development of Black culture centers in the university community.

Best of friends since college, Chance and Roberta Williams and Michael and Lauren Hubbs have perfect relationships, perfect careers, and perfect lives. Or do they? A freak accident takes Roberta's life, leaving the three remaining friends with a shattered reality: their perfect existence is nothing more than an illusion masked by secrets, deception, and jealousy. The loss of his wife and unborn child being too much to bear, Chance gives in to grief. Quickly evolving into a psychotic killer, he creates for his remaining friends a world that is something short of a nightmare. ""Asunder"" is a thriller that will leave readers on the edge of the seat.

Best known for his anthologies on Black literature and his scholarship on Black life and culture, Richard A. Long’s own creative writing would have remained obscure and under represented had it not been for Eleanor Traylor, Sterling Brown Professor and Graduate Professor of English at Howard University, who asked Third World Press to produce a commemorative edition of Ascending and Other Poems. As a tribute to Long and to his legacy, this slim volume of verse introduces this poet to an entirely new audience. Ascending and Other Poems originally produced through the DuSable Museum of African American History under the guidance of Margaret Burroughs engaged his followers in the mid 1970s. Today almost thirty years later, it still engages and challenges readers with profound revelations and alluring language.

To give voice to the historic election of President Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States, this anthology of essays, poetry, and creative non-fiction documents the conversation on President Obama's campaign within the African American community, and the dialogue after his election and since he has taken the Oath of Office. Included are perspectives on the historical moments during President Barack Obama's 2008 campaign, the finale of the 2008 general election, and Obama's new plans and policies since he took office in January 20, 2009. Editors Lita Hooper, Michael Simanga, and Sonia Sanchez have assembled an impressive list of forty-four contributors to capture the energy and excitement, the expectation and hope. Featured are works from Lita Hooper, Michael Sigmanga, Sonia Sanchez, Amiri Baraka, Haki Madhubuti, Askia Toure, Quincy Troupe, Chuck D, Pearl Cleage, Natasha Trethewey, Tony Medina, jessica Care moore, Nathan McCall, Jasmine Guy, Farai Chideya, Keith Gilyard, Opal Moore, Sharan Strange, and Tina McElroy Ansa.

Musings and notes about the life, the family, and travels of Gwendolyn Brooks that is a reprise of a prior book, ""Report from Part One,"" published by Broadside Press in 1972. Brooks was the Consultant in Poetry for the Library of Congress from 1985 to 1986. This volume includes her introductions of visiting writers during that period.

White supremacy and its troubling endurance in American life is debated in these personal essays by two veteran political activists. Arguing that white supremacy has been the dominant political system in the United States since its earliest days--and that it is still very much with us--the discussion points to unexamined bigotry in the criminal justice system, election processes, war policy, and education. The book draws upon the authors' own confrontations with authorities during the Vietnam era, reasserts their belief that racism and war are interwoven issues, and offers personal stories about their lives today as parents, teachers, and reformers.

This journal is full of uplifting life lessons from motivational speaker Abe Thompson. Thompson not only shares his wisdom with those seeking to make positive change in their lives, but also encourages readers to write in the book. The book is designed with wide margins and journaling pages for readers to jot down their thoughts.