https://digitallis.isg.siue.edu/files/original/1d4a331448565a899ce6b7925f7a2028.pdf 9a93d5c659d2e3cea1b73c96fb1d45b9 PDF Text Text CHAPTER VI FESTIVALS © FUNERALS: ....,BLAC' POETRY OF THE 1960s CB They winged his spirit ® ~ 1970s & uoun<le<l his tongue but dea t h was slow coming .... ~ */ wno killed Lumumba What killed Halcolm .......... festivals & f unerals fes tivals & funerals ....-festivals & funerals & fes tivals & fun erals •.. - MI - Jayne Cortez G -e. Overviewl The space be tween festivals and funerals can be infinite or it can be deathl: short. her poem . So ffayne Corte%ay;uthrough the twistings and turnings in Bu t whatever the space, or the pace, we all slip , slide , soar, and tr i ? as we make our way between the polarities (assigned each a t birth) 1. -1-h ,, fex; li~fl,.t··e 11.·ve and the k ind of dea th we die. J Black poe~ of the 1960s and 1970s ofte~ face! life and death "straight up": ...._,t hough, as ue have seen, /1a ck poets in other times did not cringe from the breach~ of racial nightt mare!" , violence , sexuality , unbeautiful lan8uage , wicked or rcliGious folkisnf , and the demandt, of music:-~~R- each of them seemed to hear/0-albeit from , different. drummers ~1• ., Gt, To attempt a discussion of contemporary / 1ack poetry is to turn others' tongues into flae1es : "!laspher.iy! ! " "I was the first !" t' ✓ �"We started it! " "That antholo?,y w.:t s i ncomplete since it didn ' t include me !f " "It al ] Jf~7,-9.~ ~ii in this place G, r that plac ~ ! " "His /her poe try is not J lack enough ! " and so on . Nevertheless , the "smoke" from the s i xties is be~inning to clear and, while more hin~ sight is needed, there are import.:tnt observations that should be made . Henc'? in this chapter , the format will follow preceding ones i neliii. e s ■i.1-e wi t h a -------- poets. de- emphasis in biogr aph ica l-critical J,.n not: es- on bv1 indivi dua l Most serious poets who began writing in the late fifties,11xties ~ e()tllf . a nd ,{> e~enties+ still have much g rowin g and threshing t o do . volume s really contain earlier poetry . Als 91 many r ecent So it is not easy to evaluate (or ev en list) / lack poe try produced over this period . Yet, historically speaking , c e rta i n undeniable trends have occurred, and t hey look roughly like this: r;;:-ack/o etry since t he Harlem Rena issance ( sec Brown, Redding , Henderson, Jackson) has had cycling curr en t s of "ragJ'( and '' fire " thou gh not t he sustained gu sh witnessed in the mid and late i[) sixties; )(l ack poet ry a ft e r 1945 expressed a bel ief (see Ray Dur em ) t ha t white libe rals were not reall y i nte r ested in mounting the ( o,-. qain~1tJ.lL 1he wc,y 1 1 " final " chariots of f ireAon behal f of Blacks (desp it e Communist= Socia lis t pronouncemen t s ) ; i::~es ,)6.ack poetry of the ~ s; )(~ f.,S _/ and early ,t9Ub provided a ytvil:. ond jcL~TitaL ¢ l;rn aT-e. , i ghts gr ound~wellAfor the volcani c bur s 1 of the later sixties; fn/.1ack a po et r y of t he ea r ly sixties t he r e was planted the anvil shaped t he s t yli stic, at ti tudina l and l i nguistic cha r acte r - - - - - - - - - -- - - - -- - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - �of what i s known a s t hc,1/ew / l a c k / oe tr-y'; pu rr e nt / lack po e try , desp it e " ev o lution s " a n d "chang e s," h as not a,, r adically alt e r ed or l a i d to rest t h e be s t ~w r k of Hu ghes , So. r.,e~ ~ - ~C21l ;""' ~ Davis, Toor.ier, h'alke r, Hayden, Br ooks, To l s on Johnso) and Dodson; ~ xc ep t fo r what S t ep hen Hen de rson ca l l s " t en ta tiv e " a nswe r s , (~ ·9'•; ,,il.'.lc k p o et r y d e fi e s a l l d e f i n it ions ~ Hari Eva ns ' f " Bl a ck . J., - -.._,/ a.. Woman") '\-s plinter i n g o f f int o f nnuni er/\b le directi ons, s t yles , ~ tl orms , themes, con sid erations and idea s . +l"l4f. . Thi s chapt e r, all abov e c o nsi dered ( ! )) wi ll briefly sketch th e J..Z h::sa-s of poe t ry f rom the fift ie s int o the mid1 s i x ties . Again+ c hronology will he --,t;;7t, vialA"tld /(n& tel s i n~ ; m~ny of the poe t s lis t ed were wr itin;:--; in the for ti es and fiftieE, 1 ~ /4hffanlld I . most d id not rec e 1.ve~a tt en t1. on until th e six tie s. The ske t ch wi ll include a g eneral look a t t ransi ti onal poe t s ( olde r and youn ge r) as their wo r k appears ) in abou t a half dozen an t ho l ogies ( f r om I Saw How Black I Was , 1958 , f e to Ka leidoscope , 1967 ) and what feu vol umes we r e bein g b rou gh t ou t a t the time . Ila. s n Jut> =::.. 1Mn . f oe exanina t ion ( see Lo ck e ' s and Bont emp s' • di visio'lS '3 . of t he/\Ilenai s sancej ';t akes up the poe t s who c ame to r ecogni t i on unde r the banner of the> ~ a c k/ o et r y . 1 /3 a c k ,4 r ts /'I\J · (ment a nd who loo ~ y fall into t h e catego r y of , /ew Ol d er poet st , :1yd e n, Br ooks , Randa ll, Walker , a nd o t he r s i will be briefly reµ is ited to see if t he "new" mood wro u ght any sign if ica nt c h a ng es in t hei r views and /or th e i r poetry . we Touch IJP, an Criitc.. t'.~rn , Tho ug~.al.Be s tt uwi,e aJ H0 te e,, this boo k is primarily a h istorical g u i d e,ffd esigne d t o a i d a. dcnES, EeaEff@ISj • !Im! Jm; ~ a de rs in t heir e xplo r a t ion of,Ji ack poe t r y . I Onl y a na l ve person �would attempt, a t t his stage, a full critique of the poe try of the 1960s and 1970s. However, there are stylistic patterns, similarities, and t hematic clusters whi ch will be pinpointed and as sessed from time to tirae . Some of the most provocative of recent studies of contemporary / lack poetry a re Henderson's The llilitant Black Wri t e r in Africa and t he United States, i (r,,q with Mercer ~ . too~, Joy Flasch ' s !-Ielvin To lson (1972) -c,r.,.,."""",,,_ the ~ew Bl a ck Poetry (1 973); Sh~rley Williams '~ Give Birth to Ilri[;h tness (1972); Gibson' s . . . Modern Black Poets (1973 ) and Jackson~ '-------- and Rubin's Black -......, Poetry in America (1974) . ft] S9 ms ] "l ] I !l b$ _$/ Literary and Social Landscape• - LeveL C--- Assassinations, highl\political corruption, upheaval , violence, change , ClAS .. A' ol:J , l±)t ideolog~es, flamin g rhe t or ic • conteml\Jlrary period. ~_o.;L n a:;ta a I -...._ describe the Revolutions (of all k inds) mock and mold the wo rld. From Cuba to Vietnam, Harlem to Chile, Pakistan to Watts, Nige r ia to Indonesia, Kenya to Berkeley, Jackson State to Kent Statej -the facts and I \ A~~ not ,,,n symbols of change have been dr ama tic and violent.f s-{N(,A ovev-cast, .h (Jw€1/efi') 1hwar-1ed moj o.- tJevtl<Jp me110 wher~ ll 1 EAJtin the iJ-ac k spher~ L£tdo p was declinin__ef(by t he mid\fif t ies) ' 1 ' and vocalist: t~ ,; \1 ~::- a nd / azz ' s greatest · · B~,:.l(LLH,l.. interpreter, Charlie Parker, was dead . Al tf;icians co~ n11ed /(St pr obing new forms under t he leadership of Ii l es Davis, John Coltrane, the Modern Jazz Quart e t, Wes Mont gomery, ~ a EJ:l-;i,,agt~ Charles,~ Ornette Coleman, Bill y Eckstine, Sat;lah..ll a\ Fitz ge r ald and Billie Holiday ~ ho died in 195J1 Ray Ella g,Llie ,.._J\!loliday ' s name and - fame a8ain reached a worl'){-1ide audience wh en , i n 19 72, Di ana Ross, formerly of the Supremes, starred in t he controversial moviel Lady Sings the Blues . Saxophonist Coltrane, a major influence on the current generation of musicians and poets , di e d in 196 7. An i nnovator, he sparked new int e res t.$ in mu sic witr 7 �of sound~' - .:.~;~f!ll"'SNl•ttt~-t.ti-08-fiflllll.is~;liiiltlic,gt;~~'.!.t'!t~tfE'l.Js.-u111@6111'flllli••!li!!J)!.lllllJl}l•IM••■□ El511JllliCr.iei!J~iiai 0 hi ■ ei,J ~ The / i ftiesAa lso witnessed the ma tura tion of ,-ihythm ~and •4'lue s, popularized •rn ., weaving by/ lack radio di s c jockeys . ~ - - et:!_ J. D:!5 1; it social _ ::, Int er4 commentaries with the news, they ~ "1er ! Re.sv!t'.-ii . anticipa t ed t he new oral poetry of t he~ 1xt1es . ftp±n ur cr from these broad+ I). ~ (J..J ~ cast ing styles were/\ programs ~ ~ndstan (started in the late iifties) . Yo ung white America wa tched } lacks dance , listened t o Little Richard and Chubby Checker , and trie<l to i mitate it all on TV and in their homes . 1 This 1 period gave birth to the fi rst whi t e s uperst a ~ 'joul fartis: JElvis Presley . fl · r· jg] 'J istsr" s iid!E bl t 'fhe new f'-J.1ack social mus ic, r . and the dances accompanyi ns it, freed white American youngst e rs from the prudish and self-righ t e ous inhibitions of their fo r epar ents . )1tl(>t~tot«c." echoc, ffrtom"'ft<i-e -t.1e;ii1es . &ut-fh-ell'-t t--em6\ ml Gene rally , Americans ience and industry developed more rapidly than 1A : «' U.~ '") in previous periods • ..JMeia:,ia launched Sputni~k , a feat whien ,.r.as fo llowed ~ v ~ by/\.Afne ican- Russian scienc e and space - explor ation r a c e ~ ~ continue s. " ,,.---. iaYne.w..s !!d,\coverag e Te l t star paved the way for i ■ ? \!,. bio chemical warfare and a tomic n~v~ researchA,b ecame of ~loba l 2.ctivitie5J while the nin ht mares people live• daily . The American literary scene was swamped with political novels , sa tire , writings on t he war and experimental/J ournalistic pros e . The " under ground" newspaper emerged as a majo r vehic l e f or this new writing . The symbolisr.1 and ~~ f'.'tey,fut-t di ,,1still present . Hm1eve r , t he psychology~_employed in ~ a r lie ~ w: it· § ii~ i nfluence of the writ ers fror.i t he Depression and wa r years is r, ivin~ wa y to gad3e try and a new wave of existential concern . Black , Jewish, Chicano, aYr~'r- I nd i an and Asian writers are grabbing more of t he liter a r y s t a ge - ~ IS..r.een in H-.e n.e.w ethoit. StltJr-n a..l.1 O.l'ld fuJc. l i~h•ttj c.om fllJ\(tS lts we. l..1.- <U n,w inTe,,ett ~rom estt:bl,'thed fu bUd , h·5 . �(~) 5~A Jfo n tempora r y -.?- ' ,k111111iia~ N. Scott Nomaday , Ra l pl . -2 Isa11: r orltl~ vriter s o f i nf l uenc e inc l u de : • Saul Be l l mv~ , - -----.... Ellison , ~iddt el Hai :d 9 Fr ank Chin , ~~-~ -;;.hhr U.td li Hali;;! , Ch ~ a Ac hebe , Er nes t Ga ine s , J a mes Ba ldwi n , Paul Chan , f liatma y 8 ' 8s m:sz;z Albe rt i!u rray , I s hmael Re e d , Tinlli&M ii!) Lh,. James Ngug i , William De mby, Sh awn Hsu h'ong ..,_; 1 Kelley¼&ffd liC±:~ 7all&d!'. ~ 1\ rih; -lilliam Helvin Black writ e r s a re inc l u ded i n the g ene r a l l is t i ng b ecaus e:, d u r i n g the cont empora r p e):-iod , many of t hem ach i ev~d r ec o gni tion on , c. v sr6J.. Mi.(.Lion cop•~ ~ . par with the b e s t wr iters ever)7vlhere . " Reed @_ C UH• d wa s n omi na t ed i n ~U►'1 6se.C1.eAv .. w-'.S ~ L.S!,!1 t!ld1wt.J Scl.d. t wo categ or¼es f o r i he Na tio n a l Book Awa r d i n 1 9 7~. /i Am et-1CAI'\ tempor a r y/\po et s ~ l 4 ' " ~mpo rt a n t con{, · Stanl ey Ku 7 . z, Cyn Za r c o , Rob e rt Hayden, Richar d Eb e r h ar t, Rob e rt P e nn lfar ren, J O's t l·:ont oya , Gue nd olyn Br ooks, Laws on I nada , Kar 1 Shap iro , Rob er t 1ar ga s,1,ftr,.,H1i11111il~••T iiiililcli1asi.sws-.. Jo h n Ber ryna n , enry Duma s, ,, 1 / -Mkl,atL._HQ)"~e,. t or Hernan de z Cr u z , ~ f obE!r t l:owe l l, Dan i el Ha l pe r n , Rich ard Am iT\l Wilbur , Paul Ve s ey , J ames Di ckey , I mamu~ araka , Sy lv i a Plath , Willia m Bell an~ J ar:ie s . Wri ght. IIay den rec eif:fih a N: tional Book Awa r d nomi na t i on i n 19 72 , , _ , o ~ - .± "tio~~.~•A.o• 0-c.-o.,, ..... ~J) ~ ~"ir..... Many of t he / l ack fic s@t wr iten, ~nd poets ( s ome 1 r, f ror:i the p re - a n d r ost-J.wa r ~f,,10'1 s chools) died during t h e con t emporary pe riod (Tolson , Bo n t emp s,~ Hugh J s , Uright, Dur em, Dumas, Di Bois , Ho rn e , Ri vers, To ome r , Halcolm X, e t c . ). Inde ed death , i n one way or a not he r, not only p r e o ccup ied write r s (wh it e and f 1ack ), b ut wa s often r oman t i call y IJ Ursu ed . Bea t poet Ke nne t h Rexr oth asked> " i,n 1y hav e 30 Amer ican po ets c ommit t ed s uicide sinc e 1900?" Those p o e t s n ot conc e rned >elF-d~uw\te.eL.ttnenn with death we r e inves t i :-;ating de cade nc e o r t h e • • •• • ~ £ socie t y . The dev e lopme nt of c on te~p o r ary poet r y c ann o t be v iewed p r o p erly with out unde rstanding t he ' f e at " p e r i od . - -/ As a p art ia l p roduct of th e / e] op er e a t po e ts emuln t ed tlte ~ (drop- out) ~ age 7 a. mann e r isms and ap ed t he "man a l on e " a ssociated with mus i cians . BeJ{op ua s one way t he u sed to f i gh t th e c omr:ie r c i a lization of his arf-. f 1a ci\na n He also used i t i n pla y ing �" Someth i ng , " in the word s of Thelonious Honk , "t hey can ' t pl a y " meani ng whit es) . I mport ant t::.5'¾ f (ihev \ eat poe ts wer e Lawr ence Fer i lir.;hetti, Rex rot h , All6 n Ginsbe r 0 , and Gr egory Corso, amo ng the whi t e s f..> and Bob ✓ o...... .,ao ~ I ~ . Kaufma n, Le f o i Jones/ ~ t • jj ' C L 2lts a I ,/Sp~An ed Joan, . among ~he n~ h:222 1u id!i I i alz a:rs ytrab JOE''L ( The 11 I f P?t d D no] J Daw !Ill&§ @ cat f•~ovemen t , which nur tu r ed occultism, rejection of the Estab lishment and an exi stential view o f l ife , was c ent e red in New Yor k ' s Greenwich Vil lage and t he San Francis co Bay a r ea . :rt ~ died i n t he ear ly / ixties . 'Na Kau fman is viewed by many a s the unsung pa tria r ch of t he ~ er a . $QM ... ~t,.__c ritics say maj or whit e po et s of t he movemen t enthusias t ica l ly t ook ,,,,.---:- 7111d~ . ,,l their cues from Kaufinan' s i nnova tions , bu t were no t s o w;.; ~ i n r "4' d I irtl I w •11. n Edi (3 Q..&) G?R(J)s As a k ind of s piritua l hei r t o Toome r , Kaufman is a c omplex , sometimes f ragment ed , but brilli an tly original poet. His wo r k , like t ha t of many of his c ontemporari e s , i s i nf luence1 by Eas t e rn relig iou s thought a nd t he occult . Stylis ticall y , Ya ufman ha s t he ~ s weep~ of Whitman coup l ed with t he bes t techniques o f mode r n poe t ry . lie pa ssionately exper iments with j az z rhy t hms in poet r y a nd ofte n invoke s j a zz t hemes , moods a nd mu s i cians . Han0 f at poets a nd ent hu s i a sts l at er joined or we r e spawned by the vil :.fi -:;,h ts strur;g le1 wh i ch was intensified by several thin3s : Hartin ! Luther King ' s Mo.n t gomery bu s boycott in 19554 56; sit- ins and o t he r dr ama.{_, t i zation r of s egregation a nd discriminatio n ; the cha ll enr; es travel in 1961 (CORE ); t he widening ac t i vitie s March on Washington (1963). - - - - -- - - - ------------- i Jim Crow in SNCC (196¼ 64) a nd t he . Ot her s i gnifi ca nt ac t ivities : n flamed and �inspired the hearts and imagination of fa ac k American yo uth especially. ~ 13 The Huslims ' (tfation of Islanx growth to~ O_g; members by 1963 and t he Congressional action on j(ivil / i ghts _jegislation \ ere t wo seemingl y u~ related but stra tegically i mport a nt events . The growing inf luenc e of ✓ the }~slims sugg ested that many Blacks no longer believed America was ~ h'):1a n at.s. , f\ , 'nHJr< u"l G'\ sincere in its pledges to implement/\.e~n when they became law. r t t • g ...,,. L ~,t~ ot='violente;.J their distrust were the continued/\.~!L Hn s , nightf ridings in the ~ outl1; 0 and hatrassment of Blacl:!, in public places and their homes • .1 ' .,,_,Cl\~ Jt i11't\y ofl~""''"'~ bj lt z $757 ~ mm~t t · Till ' s murder I' uit J/1:!""""Y of« '"""'""'- !H a cks reeled ,,,} under the killings of Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner , Halcolm X, Hed gar 1 Evers, King, the Kennedy brothers, and the three Black Panthers £ t ~:\.t.t4 ~~fi bY police @ § y in a Chicago apartment]: . #ay 1966 , however , hd I ~ lack7'ower signs and slogansAbegeln to replace the "He shall overcomei'\i\ w_ee,...,,'(\fi' / lack and )'hite 7Dgether" exclamations. Young p ack America, NePui:l'f!, Afro ha irdos and African jewelry , attended cultural festivals , back-to-=- A~,·~ c,we ► ConFt~nte; Africa rallies, poetr y r ::,., I - 1n~s, a nd ~ in revolutionary broadsides and tabloids . read Clfll community news published :._::.,; Rhetorical forays by H. Rap Brown and Stoke l y Ca r micha el, young SNCC officers, set off a flurry of state and national l aws a gainst i nciting to r iot and of weapons across state boundaries. . J ?TBA and,, cw -artrl ~ 1,ilt ~ setAf he stage for gun battles between police and the often imagined ,, ,,snipers." - These conflagrations were repeated in scores of cities after Dr . King was as sassinated in 1968. Watts poe t Quincy Troure cap tured the shock and horror, and chronicled the official reaction, in his poem "White -leekend ": �The deployed military troops surrounded the ~fuite Ho use and on t he st eps of the Senate build ing a soldier behind a na chine gun 32,00 in Washington & Chicago 1 , 900 in Baltimore }aryland 76 cities in fla me s on t he landscape and the bearer of peace still lying in Atlanta• •• • Int e last stanza, Troupe ~oted with curdling irony : f, a en tations ! Lamentations ! Lamen t ations ! Worldwide ! Ru t in lew York , on Wall Street the stock n a r ket went up 18 po i nt .... -1 riting , fallout from t he / l a cl·/ evolution reverber ates a round the globe . Black jou r nalist Tho as Johns!'on reports Irish revolutionar ies sinz "We Shall Overcome . " Posters and emblems commer cialize everything J from Af rican hai 1s t yles to the raise d clenched f isti the initial symbol of ' lack unity and defiance . beg innin~ with ~ A ,.vave of } ~a c.: mov ies f c alle1 /::;rloita tiont&, experiment al ~ ul tiJ million~dollar ~f~ Putney Swope (1969) is t hea ter patronage . Black movies retrieved t he crippled movie indust ry fror:1. the brink of disas t e r . leanwhile , the murder, incarceration an~ political hai rassment of / 1ack men and women ma«e rZ:l·ac.~ · · t h cm h croes an d l 1.ero1nes in 1 • / ye t • • a 11 y symb o 1 1.ze . ' con1.IT1un1• tiesM ironic t he torment and of Ame rica (see Samuel Ye tte ' s The Choic e ) . " genocidal s chemes " �-I - Criss} crossed by paradoxes , poli t ical contra<lictions , social revolts -.. and reli~ious . - . ambivalences , t'.1c . /lac ;~ co;,11i1unity is nevertheless ~ene rated by its s i nger s nn ~ pe r :ormc rs . re4 Black popular music !1as not only r eached unpr e cedent ed a ud iences , but unprecedented money-making c apabilities . .I, -~ ,l/ii{~~ 7-J . ~ ,1hythm:: and )'-'.Lues , ~ ~~~"'fflWll!r.Adicd abou t 1965 , ;;ave way to ', ;ioul " ~ "I ' m a Soul ~fan, " Sam an d Da ve announ c e cl in · th e 1 a t e/~' ix - t ies · . . ---- uA. .( The I mp ress i ons told lovers that you " gotta 1ave s oul" and Bobby Hornack reminded listeners .J t ha t the "Woman ' s Gotta Ha v e l.t ",;j\- presunably " Soul." are W>ittJL1devtto, i".11; ~. . J:'1\·::\ o . ,., ~ J ....__,, 1 '-'-' Tilack recording coapanies n , .1'o/own ( Detro 1 t) , ._...,'""''"""'"i:Nioal:iiaali11io-• 0 Hayfield I s soundtrack a lo u 1 ~- -----_ Superfly (1972) sold mo r e t 1an 22 ,-OGG ' O()(r _..,, copie7 and :Iarv J ,-, ~ay ' s W1at ' s Going On (1971) set records ,for album sales. ,. c . tly , however, Stevie Wonder has surpassed them all . Literally dozens of singing groups/ modeled on the q uartets and ensembles of the / ifties~ a r e releasin g a l bums re gularl y . These folk or " s oul " poets have be c ome dv-o.ti-e.. r:io re "conscious " in recent year o/ and many now ~-L1 i!. the i r song s with political nessages and exaltations of j iackness . :-::uch of this new wave came o n t he heels of severe criticism by Ilarak(t,_)who a<lmonish e <l the s inf! e r s for doting on unrequited love. he sAioJ ~ -rl,c,mN ~ ~ \;';\ Too n any)~ r e p reoccupiet'i"witht\ my baby ' s gone , gone\' e; Black: consciousne ss activi t ~, and creativity in i enera3:.,-jnow fl o urish~ . Related involvement includes : .._.d evelopment of j iack acting ensemb l e s; op ening of fre e sc hools and / lack un iver.sities; es t a blis hmen t of J1-a c k j atio nal i s t/ jG1tural commune s ; i n c r ease in the number of / 1ac k books tores a nd African bouti ques ; establish1:1ent of / 1ackJ t udie s pro g r am s o n whit e a n d/ ia c k -----'------ - -- - - - - -- - - /5 Lf - - - -- - ~ ~ �campuses and, in some cases, quota systens for enrolling / lack students; the escalation of / lack <ler.1and~ for "cream o f the crop" jobs such as }¥ announcing and the hosting of variety shows; expansion and creation of new roles for/ lack newspapers, magazines and radio st.:itions; formation of c,i!--.ea. -th e.. ack Congressional caucus • and similar units in.....i:a:=t ano - ,~·\..4M'E: bo<l ltS professional~~•~~~~ and, finally and impo rtantly, new engagement with In<leed, future trips to AfricaJ - Africa and her problems and possibilities. M to the yo ther country" or J oraeland" i-' are <lis cuss ed at all age and social levels. Mu c of this renewed interest is understandable in li ghi of the emergence durin~ the contemporary period of several African nation=states and the increased fraternization among Africans and Afro-Americans. '"::', carionized today by great numbers of z: ■ sn,Je"T~ Clod. P I ____s;l,,t'lack Rn tellectuals , did much to foster this curr ent interest in Africa . expelled from th _ Jation of Islam Shot to death at a and had formed a splinter grou p known.as the nr ~anization of Afro- American Vait y . His Autob iography of Malcolm X (with Ale.~ Haley, 1965), whic:1 (.:is he pre icted) he <lid not . . 1alcolm X, .f;;, to see in Jit hu b.et print, chronicles )1is odvsse . as !!alcolm Li ttl e, hustler " De troit Red. 11 t1 Ha lcolm X, and El-Haj j t1a lik El Shaba zz. 1 i £ ;\lionized b)' (~,:rmichael , IL Rap Brown , Ossie Davis, Dar aka an<l vario us other {l\jolars, activi sts and artists . Black poets , especially, have fo und !'i.:i lcolm (and Coltrane) ...-- . · t1.ess sourc 1 irni bf · · t· . I 11sp1ra·1on c.:in be seen in For :.'alcolr.i: Mf~ s impac t · 1 intlic.:i · · · t ion · ,\ part1a o j) ~,..,, on poe t s Poe111s on t 1e Life anJ Deat h of Ma lcolm X (1967), edited by Dud ley P-andall .:ind Viarga ret G. Burrour;hs . Shabazz;° Robe rt Hayden noted ; ~ In "El-Hajj lalik El �f He X' d his name, be ~me his people ' s anger, I q_ exhortetl ther.1 to vengence for their past; rebuked , admonished them , Their scourger who would sha:ne them, drive t hem from t he lush ice ga r dens of t he ir servitule . First World Fe stival of Negro Arts , held in Dakar , Senegal, in 1966 , Hayden was awarded the Grand Prize fo r Poe try . A maj or even t, t he fest ival was attended by experts , scholars , artists and enthusiasts of ~ / lack / rts whq ga the red for @ days to hear papers and Jiscus sions , view art exhibits) ;;;;;, cultural performances , and give pr elimi na r y dire ction to the Black Arts Hovement. Presiding over t he festival was one of the archite cts (with 1 I - i>)'e$ &de nf r ~ < f Jt I I Senghor,1..,.Senega ~ "'1/1 ct sair~ ~ Damas) ~£ .;::::::::;; a Phi losonhy of ) lack_;fumanism. ~l'*llllli·• ....- •...lilli?lililSiil@@ilii§- 4iDWiEiiiid._2iliiiF■t•Jil . ss.t.. s-■ ?iiEiild•PlliJ1is•l1111-■11111!11!11!!11&•1•-.1• • • · • • - - A rican- ori en t ed publica tions such as Pr~sence Af ric aine and Black Orn heus have renewed t he ir inte r ests in/J.a c k American write rs . magazines (Blac Likewise , ,/1- ack American journals a nd popular Wo rld, Jou rnal of Black Poetry, The Bla ck Scho lar, Essence, Encore , Ebony, Jet , etc .) hav e bezun to publish r.1ore nate rials by and a bout Africans . - The revolution in ~ fil.:ick / rts was signaled by n any events including the Fi rst Conference of ~eg ro 'dr iters in 7·1arch of 1959 . Langs ton Hughes was J an i mportant fi gure there4'"as he wa s .:i t the Daka r ea thering seven yea rs l a t er . The First Ane rican Festiv.:il of t!eg r o Art was held in 1965 an<l t he Second AFNA - - - -- - - - - - ) - - - - - �took place in ~fovenber of 1969 in Buffalo , ; , Y. Interlacing these and ot 1er conferences, sympos ia and conventions) were excit ing developments and expe rit T11ents in lieW York , C1icago , ,Jatts , Phi ladelphia, Atl an ta, Baton Rouge, St . Louis , Cleveland, Det roi t and 'iJash ingt on , . C. Durin" t1ese periods of social turnoil and artis t ic upsur g 7 writers and poet s often al i zned themse ves with ideological positions and regional movements . Consequently , , l a c t / rts communes and regi onal brands of/ c ons ciousness grew concurrently . an<l;(lac·/ationalists lack Splits betveen older r-vil finhts workers were paralleled by splits between older writers and it younger pracw oners of ~ l ac / rt The splits wer e not always clear-cut, however, for many older activists and poets joined the new mood in spirit, thenatic concern and per sonal lifenstyle, while sor.1e of the younger write r s ..., retained the influence of the earlier mood s. Corn _licating things even more t were the variants on t e done.nant themes of each camp . Gwendolyn Brooks , !J 6 ill ; r:.andall , ~:ar za ret Danner , l~a r ~aret \Jal ~er and John Oliver 'illens are amo ng the older ~rouv of writ ers the new nood . Youn~er urite rs whose who vi8orously took u p the banner of '(' wor,·s i(? . f,Le , • /f'ome "tradition" include Henry Dunas (Poe try /or :-~y People , 19 70 and Pl;:iv [bonv Play Ivory, 1974) , Conrad "ent Rivers (The Still Voice of llarlen, 1963 , etc . ) , J ulia Fields (Poems, 19 63) , Al §i_n ~ oun;; (D:i cin" , 1969 , etc . ) , and Jay 1;ri ~h t (T :1C Homecoming , 1972J to name just a fe\ . ~ he crea tive pronise o f this period was dealt a severe blow by t he unti;1.cly dea t hs of ,umas and Rivers in 1963 ) These poe t s are deeply influenced by the noods and preoccupations of the I" period (self-love, racial injustice , violence, war ,t{"l ac · ¢onsc i ousness ::md ;{istory) but they work along tested lines and experiment with i n caref ul .... and thou ~ t-out frames of reference, . Host of the writer s of the per iod ,, �( their styl es and id eolos ies notwiths t and i ng ) lave found themselves engulfed a t one tir.1e o r a nother i n heated debates ov e r '1 ue stions related to t h e _:;r.i..a c k/ esthetic," the relationship of writer to reader, vt.~ 11> I lad,"• white audiences, a nd t he pa r t politics should play in their life and work . this writing , these discussions continu e in most sections of the At lack fo r ld . The flurr y of i deo logical and a e s t hetical debate among the poets (and o t her writers) has of t en been precipitated or attended by c rit ical writings, historica l Jif¥ies , social essays a nd pub lic political statements . Some of t he individua l s asso ciated with i n itiating the plethora of rhetoric on the question of a ~ l a ck aes t he tic (and related issues) are Ron Karenga , Gwend o l yn Brooks , s :aka , ~ ttd«,-Jp r:dua r d Sprigg s, .ill 2 i:t\,{e, ..,.., • •Jt,.ttller (Black World) , Redd i ng , ~ ~lis on, La rry nea l, Ernest ' ' ais e r, ~lel Wat kins, Ron I elburn , P11tlL•,: 11\ l".mda ll, Lerone Bennett , Jr . , ~a t h an Scott, James Emanuel , Ton i Cade- Bambara, John Henrik Clarke , Don L . Lee, Ed Bullinst a nd cultu ral, by/ a nd Stanley Crouch . A number of important stud ies , literar y lack and wh ite wr iter s , a i ded in whetting or prolonging the critical t h ir sts . -rne~t. Some of WIIRAimportant and/or controve r sial wr i t i n gs ' in Africa and the United States (1969) ~ ,lacL r'.xp r ession ( 1969 ) and The Bla c k Aesthetic (19 71)~ Xhe New Africar Culture (1961) and Nee -African Lit e rat ur e : ------- of Blac~- ~fr itin?: (19 68 ) ; J a hn,~ Langston Hughe ~ Blacl:~enius (1971 ) ; O' Daniel , c ~ l ack Poets of the United St a t es : Paul Lawr ence Dunbar to Langston llu~hcs (1 963 , French edition ; 1973 English trans . Douglas) ; p lagner) Befor e the r!ayfl:::. ( 1962) ; Bennett (196 ~ ,~ Shadow a nd,... A-c ~ Ellison, ~Unde r st anc.ling the New Black Poetry (19 73) •, f ttende r son\ f ~ f~ Colloquim on Neg(ro Art : - Fir s t l·!orld- Festival of Ne gro Ar t s, 1966 ( 1968) • - , ( 7··/ ~· �/ I .: Ed itions f r e se11ct! Artie~ The .1 .n;r o i\ov c l in America (1965) Hother is Gold: ._ ~ Bone, Study in West African Literatur e (1971) ~ Ro sco e, The Crisis of the Negro I ntellectual (1967); ative Sonl: v/. Crit ical Study of Twentieth- Century Negro American Aut hors Dynamite Voice s: Black Poets of the 1960 1 s, ~ol . People (1963) , Black Nusic (196 7), Home : Social Essays (1966), an<l f!.a ise Race Ra ys R.a ze (1971); Bara ka, and Give Birth to Brightness (1972)© WilliamsJ 1 numbe r of / lack cri tics , artists, and activists heatedly d e.4.-, nounce whites who research or criticize/ l ack literatur e , saying tha t only t.10se who have lived the ; hack j xpe rience can wri t e about it . Another group holds t ha t whit e s ca n r eport on~ l a ck wr itin;; if t hey a r e sinc ere and sy□pa t hetic. The ulack Arts ~lovenent, as t 1e contempo r a r y pe riod is some t imes cal l ed , t ook place in the sh.:1dows of ~vha t many/ "second Reconst ruc t ion . " -Yerm!d l a c · social cr i tics have ~'"'1-..l\t he ;renc e , muc h of t he wr iting is a r evolt again s t pol i t ical hypo cr isy a nd soc i a l a l i ena t i on . I n the angr iest poe try , autho r s - shower;.f di s dain aml obs cen ities on t he "s ys tem" and whites in general. Re fusin g "integra tion" even if offered, younge r poets derid ef Ame rican values """' and at ti tudes . "L'nlike t he Ha r lem group," Hayden no t ed, "they re jected entry into t he mains tream of Americ an lite r ature a s a desi ra ble goal . " Of course , rJo r e than a few of the older poe ts were wr itin~ in the / ix ties and a re wr iting today . Hany of them , howev er , we re sometimes laid aside by young readers who were unable to separate " poe try " f rom the fi ery dec l ama,i tions of Ca r r.i ichael, Drown an<l i nnume rable locals okesmen a n<l versifiers. Of t en the poets exchanged superficia l indictments , indulged in name-calling a nd, as groups or individuals, began rating each other on their "levels of r7-laclmes /s" even thou gh no criteria existed t hen an<l none exist f today for . ~ ,- �such judg ing . t he ~ f3f a c . A· ts Huch of the dis pute cent ered around the question of who " start ed " If or~New Black Poetry ~ ovement J . While it is true that there ·leading ligp.t_s of the new movements, it is misleading and false to .say tha.t -one geographical region of the country or one group of persons is solely responsible for either the main (or ma jor) writing output or for kicking off any tradition of Blacks writing about themselve • Such a stand would d:ismiss the Afro-American musical· pa.-st, · on the one hand, and distort the historical develop 1 ment of he creative writ·ing and thought; on the other~ Anyway , the - .- question of who started what is not · that significant. During t he sixti e s and intu the seventies , literally hund r eds of/ lack poets star ted writ inG and pu lishing M in tabloids , magazines, broa dside s, anthologies and i n iv "J ua l colle ctions . Also showcasing the n ew poe t rv were the new public a tions: ....... umbr a , Black Di a l ogue , ~ d The Journal ~o~f~H~l~a~c~k~P~o~e~t_r~ y. regions. Si~nificant clu~ters of poe ts developed in ~eographical And t he atmosph~r e ~as enhanc ed by a number of Afr i can thinkers, a rtist s , poe ts and novelists who arrived ~f\_America to t each, lecture, pe r forr.1 and travel. The importance of t his interac tion among Blacks from various pa rts of the globe c:mnot be overemphasiz ed . Black write rs and students now read Afr ican, Hes t India n a nd Afro- Latin writers. l!l1■ 0•a•- 1 �Hughes acr1uainted American audiences with ,\frican literature i n h is ant holo ;::; ies: An African Treasury : Es s ays , Storie s, Poems by Black Af ricans (1960 ) an \... Poems from Dlack Africa (1 96 3) . Whisoers from a Continent: In 1969 , Trinida dian l!ilfred Car tey edit ed he Lite rature of Contem orarv Black Africa . Ma rie Collins compiled Bl ack Poets in French (1972) and Keor Apetse Kgositsile edit ed The Wo r d Is fl ere (1973). Other scholars a nd writers also wrot e critical studies or edited a ntholo gies of African and Caribbean litera tar e . Black writing received a significant boost whe:} in 1971 Senghor and Af ro - Cuban I "' / / poet Nicl olas Guillen were nominated for the Nobel rize for literaturei thus fulfilling James I eldon Johnson ' s 1922 prophecy that the first J lack writer I?, I, I to a c hieve substantia l international fame \muld not come from ~ · Hei ghten ing the feeling of the period was Charles Gordone ' s winning of t lw ~ 1- F'orf.(I ,;m ~1')-:-wrn '[ I _ nn 0 Pul itzer / 'r ize for dr ama (:lo Place to Be Somebody , 1970) . / l a ck writers now pub lishing or l i vin~ in the U. S . are d i ge rian novelist-poe t Achebe, exiled South African poet Kgos i ts ile , :Jigerian poe t- playwrig 1t \lole ,,,,,-- 1 I Soyinka , G 1anaian poe t ,__ Kwesi Brew Sou t h African critic Ezekiel Hphahlele , iger ian poe t- playurir;ht I~ Ia rtini ~ ce'sair~Guianese poe t- scholar ~ Damas . poe t- playwri ght ;111/i The write rs f rat ernize, ext change ideas and compar e s t y l es . I~hahlele , for example , has written critical 6'~nd rf...yt'I studies of / 1ack L\me rican wri ting (Voices in the lfu irlwind , 1972) while~ *I 1\ Brooks has praised African writinr, (I n troduction , Kgositsile ' s Hy Naae is A.TT1e r i c a during the current pe rio d fo r either tempo r ary or perma nen t residenc . illff, ~ Added to /~\piill·-•f•111&1:::;ij~?;~.,...-. activities and - - -- -- -- - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - WOA he establishment . of changes ~ (i) �J1ack publishing houses (Broadsid e Press, Third 1!orld Press, The Third Press, etc . ) and hundreds of i - . news organs and literary journals . ·- ~~ ~ ~ ~ _/. . _______ ,....... A . ...,,...,~ ..."": ........~-1.11-.....-"""';-a;-tq,N,JI!(,. ....,._.__. G Btenjqg ,1 11 iliiht Ml l&s:e,sic. have also been published . Blues, 8 Bontemps, Anumber of important antho lo gies Some of the more notable o~ c~ Beyond :jne 1962; f Sixes and Sevens, [!reman J 1962; {American Neg ro Poe~ -,- ----------- - - 963; Soon One Horning: .... New t riting by Ane rican !legroes, 1940 pJ..)962, Hill, 1963; fNew Neg ro Poet Q_Hughes ~ 1964; fi<al eidos cope ,I Hayde1:_J 1967; Blac < Voices, E 3 1968; fl! Iack Fir e;) Jones and Neal , ) 1968 ; The New Black Poetry, Major ,{ 1969;LSoulscript, (J ~ dan, 1970f000Y ears of Black Poetr"9 ~ Lomax, ; ,( ew Black Voices, t ~raham~ ( Bl ack Spirits, ~ "-and 1972; The Blac k Poets, Randall, 1971; 1972; \ andc ~oe try of Black America, (Ado: , 1973. In addition to these and oth e r nationally distributed a nt holog ies, man, collections of/ 'lack/ iterature were compiled and published in various re g ions • &El §, A �\ "t ~ :J i h a;:-& J et //,· I}!!./ L '1• !... e ~ ,od t ]q mi.., lft;ome\ o 11\_J r--me ou,ert\nd youn~er nan, l/' 1rh,.e.111 1., '" e 4fi" I t j pj pp · · · (Embryo) , Sterlin~ Pl al ~ , JI ur Own Hear t be.::i t /' Half ; . 95 rs] Rt Good News Ab out ...__., "":...3 ~ •••- -•••-.•-••- ■b 3 Colt rane , Ilis torv is ... 5 §, Lucille Cl ifton (Goo<l Ti1;1es , \ ~ the Carth..S____!, and An Or dina ~v Homa, - 11.------. 5. c<.,t-N~h i...- Ji pJ-g] I -- I E Cd iI Eill p@L±Ul (Dear John, Dear • •~ Cu ey, ..___.., lack II.::ilf Jil:1cke r) , Jayne rou~e ned ,., ..;;a kki Giov anni (n ack Jud g fment, Black Feeling , Blac k ✓ I Though t, Re : Creation) , Reed (¢ a t e chism of I d. neoarnerican David Henderson ( De ~ayor of Har lem ), ~r thur Pfister (Bullets, Beer Cans & Things) , Baraka (Black Ha g ie ), John Ec1'41- s ( Home is Whe r e th e Soul Is), . . _ Bontemps (P e rs onals) , .::iyde, (S elec te d Poems , Wo rds in the �Time ), Lee (Th ink Bl a c k , Dlack Prid'"' ~ ) , ~onia Sanci ez ,/"""'\ (~H~o~m~e~c~o~m~i~nygi ■•••D, Randal l ( Ci t ies Burning anJ }Iore to Remember) , - - - - - - ' L - - -~ - Crouch (Ain ' t No Amb ul ance s for No Nig 8Ahs Tonight) , Hug!y.,.s (The Panthe r and t he Lasr ; -~m ) , Norma.n J-okilln'f.D · At k ins (Heretofore) :,,,Hay 11iller h lli'H s e~, ( Into the Clearing , -- / Aus t in Black (The To rnad o in 1y lfouth) , Tolson (llarlem Ga lle r y) , ~ ":r::m,es (Ivory Tusks), r!a ri Evans (I Am - A , Emanuel (Pan t h e r .Ian), e s ey Bl ack Woman ), Julia Fields ~ I___. Stephany (~loving Deep ), Et e ri dge Knigh t (Poems from Prison), Gwendoly n Brooks (In the fecca, Rio t , Family Picture~ s Dur em (Take No Pri §2uet.,s ). . fictio represent ative o f theA_g r e a ~ c c_ .J 1 ), Roy Hil l (49 Poems, etc .) , Ra y Far from being exhaustive, t his list is mere ly p4r1 od J X ~ ~3 ~ \::Sf/?t :ti:tb@ §]lFT · " also writ e ehildr~n's'•· storie·s (Evans, JGrdan,Clifton)., cs.n ~L~o <U 4t,ti*CJU7.iKTMUpe.1 t<lAtld •L&H)f """'~ w,,.·,t• 111••• eed, ' Young) A. •Cri ti~is, (Neal) . ,lhe li d t g rows and c~ ang es c on _.,.....,...S: . Hany of t h e po~ts t.1twl (. stantly, e spe c ially in view o f the ffitll'iftt unfoldin g of sur rises . it t o say that the con t emporary mood of Jrlack poetry is multi complex . Suf f ice and Th ere a re g ene raliti e s; one is that most of the poets unr e serve d l saturate their wo r l· with obviou ~ lack references and cultural mo ti f s. There is also an an t i-in t elle ct ua l flavo r_; a s many p oets turn t he ir backs on academic or Western f orms . l ite r a r 1~ rtveellet ,-h This ~ a ~eneral disre gard fo r t h e esot e r ic, c~scure and s omet i me s a c t,\ allu sions,,. emp l oyed in mu ch 'rj'--·-- - -. whit e poetry . "'f'l ~_;rSL tt."' 1 t The r e a r e e x cep tions, of cours e,;{- notably inAspecialf\.symbo lism o f Mus l i. ,1 po~ts (Harvin X, As kia Tour:!, Bar.:ika , Sonia Sanchez , and other s) . These excep t ions can als o be s een in works of poe ts who e xplore Af rican ncestor / u lts, Voodoo , mystic is1:1 a nd Af ric a n langua r:; es Q t eed , K. Curtis Ly l e , wi ~ Tou r / , Kau f mnn) •.:w.et ~ !!!:.!' Dumas, Noman Jordan , Sun Ra , Gene rally , t h ough , / 1ack poe ts are I �ta-"" allusions , i mages and s ymb ols i n t he mo r e c oncr e t e cultural ifs , a s indic a t ed in a li ne f r om c e ':,• fPSP 1 j Si if m .... ~ ] j ■ ti 2 11 '·'/ Redmo n d I s " Tune for a Teena~e spiced as po t-liq uo r . " --:,.....,...n:. TOTE,1S e i - r 1, Horning : ,, Threshl old of t e lrew Black Poe try ._§ ' Hy Blackness i s t he beauty of t h i s land . '-- . I -fj-- ?)Wrigh t called -r/,eM~ ~ " tJ., c:1..,...lbv- {p._r,,. .tiz_ -0 c,L.. Bl a c k s " Am e ri ca 's me t apho i;" and La nc e Jeffers re f erred to~ 11 t he beaut y of t h is land . 11 "1f\Q. were taken well in advance of . Lanc e Je ffe rs II -1 B oth · ~ 1 Q :S-- II f s t ances -....,' .. lacyride 11 poetry of the sixties and seventies . 1argaret Walker's discussion of her playmates in the Alabama "dust" (1 937) is \ not sel f -d epr ecating ; and Gwendolyn Brooks ' ~ po rtrait~fatin Legs Smit h (19 4 5) is fa r from being unhappy. These are only fou r r andomly sel e c ted poe t{{ affidavits of Blacks viewing themselves "po 3itively" before the advent of the )l'ew) Ha« J'oe try ~ We could , of cou r s e ~ t he poetry of Phi ll is Whea t l e y t hrou gh ,~ :~ \e:::ed s of examples1 fro m Atiiiil Hu ghe s . But the p oin t, a lr eady made , i s s i mply that o ne is s eriou sly r emis s in loo k ing a t r e cent/ l a c k p oetry wit h ou t co n s i de rin g its h istory . 1he poets who wrot e and publishe d b etween 1 94 5 a nd 1965 , fo r example , d i d not wo r k i n s ea l e d chambers of tunneled vision . o f c on c e r n , evolved .F f Cm~vhat h a d ~..-te Ca c h g r ou p , e ac h cluster been written or said b efore . Some of thes e p oet s were heavily i nfluenced by whi t e wri te rs, t e ache rs~ a nd cr itic s . However , .:,_; t h e best of t hem a ppl i e d their knowled ge and t ools to t he servic e o f t h e J lack li te r a r y tr a di t ion. Oth e rs we r e unde r t h e dire ct tut elage o f Slack s (Pau l "'•ts w~u,,, Vesey s t udied with .-,I\ Johns on , Ro,,_T - J oyc e Ye lde ll with~ Iayden) a nd b ecame part �of a continuing line of / 1ac' tau ght Arthur P fist er ) . A?t::.:JS111i thour,ht and writin g (Ves ey in turn Wha tever t heir make-up+ or their mission, t he poets as a g roup show g rea t facility wit h languar;e , dep t ,1 o f insi ght and passionate concern f f or their coll ec tiv e a nd individual hu r ts l - and a s humans . as Blacks .._y ~ itlt~"""' The wor~ of thes ~ poets , and ths-t of the ir older pen- fellows , can be found in several antholo g ies : ...... Poetry of the Negro (19 49 , 19 70); the bil i ngual Ik zag hoe Zwart I k Was (I Saw How Black I Wa s , 195 8 ) ; Beyond the tlues (196 2) ; American Neg ro Poetry (1963); Burning Spear (1963); Sixes and Sevens (196 3 ) ; I Neg r o Vers e (196 4 ) ; .'ew Neg r o Poets: / l:SA ( 1 96 4 , 1966); Poets o f Today (1 964); Jfe the bilingual I !<:: Ben ~:ie m-re ,Ie g;er (I Am t he :Jew ::eg ro, 1965) ; and Kaleido j ~ q--, s c ope ( 196 7). Bont emp s a nd Hu ghe s e d it ed Poe trv o f t he Ne 0 r o in 19 4 9,l first majo r co lle ct io n s ' n e e Cul len ' s Car-oJ.in g ~us: , ft J 1e was r ev i s ed by Mow Ile.ck ~was .I pick the best fror.1 the pas t as well as the present -~tt..W 1, •..,/, ~ ' - ~ S were published in I olLm<l and En gla~f and{ ed f ed by nosey Pool , wi~h \?ey•cl~ t he assistance of Pa ul Bremen . "' vaaft~ oF ft;J7/i;tki t1, ~ Q.f\Q , Dr. Po ol (19 O5J . 73) , a lffl-H~~.._ came acros s ,• .,/ I\ Cu llen when she was p reparin ~ a paper on ,\rier ican poe t ry in 1925 . This disL /, covery l ed t o a llfe - long interest in / lack culture a nd po etry . During 1959ft 6O she tour ed th e United Stat es on a Fulbr i ght travel g r ant , spending several months visiting and lecturing ac @ j lack colleg es and uni versities . work in / lac k poetry h a s drawn mixed reactions fro 11 c autious/ and critics . J;!ei; I 7 ix l ack wr iters But her importance in helping to br ing a tt en tio n to filac k poets , <ff) �despite c ri es o f " e x p l o it a t ion ," is und eniah l e . Ev en more controv ers i al is nr er:ien, who a pp ears t o fancy himse l f a s n n Eng l i sh Jea n- Paul Sa rt:~ ; l e o r i g ina t ed t h e lleritar,e Ser i esM " d evoted e ntir e l y to t he wor ks o f Af r o - Ameri c a n au t hors " /4with IIa yd e n ' s A Ballad of Ren cmb r a nce in 1 963 . Sinc e t ha t tira 7 Br emen , wh o e d it e d Si xes and Sev e ns and You uetter Be li e ve I t : ~ Bl a c k Verse in Eng li s h (197 3 ), ha s re lea s ed mo r e tha n @ of Afro - Americ a n p oetry . vo l ume s r..anda l l ' s Broadside Pr e ss serv:We s as the Amer ic an V d istribut or of the s l i m book~ wh ich have included the ae st he t ical and hi stor ical ra n ge of / l a ck po e t r y : .:::::__,; Horne (IIavers traw , 1 96 3) , no nt emps , Ri v e rs (The St ill Voice o f Har lem, 1968 ; Th e Hri ght Poeras, 1972 ), e, Evans the ~fo sic? J 19 68 bu t wi t hdram " at t h e a ut h or ' s r e q ues t"), (\-:here is a ll ~!!!!£J ALdn s (Heretofore, 1968), Llo yd Addison (The Au ra & the Umbra, 1970), ~ud r e La r de (Cables to Ra ~e, 1970), @Y Rand2. ll, (Love You , 1970), R!!S!£D J Reed, whom Bre!llen calls "the h est Bl a c ~~ poet .;riting today" ,~ e c i sm of : neo ame rican hoodoo church, 197:J), Ja!'.1.es W. Th on pson (First fire: PoeMs 1957,¢:1960, 1970), ,, Jods o n, Harolc.l Ca rrin ;': to n (Drive Suite, 1972), Clarenc e . !ajor (Private Line, C, 19 71 ) , t he " first no n - .AI:le r i c an c ont r ib u to r ' '..!..Mukh tarr Nu st a pha (Thorn s and 1"\ T 1istle s, 1 971) , Du r e m (Tal:e :-Jo Pri s one r s, 19 71) , and Hny den (The ,a g ht - Bl oomi n s Ce r e us, 19 72) . Br emen no t es tha t b o t h Har i Evans and Ra ymo nd Pa tterson orde r ed t h e i r boo k s withd r awn be cau se t ~1ey " we r e s u sp ic ious of the con t r a ct t e rms . " In addit i on t o suc :1 " sus n i cion , " fe lt a l so by o t h e r J lack p oet s , t he r e i s ~r ea t r e s en t ment of u r emen ' s f as t- d r a w cr i tical eva luat ions of the po e t r y i which -li b~o"'der Conc.e~n.s a r e o fte n cau stic , r idi cu l ous _ ..,_ a nd na r row, and r e fl ec t a l a c k oF,\U . .__,,c ;-- ----- 7 2 : He calls Dur em , fo r e x amp l e, o ne o f t h e f irs t J '1a c k " I s s tat emen t a bout Re ed, c omin~ as it di d in 19 70 , d i es v iolenc e t o ---- the autho r a nd the cri t i c a l a t ~ osphere in which p ack poe t s g rapple Dumas wa s bo r n i n th e " incredib l y na med t ot1n" of Swee t �Home , Arkansas . ?:eve r t.1eless (alas!), one wo nders where these.J31.acl~ poe ts j ';.~ 'l1~~ess. --'I 15g ~diseases" "fiC as Breuen di<l not e:dst . ~ Xegro Verse , edited by Anselr 1:o llo, has no introduction or for . rd , · · have gotten publis 1ed if such 't butAdoes include a dozen blues and/ ospel song, poems . fJNT"6 New Neg ro Po ets was ·,ntheiltLe '{1l"OG~~ edited by Hughes wi th a For• rd by Gwendoly~. Use of the word "new" A.exemplif i e s the kind of spirit that was in ascension a t t he tine . .?fe:~se a. r'd Gwendc,lyn cW,'A Broo ks & &2 is also her usual/\.definitive se l f : to be t;egroes fA t the present t ir.1e , poets who happen also (£) are twd.ce-tried. They hav e to write poetry , and they have to remember tha t t hey are Negroes . Of t en t hey wish t hat t hey could solve the Negro question once and f or all , and go on from such success to the composition of textured sonne t s or bi ant villanelles about the trans; ience of a raindrop , or t he gold-stuff of the sun . They are likely to find sign~ f icances in those subjects not instantly obvious to their fairer fellows . The raindrop may seem to them to rep r esent racial tea rs~ and t hose might seem, indeed , other than t ransient. a. Jl]1e golden sun mi ght remind them t hjf they are burning . There is an attitude in this statement that the Gwendolyn Ilrooks of 1968 will reject: - "poets i ho happ en also to be 1egroes . " Eut she refl ects Cullen in the " dar k tower" nnd his ruminatins on t he "curious t hing " of the f 1ack poe t. ..s She also presages the twistings and t urnings in Jayne Cortez 'I " Festivals & Funerals. 11 ~, in introducing the " New r;e~ro Poe ts," she informs the reade) ~ '~1ere a re some of t he pr evailing s-t ars of an early tomorrow . " Ha lter Lowenfel s'ff decision to include "20 Negroes" in Poets of Today ....:.,/ wa s spurred in part by 1is recoinition (along wit h Shapiro) that " most gen e ral �ant hologies of Amer i can poetry exclude rlegroes . " Lowenfels shared an award with E .f. An au t ho r ity on Whitman, Cummings in the thirties+ ;i nd has he l ped a number of/ l a ck poe t s make it into print : .._Dumas , Tr oupe , Pa tte r son , Redmond , Car ringt on , .1ajor, Reed , Ha r per , Hayden , a nd many others . Lowenf el s ' was t he f irst new whit e- edited ant ho logy t o i nclude such a of Blacks . There were @ poets i n a ll. One of t he most i mpor t ant anthologies is Burn i ng Sp ea r which contains t he work of the Howar d f oe t s : e~".. Walter DeLe~all (1 936t Govan(_< v ) ,;F-ffe r s (lq/qif Qg , Percy Johnston (1 93 l LeRoy Stone (193~f )I ) , Al Fraser ) , Na tha ~ J) , 6 -~ Oswald Ri cha r d s ~ ~ and J os e ph White ., Durni ng Spear , subti tl~fe_, Ant hology of Afro- Saxon Poetry , was an out gr owth of the Dase i n Litera r y ec;To.bl..,'siieJ .✓ Society , .cl--.::.:.::}• at llowar u Unive r sity , whi ch 1(1 j i1 1 1 Ill Da sein : --;L "' ,n Quart er ly Journa l of the Arts Al9 61• ~ Johns t on , i t s founder , served a s publishe5 while DeLegall was edi t or . Their connec tion with the older group of poets a nd scho lar s is ev iJ~n c in the advisory boa r d ~ A. Brown , Arthur P . Davis , Ov:en Dodson and Eu~ene C. Hol raes . ~ J effer s , St one and White \Ne.r-e.. )(• !\contribu ting edito r s . : Sterlin; Fraser, Govan , Po e t s in t he i na ugur a .:. issue of Da sein , whi ch doub l ed as a memoria l to Richar d Wri::;ht , were Delores Kendric k , Clyd e IL Taylor , J effe rs, Will ian Jackson, Ve rnon A. Bu tler, Rober t Sl au ~ht er , Laur a A. Wa t·ins, Govan , Fr aser , De l or es F . Henr y , R. Orland o Jackson , DeLega l l , Johnston and St one . Ther e i s no sin~l e uni fy i ng t hr ead r unni ng through e ither Das ein or Burning Spea r but/ 1 l a ck influences and subjects are clearly imbe*d . Burnins Spear, fo r examp l e , is published by J up it e r Hamm0~ Pr ess, another connection- [ M in namei to t he tradition of/ lack poe try . I n a back- cov er no t e, t he e i gh t contributor s are ca lled "a new breed of young poets who are to Ame r ican poetry wha t Cha rlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Honk a nd . lile s Dgv is - - - - - - - - -- -- - - - -- - -- - - -- - - - - �are to American jazz ." Afte r t hi s important analogy , the s t a t eraen t cont i nues : fT hese e i ght Afro- Saxon poet s are not members of a l i t e r a r y movement i n t he trad itional sens e of the wor<l , becaus e t hey do no t hav e i n common any mon is t vi ew a bout creativity or aesthe tics. Col l ective l y , however , t hey a r e i nd iff e r ent to most critics and reviewersMl.. since criti c ism in Al:ierica i s . co{ L.:rolled and written in the main . by Euro- Americans . ( fi il ti 1 IJi:? •7-·-••t•s• IFS?? Poems by DeLega ll , Jef fer s, Johnston and Stone a l s o a ppear i n Beyond t he Bl ues .'1n d.. and in numerous " little" magaz i nes . -- ~A.all ~ t he poets participa t ed in rea ding- lectu r e pr o~r ams lead ing up to t he wi der inter e st f in poe t ry in the V l ater six t ie s and s ev entie s . DeLega l l (Philadel phi a ) 1 a mathema t i cian and electronic da t a;;::p r ocessing s pecialist k ~blished in many ant hologies and ~y quar t erlies, a nd e I\ read h is poetry a nd lectured a t va rious ea stern an<l southe rn col l eges . Fr ase r (Charleston ) i s a pol i tica l scient_ 5.,.,itlt a specia liza.-E-'t,-e,R- in Af ri can/ f f a i r s . Along wi t h DeLe ga ll , Stone, Gova n, Johnston and Richards , he ha s been r e corded r e adin~ his poe try at the Libra r y of Congress. Frase1 cultivated a coffee- shop a ud i enc e fo r his r ead i ngs and )~ I\ a ppeare d before co l l ege gro up s . He i s a philosopher- mathematician . One of t he older members of the gr oup , J effe r s (San Francisco ) i s cr ed i ted wi th having " i nfl uenc e " on the Howard / oets . He has taught Eng lish and writing at ha lf a dozen Amer ican co l l e ges and unive rsit i es. His fi rst volume of Wa. poetry was Ny Blac kness is the Beaut y of This Land (19 70~ and~sec ond , ~en I '-4nA 6....,119Ii'i Know the Powe r of ?-Iy Bl a ck Hand, 1111••18'/\out in 1975. Broads ide Pr ess . ~ - -- - - -- Both a r e published by- Jeffe r s has al s o written nove l s , short stories and criticism. - - -- -- - - - - - - �Johnston (Ne w York) currently t eaches at a college in New Jersey and with - - - . . I // Stone "co-a uthored the revolutionary verse pamphlet Continental Streamlets . 5 Also o. playwright, J ohnston published a pamphlet of his poetry, Concerto for Girl and Convertibl e in 1960~ and was considered the leader of the Howard / oets . 1 White is a native Philadelphian whose wo rk appeared in Liberator , Poets of Today, and other places . He is a technician for FAA and has uritten short as well as successful pr_l'~e+~ As a group, the Howard / oe{ ~ ~resent one of the toughest intellectual in contemporary / lack poetry . Haybe the fact of their having such interests, ba ckgrounds, a nd training aided in their vitality, virtuosity and power. To be s ur e , t hes e ar e " conscious" poets; bu!: l.1voiding slogans and sent i ment al he ro-wors hip~ t hey present pr ecis e analys e s and int e r pr e tations of thei r world . .!ost of t hem gr ew up in t he Je- op e r a and s o t heir s ubjects quite natur ally include Hiles Davis, Le st er Yo ung , Charl e s " Yardbird" Parker , Cliffo r d Brown, Sonny Rol lins, Thelonious Honk , and other makers and contr ' butors i1'f·t hat 't!-e struggle ~ . per iod . !!:" ,\if11 ,a,(oFtl'\C.el"r\F f:'ol" . . I.· . I ,.1.e"!, _1v1l J{ights and ~ 1 j lack merges with ~ Arwareness of the " bomb ," middle:: class pretensions, history, mythology , r eligion, and the various trends in poetry: ,_,modernity, / eat poetry, jazz·• • - . and folk l yrics.tlneLegall celebrates t he / lack pres ence (" 1y Browns kin Business") and satirizes a pretentious Howard coed ('\,equiem f or / Howard Lady") who is "cultured " and performs every social ameni t y pe rfectl , . She wears "Hi gh-heeled t ennis shoes ' 1; but he hopes , near the poem 's end, that the presid ent of The Unive rsal Institute of Eugenic s will send a q, New sp e cies of female who will be r obed in clothes of "sincerity" and who can be called "A Woman ." - - - - - -- - -- - -- - -- - - -- - - - -- -- 1 �In " Psalm f or So nny Rollins" he announcef t1at he i s Absorbed i nt o the womb of t he s ound . I am in the sound \ The sound is in me . \ram t he sound. Rollins, the Harlen pied pi~e~, will l e ad his list.en, to "truth," "Zen," r~ - "'-Y,SJ " Poe try ," a nd " God . " t f ter "The Bl a st" (nuclear bomb-± g;.,/4the re will be ... no I, no world , no you. /) also wr i tes convincin3l y as in " The Lynching": I f He was soaked i n oil and the match t hrown . 1:e scr e aned, he cried , he moaned, he crackled in his f i e r y i nhuman danc e . Gavan's interests span the turbulence in "Hungary," spac e explorn t ion ("The ,\ngr y Skies _\r e Call i ng"), and "Prayer_;" wherein he asks "Chris t " f or a new dawn's light! Jeff ers is a livin~ example of the ~ wri t er . 11 hel pless plight of many a j,1ack t)me..-.ic« n \ltl1o ugh he had been writing for s eve ral decades, h i s work was whit e'~lis t ed by anthologis ts a nd his poetry did not appear in book form until the sev ent ies . "Hy Blackness i s the Deaut y of this Land" s t ands as -:. ::: a rebu ff t o t hose who s a y ~ l a ck!,. po: try was("invcnted" ~ecentlyJ Jeffers ' f poem, writt en in t he fift i es, is at once defiant --1 proud ~v-bvle.nT : )- (V ;ry bla ckne s s i s t he beauty of t h is land, my blackness, tender and s t rong , wounded and wis The narrator , after t he fashion of Margaret Walker, chronicles the hur ts, t he happines ses , a nd t he hungers of Blacks . These he sta nds against his �"whiteness" and t h e perversions of lar ger America. " Black Soul of t he La nd" mines the same vein: ..., rich reliance on t he well-d e ep streng t h of t h0 past. ack The "old black man" in Georgia is "leathered, lean, a nd strong ." And these are secrets that "cracke rs could not kill": SJ a secret spine unbent wit hin a spine , a secret source of steel , a secret sturdy rugged love, a secret crouchin~ hate , a secret knife uithin his hand , a secre t bullet in his eye . The poe t asks t e old man to pass on his source of strength so that he , and h i s fe l lows, wi ll be able to "turn black" the soul of the nation 1 ? and America shall cease to be its name. J ef fer s ga t her s up a fu r y of love , anguish and commitment in other @Ills "Her Black and African Face I Love , " "The Han wi t h _.< "ll egro Fre •dom Rider," " Ile r :)ar k Body I Clust r, 11 Fur nace in His ..., "_ nlack Han Day, " and "Prophecy . " Johnston echoes Jeffers, though in a different voice and style, in many ~ rilll,h\l of his poens . But Johnston ' s/\.conce rn is with / lack music and musicians. " To Paul Robeson, Opus No . ~" celeb rates t he r.mltiJ}acetecl talents of t he man whose song "stood Dr ooklyn on its fee t. " " In .[emoriam : Prez" is a ma gni fi cen t t ribute to the/ r esident of jazz : ....,Lester Yo un;whose music cot tinue s to " ignite the heart ." n "Fitchett ' s Basement Blues , Opu wonde r s why everytime ~ I want Coltrane or Sonny all I ge t is l! rubed-0 ... " ohns t on �" Dewey Square," with its ::feat" repe rtoire and interes ts in contemporary everyman, is a poetic summary of the collective history of Johnston ' s genera tion . \ords for " unki nking hair ," recollections of radio shows, / reminders of,,..r(elief and HPA , ancl Duke I:llington, all leave Johnston with the knowledge that nothing V Has changed but my postal zone . In other pieceo/ he surveys the current and past/ lack musical scene : '" Round ' Dout .- idni3ht , Opus 17 ," "Variation on a Theme by Johnston, " and " To Bobby Timmons." c//. "Black J s Hy Rewarcf Richards says , no tin~ -ttrcrt Sorr ow came , and I left the wor l de , • . J Anf experimentalist, his " o }1o t Forget to Pemember" includes a " prelude" -.:..,/ and an " interlude . " Like the ot er poets, he writes primarily i ~ (almost no rhyme} and int. e foreGoing poe ,co~sq.ni l'I r..e/\Eepeat~ II e verse petal falls . " The Howa~d/octs all touch grief and an~uish, as does Richards in " God Bless This Chi d and Ot ..er C il ren\· • • "?.equiem . " ~ 9Pfll' es ,,,-- I s_ ntax and vocabulary, it '-' sely - re senblf\_-=e ~:p:rn:iaJJy t.~ t he beats ancl At kins·. Wo rds and p rases i e "matron ic diva ," "sepiacenic mar t yr," " alburnen 'c ha-1k, " "womb-::-,rize," and "b ack ae~ is" convey the mys tic al and eerie sense i pliea_J/' t he repet ition of "sleep " and graphy of the poem':{f-Also experimental and or i g inal tJ! innovative t 1 iijf.Yone. llis study of " Flamenco Ske tches " is separated into five part s : and bill. ouvert, seliM, i'ew Yo r k is "red in weeping " and Chicago is "Illac ,:=· =--/ draped" as Niles utters in "nutes . " ~ ~ The musi c captures the Dissonant no·stalGia of one k iss of a Spanish lady as it weaves in and ou t of trans continental exper iences .ttt>J~~ and locatiot ; . r~ avis I ii' use - and knowledge of wo rld musi & ii 11@ ,•oifiirl Finally , �the 1:1usic i s .:i ske u to Comment on a cloud of oriental ninths comment! In " ?-;otes from the Cubicle o f / %isgruntled Jazzman" Stone becomes a ve r bal . ma es t r9 ripping in " changes ,'' rattling up " thirteenths , " stormin~ the "m_inor . t ones " - '- a 11 " wit1 · l impuni · ·t y. " mode ," and whi ppin~ up " passing M ~s f Soul" repeats " <lown" as th~ sorio/ drops into " dep t hs ," " the abyss , " and t he " infinit~" ~-: here black- eyed peas & greens are stored .... po i gnant reve lation is raade in the e nd : r' I r a ise my d mm f ~ \ bent k i nl~y h ead t o charlie ___,,, t---&shou t I ' n blac k . I ' n bl ack I ' N · rom Look § a c k . ~ J & ~ / · e t hink imme <l ia t e l y o i:/\ titles Hoke T, in<. Blac , (Lee ) a nd " Say It LoudM I ' m Black and I 1 '"1 r>ro 1d 11 (J;:u:ies Drown) even thou:,h this poem preceded Liem by several years 'f\. t o say not1in~ of Josep1 Cotter , Jr. ' s " Is ~ t Because I ' m 1 Bl ck ! " But 1., .ite c a n a lso <lo lig ht and touching · things1 as in " Picni c " and '--' ~ s DoneJ ' which places "music in the air" a s he prepares for bed and " Day h is " woman" sets her hai r. the r an~c of these poets . His i r oni c, s a tiri ca l "Inq uis itive " d is p l ays The narra t or wkncle r s where " Gods " and " buddhas " h i de if the earth and sky are both vi s ib l e to man . ~ -- - -- - - - - -- - -- - - - - - �0,011{" Little c rit i cal a t tention has b een niven the , Howard(~ Wt'>;·hh~ ft c the other poets .v44Wl . up ; weU~Known ,. Anders on (1 9 38 • 1 / , ), Julian Bond (1940~ 6' ' ) ) , }1argar et Dann~ .i4 1 Naol"li Mad geL ~ James Randall (193 8J / ) ....:...:.:,.._ Durcm, !lari ) , Gordon Heat '? ~;lOp) ~ mcs C. Ho rri f ) , Peter T. Ro ge s Horne, Ted 1, V O' Higgins, / atterson, John Sherman Seo tj Car cl I James H. Thompson (1935~ Simmo , I , . ) , Vesey, Sar ah Wright (1929,:7 ), Robe rt Earl Fit zgerald (1935 ~ Joyce Yeldell ·(194 !W L,1l,~"" ) , Lula Lowe '..'eeclen (1913,½ Fernton (l'J 32/V Lero ne ten:-ie tt, Jr . (192 8- ) ' ), Calvin e.c..-i.~c✓ ) , ~ loria C . Odeh t [osc .,j'. ft\, GA.tis; ) ,ti:!..•me5 Emanuel (192 ¼ ), Alfred Duckett (1 9laj- Ca r l l!ol:-:ian ( 919J ' " Ioria Davis, Evans, . ficki Gr ant, Julia Fi e lds (1938~ ) , .1 arles ), Le slie H. Collins (1914- John Henrik Clarke (19151 Joans (192 8 1 ,. uut _they a r e leg i on, Johnson Acke r son, ), Eugene Redmond (1937 i Cuestas (1944,7 ~ pet,IOd u;; durin ~ t t1 1.s ,._~. including • ~as well as \Jf'l~dv,,'1L1a.._ names : or any of ) , Sarah Webster r..:ib io (1923£ ), ) , Eo:•t 1 Fuller (1927,j ) , Carl Ga r dener (1CJ3 1fo) Zac1~ Gilbe rt_ (192.Ji :Ii{., ), Fr ank ·crby (191 G/4 ------) San Cornish (1938- ), ~;anlf · 1 son , J r . :. 1. ) , E·r:-ies t J . rr P • \'auryb 'nn (1 °291 J a -e~ •.• 0 ✓ N Alba (191511! '68) , Fr ank Lontlon ), Catherine Car t er ) , :-1ar y Carter Smith (192 (lO?Q ,_ ;;I ), Robert J . Abrams (1924i ) , i:i lliam Browne (1930;- ), Yvonne Gr e ~ory / . Br own (1927J~62 ), I sab ella :iar.:.a Br own (1917,6 ( 1917,:; "' . ) , Roy Pauli •. ir ray (1910 ~ ), l!e r beri Cla r k Johnso n (1911..! ), Oliver La Crone (1915/4 La time r ( 1927! (1919;1 , ) , Oss i e Davis (1 922 ), Roscoe Lee ), Oliver Pi tcher (1 923~ ) ·fJ ) , r o,ne , I Ishmael Re e<l (1 930N (1 942~ ) ), Don Johnson (19 42~ Mance 1.lilliar.i Tom Den t LeRoi Jones (1934 - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - 1 -- - , �Ed Robe ..!:on1 .:lorgan Brooks , Solar.ion Edwar ds (1932tJ Gorge Lo e ) ,J'Vilma Howar: Htlt-t Leroi 13 bs I \llen I ) , Lloyd Addison (1 93 I Polite (1932t ) ,~ ourwood Coll ins (193 7 1 ) , Bobb Hamilton, ~!ay Hille , 1 Stanlcy Horr is , J r . (1944 fi d nA~L>91es '-- ~ i s -non- ~xhaus ti ve lis t was o f t en int ermingled with early poets (as e ~ far ba ck as Phf llis Wheat l ey ).,.-. tH der one s (Johnson , McKay , Dunbar) r '-' 1/~1 ~ and spiced wi t h a good offeri ng of pos t- Rena i ssance poets (Walker , Broo ks , ~ '\ ao,, Tolson , Hayden) . , tame s ~ Ful ler, Bennet t , J r. , Holman , Yer by , Davis , and Clarke fall in t he ca t egory of ~!a;E;a~" poe ts-Lmost of whom under took M full-time dut ies as novelist s , ed i tors , lawye rs or t eache r s . Ot her impor tant movements para l l el· t o this phase were t he emer gence of lit era r y ma gazines ~ (Free Lance , Phvl on • ~ ), es pecia lly on } l ac k c ollege campu ses ; / l a ck "---" newspapers ' r enewed intere st i n versv esla:liC,sl..,,n..ef\1[ of poets\ i n resi dence ~ CCBliliill•llllflJP•®"'Aslt! a t sou t he r n.)1-ack colleges ; the f l owering o f regi ona l "movement s " or writing collectivesM such as those i n New York ' s Greenwich Village (Y* en , ~ . etc . ), Cleve l a ndf' s Ka r amu House a nd ~D:ef I:aoce JI (ca s pe r Leroy Jordan , ~ Atkins) , Howar d ' s DaseinJ rmip , the De tro i t poe ts , a nd Geor gia Douglas!, Johns on's home- based workshops _. - - . . _ _ in ifas hingt on , D. C..1 ~;'o t ✓ eiclvs1~~l+' A~ vall ~ t hese devel opmen t s occu rred """" among j 1ack poets , however, l\t nere also were r a ci a lly mixed writing communes and edi to rial staf f s . / J ul ia Fields , A,i.,e,1N" for examp l e , was in r esidence at t he Bread Loaf h r i te r s Confe r ence inl\I:n:;l and and studied for a while i n Scotl and . Redmond, who won ·writing awa r ds and publ ished in l it tle magaz i nes be t ween 1960 a nd 196 5, worked with t he st affs of the Three Penny Broadside (Southe r n Illinois Univ ersity) and Fr ee Lanc e (Washington Univers i ty) . Ot her poets and thei r outl et s were Dumas (Tra ce , ~J Jones An tho l ogist ), Patte rson k (Fl oa ting Bear ,r~ n _ gen) , Gloria C. Oden (Ur banit e , The Poe try Di gest , The Ha l f ,loon), Rivers (Kenyon Review , Antioch Review , ~ evelopment of:;(~~fi ening audienc e s J :27 1 was a c entral oc...im i.n mos t of these activitie59 For example , on June 16, 1957 , poets Calvin He rnton • d R,:ymond Patterson read t o gethe r at I 41:..:I' . : ' . - - - - - - - - - - - _ _ _ ______ _ _ _ _-.::.:, ..___,:__ .:___ - �i Ohio Po e tr :t in (Kulchur , Met r onome, Umb r a ), Hance Williams / (Blue and Gold), and Au re Lorde (Venture ). largaret Da nner published a AS (e1 1,.\ )l'A$ series of poems in Poetry ma gazine illr~l ~5 2:J and i n 1956 became an assistant editor . Of thes e pa r a llel move ents a nd deve lopnents , one ot he r de served special notice . Cl Though not on{\ pa r wi th the Howard / oets, the Umbra W> rkshop pa r t · cipants a ided i n t he production and <l i s tribution of) lack poe try in the early s i xtie s. Cent ered in New York ' s Greenwich Villa ~e, t he Umbra poets we r e fo unded by Tom Dent (New Henderson (New Yo r k) . rleans), Calvin Hernton (Cha ttanooga) and David The workshop , which also i nvolve<l a r tists and fiction wr i t e r s , pub lished t he fi r st issue of it s u~br a quar t erly in 1963. Other issues came out in 196.'.. , 196 7p 68 (an antholo:::y) , 197 0/4 71 (tabloid a nt hol ogy ) ,, i ssue) . and 1974# 75 ~ who now Dent first served as ed ito) and 11ender son , 1i1i!j~the __publica _ t ion froo Ber l·eley , attracted to t he U.:1bra uorkshop were - took over i:1. 1967 . Other s Reed , Rolland Snellinr,s (now l~orman Pritcha r d , singer Len Chandler, dancer Asaman Byron , t he Pa t ter son bro t hers (Char l es and Hil l i am ), paint e r s Ger ald J a cks on a ni Joe Over s tree t, Lennox Raphael , Dumas, James Thompson , J ulian Bond , Sun~R 1 Durem, Steve Cannon, and Joe Johnson . ..._., damaged by two event s . , The pr omise of the Umbra group was One was a failure t o pr inf an in t e r v iew (conduc t ed by Raphael an<l o t hers) with Ralph El l i son. The second, r esulting in a s e rious -=: ttifl l- split among members, was a controversia l anti-l'ennedy poem~by Durern . President rennedy ha d just been a ssassina ted when t he Durem pi e ce ~as approved by the edit ors . tas t e . Her nt on, Dent and Hende rso n decided I 1---;-==r=== l~ a s . i n bad Other s , acco r din~ to Hender son , want ed t he poem printed a nd subs equently w.:is treasurer , thr ea t en i ng h i m wi t h bodil y harm , " _.,. 316 ~ast 6th Street in New York Git. A fa vfi\g):i. te Hew York gathering place for readings was the Market Pl a ce Gal lery~2305 ~eventh Aven~e t where Ro s coe Lee Browne was featured in the late fiftie S(;, In July and ~~ Augus ~ ~f 1960 a numb ~?? .,of )'lack poets ·'r'-'€Lt.d . r. ·. -✓there: Lloyd _ _ _ _ ___ _ _ _s_o_n !_ _ ~ ~ .!'~ _J ~ _!lbrams,.Al.l!t,;>'wne, Phil Petrie, Allen Polite , Sarah , · �The inci-.:en t is viewed a s one of the near- fatal bows to the Umbra s roup . Later Snellings, t he Patt rsons, and others wen t /ptown to work with _ , s Jones ' ' newly fon1ed Dlack Arts Rep ertory and Schoo l . 9- 1 T ,e work of Umbra contributo ~ ngesjfro,., the occasional and humorou_:'.;) ~ Bond to the serious a F Durem . 1 and T:1ompson1 also appea r~ i n t he early anthologies Henderson , He r nton , Den~ {c. Oden , along with wor.~ of ot 1er " Village" poet , s uch as G (Newark) and Joans (Cairo, Illinois) . ater ant .. olog i es : Poems by Durem , Spe il.man , Jones Some are also represented in two "Clac· Fire (196 8 ) and The Poetry of Black Araerica (1973) . Though racial consciousness is not blatantly evident in t hese poets, t he Henderson, and Hernton . protest is t here, e specia lly the works by Durem, ·r:ibra na<le clear its twofol I ·obra exists . '1re. ~inau~ur a 1 aim in issue: 1 to provide a vehicle for t 10se outspoken and you t1ful Jrit ers wl~ pr e sent aspects of social and racial t) r e a lity whi ch may be called 1' 1 unconmercia 1 ' but cannot with any honest y be c onsidered non- essential to a whole and healthy societ)(:;l · ·· A- ~ t He will not p rint trash, no matter how relevantly eals ui t h r ;i ce, social issues, or any t hing else . (l)ent views " Love" as a " b lue tom" lurking "icily " in t he dar kness . Hende r son sees a " Do -m town-Boy Uptm-m " and asl·s : tun I in the wrong slum? (~ Pis " Ske tches of Ilarlem" include the " GRE T 1.!JHT[ boy confusing t 1e @, was bar oon an . . . t:1e sun . in Seattle . ~ AY " and a sma l l / lack Dur em, who ran away f r om home a t age Whi e still in his Mid-teens he joi ned t he Uavy ffe and became a membe r of t1e International Bri7,ades during the Spani sh Civil '\ Uar. llu~1es t r i ed to find a publisher for his works as ear l y a s 1954 . himself Duren said : w. " fuen I was ten yea rs old used my fists . 'tho.. <:>peu~L . Of lfuen I was /1, right , Hilton Hosannah, M. D., and BroW?;eAreading"fthe works of Hernton• Others associated with~ O.Y\d \.0-r.~Ton Hvo.hes, <J · 440 ~ ~ - -- - - included J~hn Henrik - �t irt y- five, I used the pen . I ho pe to live to use the machine ~· un .... The white ilo rt h- Anerican has been drun > for four hundred yea r s . " Hi s work does not have the finish of a Hay en or Broo ks, but he pr ovides an exciting shot in t he arm f or "fi · s period of j lack poetry (thou; h Br emen ' s t black,tpoet 1 is unwarran ted) . Take ~~o Prisoners (1971 ) contains many of Du r em ' s memorable poems a n<l a "Posthumo us f e f acet ' signed in 1962 a lthough he d ie<l in 963 . "White People iot Tr ouble , Too " surveys the plight of whit e s followin g the Depression, r ecession and war, and notes t ha t such an intrus ion in t he affairs of whites does note ual slavery . After all, lif e (or history ) ca ls f or ,J; One toot h for one tooth . 1!ost of Durem ' s TJoems ar e short, satirical, ironi cal and mus ical; a s in " Br oadmi nded ": r Some of 1y best fri ends are whi t e boy s . Hhen I meet ' em I t reat ' em just the same as if t hey wa s people . lac~ 1istory , slaver y , ·social inequities , prison li fe , a d "pal e f'O~ poe t s " to whom he confesses his~s no t " ufficient l y o scurc" to mee t ,:h ite Ile writes of/ . . 1 s t an d ar d s . critica S tranze 1 y , T a ·e ".. o P risoners · <l oes not inc • 1 u d e " ,\ wan1. . ,j ~ "A Gold Ha tch to t l1e FBI ~-:an (who has fo llowed me 25 IA ears~ wh ich traces t he agen t' s surveillance of the na rr ato r th ro-ugh t he " b lind alleys" of ~[exico , the hi gh Sierras, t he Phil armonic, L. A., ~lississi ppi , and ot her place s of violence an<l mayhem . But i t is not all over , th~ agent is told , for in the end y I ::1ay be follmrin ;; you! �The wor L of Village poe ts was ,.i ~h l i ~h t ed by t:1e v e r sa t ile anJ pr o l if ic L~~t,j J ones (J ~ Ima:au "'g Am i ri Bar aka) , Sp a n<l Ted Joans . ~ ..._,/ Def or e h is new 1 ~ lacl~" s tanc e of t he r.li<l a nd l a t e six t i es , J o ne s pub l ished in l i ttl e ava nt= gar d e ma ga zi n e s (ed it i ng seve r al hi1aself) and was ide nti f i ed as t he no s t ta l en t ed Il l a c k among t he; (ea t s . Eis t wo v o l umes Suicide No t e (1961 ) and The Dea<l Lecture r i Pref ace t o a Twent v Vo lune + (1964 ) tou ~h in t e l l i g ence . show him as a hip , arro gan t , ll is infl u ences at t h e time , \li llians , Poun ~ a nd Charles Olson . advent urer in s t yle wi th an el lipt ic a l and sometime s sacrilj :; i ou s 1') - po s ture . °\ 4t:i'.eh. a.u. aest he tic~ philosophy was shared by t he Illad~ Iloun t a i n po ets : ~ r,eo r ge Oppen, Ro be r t Cr e~ · y , Rob ert Duncan , Denise Levert ov , Pa ul Bl ackburn , Edwc.lr<l :Jorn , Gin~ b e r :; , Corso , ._; ry Snyder and ?!i chael ::cLlure . A r:msic critic f or such nagazines as Dmmbeat , Jazz and r!e tronor:1e, wi h an 11 · · · • J ones nurtur e d a c.J.retu ~ 1(,, intense in t erest in ri;'iLac 1.: r.:usic, \ ear ~ - - - . .. •=•llii• h is verse. Hence , the belief i• n ha t Jones "suddenly b ecame / 1ack" is inJei Censib l e . orce " ~ t 1c 0 tca : _saaa,oh ~ s e ction o f a " lJegro Sp iritu al" a s a n in scri p t ion . ~e. uses a The p o em is t yp ical o f Jones ' s ab ility to r.1er ~c nur1erous ideas , symbo l s a nd i nag es in o n e poem . Lorc a ' s deat h is lamen t ed as Jon e s us e s exc e r p t s f rom t h e Ca t h o l ic ; ass , r eflects on h is c h ildhood , explores my t h o l og y , gat 1ers b its of poet i c con-t., fe tt i fro m na tur e a nd h ea r s Lorca " l a u ghing , laug hing "/4-mayb e mock i n g h i s k ille r s M ~) Li ke a Span i sh guit a r . I n " Epis tro phe " he f i n d s p eer ing ou t t h e window " s uch a s t a tic r ef e r e n c e . " So h e wishes " some we king a nima l " wo ~ come by . In t h e ti tl e poem fr om his fi r s t volume-LPrefa c e - !., he a dj us ts t o th e way " g r ound op ens up " r1 ,., ' - - - - - -- - - - -- J �anJ t akes him in whenever ~ he goes out to "wal<. the dog ." Life is as monotonous as the " sta tic reference " of window::.watching : I) i;obody sing _, .. 1 • • ano t her Vllla,;e poe t closely identified with the h ats , pub lished ar,d oThe.,. voL/me s Ted Joans (1%1) , ~ T~e Hipst e rs (1961)!, His most widely known ~ poem fron this period is "The ,3f ledged ) , Whitman and the/4a ts. ~ B~a\"7~ rL~ wit h its deb ts to Hughes ~ he acknow4-,- Beg i nning every line with the phrase "I h ear, " and lover by her husband: Joans na r r a tes the murder of an unfaithful wife ""\ I hear it coraing fas t e r than sound the . 38 0 t he .33 I hear it con in8 closer to my sweaty fo rehead I hea r it s weird whistle the .33 I 1ear i t gi ve of f a st ea::1lik e noise wh en it cuts ,-j t hrough riy s weat th e • 38 I hea r it si71 ~e :ny s .·in as it ent ers r.iv 1e ad t he . 38 I hear dea t h sayin g , He llo , I ' rn he r e ! As a group , J oa ns, Jo nes a nd Spe tf nan can b e car eful y compared to t he Ho -1ar d J6ets . T t ~e same a ~e ra nz~ an 1 li1<e ' s i milar . disc jocl ey ~ F:·! ones) studied a t Hm ard Tniv~i t y and has A.~eo?J r adio stations . His book r eviews l\_articles on jazz ~ I'\ i cpublic}~ncl T. e Nation . I n 1964 his first w> - have appear ed in Kulchu r , their themes and i nter ests a re volume of poems, The Beau t iful au ays, was published . He ha s a ls o published a book- leng th study of_r- ack Music (Four Lives i n the Bdop Dusiness, 1 , 66) . so.vs In "Zapa t a & the Larnllor<l./' t e " thief," the speake)f is running in " circles ." 1 T~1e poer:1 I count ry . is a humo rous treatment of revolutionary strug3le in a Latin Anerican I n "m1at _is It," Spe if}-n applies a similar technique . This t imc s tran r;e a ca t " h ide s in 1our face ," ln t'.1e corners of the mou t h and in " that \ c::myon" behind t '.-1e eyes . " A T~1eft of Hishes " is experiment<.11 ln its use �oS" ja::;~:,e<l l ines and shifts between t!tc tan~ible and s ur r eal \•JOrl<ls . In the end we a r c t old that hon e q Ljo \fa'~ l~;g~ ~ el our no i se . Anot h e r poe:..L who Joins . . . " 1.rrevRnt . er ,, Generation . 1.s . -. . t ,,11.s _,../ ,/4eat innovator Kau fman of th e San Fr ancisco Bay area . sides Cr oe, fer lia ghe t ti ' s City Lights Soaks : Els first works cane o ut as brooul '~ and " Does the Secret Hind Hhisp1er . bo . inis t ''.anifes to , " 1 ·a u fman ' s poetry , co{ , through unde r statemen t and i r ony , i s marked by unusual and s urrea l i nagcs . Ilis boo ks are Soli t u des Crowded wi t h Loneliness (1965) and Golden Sa r d ine ( 196 7) . 2 c'.1ievin 6 11 So l itudes was pub lished i n fre nc:1 , " lrnmediatel y 11 a not oriet, rare a.::.10ns b ooks of roetry by forei 3 n poets 11 (j :ic:cet , -../ Sardine). Lead ing French :na::;azines reviewed the book , publishers noted, - adding ttnrt " Todav in ) ranee :(aufman is considered anow~ the r: reatest - , - :Jegro-American poets alive in s:ii te of h is continuinz. exclus ion from Anerican anthologies , both .1ip & ac ader.1ic ." 11 ( :aufnan ' s themes are racial mer.10ry ,\fri c a n Dr ean"), jaz z (' 'i alkin; Pa r ,· e r Home , 11 " ~:e st Coa st So u nds ~ l 9 561 ' '), ot !1e r poets a nd wr ite r s ( " la r i ... Cr ane , 11 " Gins ber ~ , 11 " Camus : _,I want to Know" ), inca rc c r a t ion (a se r ies of @ In " The Eye( ioo/ i n J a i1 Poems). h istory , my t hology and r eligion . :1e say5_; . ~ eye s t oo hav e s ouls tha t r ag e . ••• L\ 11 Ci n c ophr e n i c po e t 11 :ne e ts wit h " a ll five " of himsel f a-.~Pa ~ vote is t aken to " expel " t he 1 \1eake s t 11 o n ~ who r esent s it and soar s over all limit s ,_} to cross , spira l, and wh irl . I Somewha t t yp ic a l of Kaufman ' s e l li p tic a l cons tru.c t ions and ua c ky i mag er y i s " Heav y ':la t e r Bl ue s ": @ �The r ad i o is t eachi ng 1;i.y gol df isl I am in love wit .1 :1 skindive r who sleeps unde r wa t e r , lfy ne ighbors ar e drunken linguists , & I s peak butt e r f l y , Consolida t ed Edison is t hr ea t ening t o cut off I my brain , The pos tman keeps put ting s ex in my mailbo x , I put my eyes on a diet, my tears are gaining Ll 1l too much weight . In this f orm and styl e , Kauf ma n i s no t only rela t ed to th0 Joans , Spe Atkins, and the ! l~~ed a t s but to Jones , young Los Angeles poet K. Cur tis Lyl e . Amo ng the olJe r poets who did not come into ro"inence until the 1960s Vesey (Columbus, Ohio), llolnan (Hinter City , (Princeton, J ew Je rs ey), O' liggins (Chicago), (Cleveland), I:manuel 0 7brask::i)~ 1 ucl-ett (Brooklyn), At;dns andall (Washing ton, n .C . ) . The se poet s, nnd othe r s of t heir generntion, ~re not s imilar enough to be l nbeled a "school" CJ_ or "mover:ient" but t hey came of nge dur ing t he integr ation push when words t;ke 1 ) J I j " identity" and " huma nity" engende r e d more philo s ophical discussion than t c y do t oday . The se a r e t he men who went t o World Var II a ttended nortt1ern white gr a duat e s chools . a ca de!'lic or pro f essional ca reers . i ~ os cc l ynchi ng OJ'1 4 ~ 4-,;_.e, Hos t we re k oaeignttt poe t sJ pursu i ng i e se1; as t poet and pro fes sional, brid ges\tlQ mi ddl e pa ssage between Afric a_! and \ fro- A1:1c r i c a . At Fisk Univ er si t y he studie d c r ea tive wr itin;: under J ames WelJ on J ohnson , t hen went on t o law school at ~a r vard . iJh& r 'dying a t the s irbonn 7 in Pa ri 7 some of his poems wer e published, thro u~h t he i n t ercession of Richard Wr i ~h t , in the Fr ench magazine ~ I sence Af r ica ine . Ve sey has he l ped ~r eatly in t he i n te r pr etat ion and �~ . d 1ssem1nat . . · · de . 1on o f· 1-r .. c' gritu Paul Vesey (bir th name Samue l Allen ) i s the name under which he publi shed h is bilingual volume o f poems Zahne (Ivor y Tusks , 1956 , Germany) . Elfenbein Ves ey wor ks with skill and precision . " The Staircase" i s a poem on which , ~ he"says, "I ,w uld r es t my case , I think , and t hat of t he Ne gro i n t h is lan{ i/°-~(Blues ),lf1 e poem s t udies the ~ ac k predicament t h ro ush t he plight of a man for whom the "stairs mo unt to his e t erni t y . " Perha ps , like Si syphus, t he st a ir is purposef ul ly "unending" s i nce t he ro tt en f l oor , t he "d r ipping fau cet" and t he " cracked c eiling" also remain . The nan is joined by a "twin" .., who later 3oes "exalted to his wo r ms ." Vesey also wr it es a n e l egy for Dy l an Thoma s ("Dy lan , Who j s Dead" ) , a pr aisf o ~ fo r ~ baseba ll legend Sa tc hel Pa i g (" American Got h i c" ) , and a power f ul <!.'A Moment I Please !> piece ~i n t e r weav i ng t wo different id ea s and t hemes : 1 I\ ' ~e.rie..r4J. c. 1r c..u m.STo..i'\Ct'S ~1 and th~ Ul,DJ t 3 · •'i of uan , the othe r ff{ e.w 1n~ 1 lhg 1 called "nigge r " by t ,-10 adol~ent s ir l s . tribute to Lo uis Arms tron3 . ~ one viewing t he uni verse spec. ;t ,'c. n ;<, t he N eali t y of beino/'_lack and " To Sa t c:1 11 is remi niscent of Tolson ' s Speaking in t he poem , Satc~el Pai3e says one norning he i s goin3 t o g rab a "handf ulla sta rs ," thr ow three st r i~es t o bur n down t he " ,1e avens , " !) .Cb,W'L '1} AA ~ And look over at God an<l say How ab ou t that ! - Ho lman ' s wor k i s among the few ent ries f or poe try in Soon , On e Horning . But he is also ~ r-epresen1td- n ot i1er a nt hologies. He has led an active li fe as a /ivi l =fi ght s fi gh ter JL-i.format ion_/ fr f i cer of t he Un it ed Sta t es Commission on Civil Ri 3htsj edit or (~ Inq uire r), writ e r~and teac her. Hhile a stud ent e a t Chicago Un iversityJ he won s eve r al awa r ds f or writing A Holman , whose poetic s ubj e cts r ange f r om complex ps ych ic medi t a t i ons to racia l pride, is very good indeed bu t much overlooked. · The leisure clas s finds clocks "intrude too I , �ea rly" in 11 \ nd on This Shor e ." f. The genera l indif fer ence is also cap tured : c ros s th e cu ps we yawn at private murders. wh1c~ "Picnic: ..__The Liberat ed " examines the shifting unc e rtainities withf\leisured ~outherners r.1.ust live . The tension of everyday southern life li ~ erneath the merriment of the picnic ground s, where men rotate the liquor in "di cups" and "absently" discuss "civil rights , money and goods . " e Yet as the '{... "country dark" comes in and they return to spri, ered yards and "mortgaged houses" t hey do not know they are J ~' Privil eged prisoners in a haunt ed land. Ye t this s ame poe t can hear "Three Brm•m Girls Singing" through t he "ribs o an ugl y school building . " hc1Y ~ Celebr a t i ng t he,l'l a ck musical pas t , Holman (\them ) Fuse on pure sound in as af t of Ap ril light . . . . Idl. ~·righ t, nm-1 a/ ede ral.Jistrict / ud ge in New York , was a Lincoln I University poet a nd/-1ith Hughes and Cune'l edited Lincoln University Poets (1954) . He served overseas in World \· ar II , later r eceivinz law training a t Fordham. Hhile he wa s in t1e Army in Wale s , he published a volume of 1i s poetry , Fr om the Sha ken Tm e r (1944) . " The Afric a n Affair" find s ·1d-1. '; !right on a safar i t o f i nd out what " Black is . " He d iscovers it in "prisons," in the " devi l s dance ," where " des erts burn," th0 'iddle / as sage, and a r eas ,, whM•e. i !Pr " conscienc e cannot ::;o." His search carries hin deep into Africa1 wher e " tra 'e--c s sha ed T'.lY fa t he r ' s pain ." . In " Four Odd Bodkins for Ny ooms" t here are "never bloor.ling petals" and " never burnin~ suns . " ) -u c.lt.ed ~, a••~,.. O' Hig;_;ins~ a member of the " tribe of wandering poets ." �After studyi ng wit;1 ~ g Bravm at llowarJ , O' Higgins won Lucy Ho t en .::ind J uliu s Rosenwa1tt j e11owships in ~-,ritin;-i; . I e l ate r served i n Ho rld War II , after which he cof authored, with Hayden, The Lion and /J1e Ar cher (19 43 ). O' lliggins 'j style is l ess formal than e ithe r Holman ' s or HcM . Hright ' s . ~ He dJY is closer to Vesey, especially in poems J.il.e "Young Poet" and "Two Lean I\ Cats; ' in which the rain fell like "ragGed jets" and made a " grave along" the street. The lean cats , running in "checkered terror" into a poolroom, find that a "purple b illia r d ball" makes t he color scheme explode . The much anthologized "Va t i cide' f " For !lohandas c! andhi") sees Gandhi "murdered upright in t he day" and le f t with his f lesh " opened and dis pl ayed ." likening Gandhi ' s death to ~ But , Chr ist ' s , the narrator says s uch a person who created the " act of l ove" knows the guilty carry h i s " death to their ro rn:is ." Gandhi ' s "marvelous wounds " contain the sun and t he seas .</l'nifferent, yet similar, t hese poets sought t 1rough their ind i v i dua l voices to deal with 1:1an ' s curren t and past hu r t s . At kins, for example , saw t he " s,mllen deep" rise h i gher as he "uent walking" in sect ion t wo of "Fantasie . " '.) A " restles s , ifA(.ke.t H~t:;..a.:.:1.L:1_) experinent alist with a very high regard for craftnanship , A.At kins uas a Cot, ~U k'M1' founder of .;..F.=r.;;:ec=e-= L.,. a=n.:::.c. ,.e. (1950 1 whichj\Uve rs called the " ol dest black- bo s s ed n agazine a r ound ." Between 194 7 and 1 62, Atkins'-, poetry appeared in nul'le rous '--' journals and other outlets . A few a re View , Deloi t Poetrv Journal, !1innesota I Quarterly, naked Ear, Ga ll ey Sai l Review . His volumes of poe try are Phenomena (1961), Psychovisual Perspective for Husi cal Composition (195 8), Two by Two Poetic Dramas set to .1usic, 1963 ), Atkins (The Abortionist and Objects (1 96 3), and Heretofore (1968). as complex as t , e ~ e_'._ry / said in Sixes and Sevens, i~f.tf Atkins 'I a e stheticM" ideas are often early trai: n~ n mus: and literatur ~ h1 , e was trying for " egocentrical phenomenalism: an objective const ruct of properties to substa ntiat e effect as object. " _ _ _ _ _ _ _c......__ _ __ _ __ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ ' _ _ He �sea rc h e s af t er the " J e si i~n..:!<l i na:~ i natio n ." -- In " Ni gh t a n J a Distant C~wrcl~ ' he moves " Forwa r J a b ru p t" t hen "up" t h rough n serie s of interming li.n~ " ~ a n d " e lls" wi tll won.ls l i e " wind" a n d " r a i n ." I ?) ' There is more than ~ hint f Tol s on ' s ab i li t y t o meand er among Gr i.e co-Romanf a nd Af r o- Ame rica n tr a di t i on; v in At kins 't poetry . But he is unique . " At War" informs t he reader that bey nd t h e "turning s e a ' s fa r fo am" the " e pheme ra" of a "momen t's daWD " . 6 I su<lden ' d its a ppear .... v La t e r{ i n t he s ame poe,:, , af t e r a llusions to llef ngway , t h e silence spl its : ' I y j ! Sh ! Li s t e n a monentfl,\ j ! Listen ~ ini t ha t h u r r . ~a s of a s h ore o f f u gitives . / Once .\t.·ins ' s technique i s under stood , however , his poe try can be e n j o ed for its witty , wacky , ~ G ! l lphiloso phical musin,,s , In " Ir r i t able Sono " h e "') inve r ts , reve r ses and convolu t es re~ula r sy nt ax : Orsa: upon retu r n !_; Coronary farewell Le aves ne lie. Dare , s ir? ~ ~h! De nay ' J Torao rrou , t ocorrow O in t o day? Atk i n s writes o f t h e f ine a rts, John Brown ' s raid on llarpe r+ s Fer ry, f lack and f ~1e ro e s (" Christo phe"), t he " Tr n inyar d at !U ght_;' ~ the Clev eland lake front 11 J ) ( ~ :;~ 'l!fflbjee~~~W"~· At -.'Ml.O t he r end of t he s t y Us t ic a nd t h ematic pole i s Randal l, a libraria n by tra ining and tra de who , as we shall see in our discussion of poets of the late s i xties , f i g ures p rominently in t he development of an a udienc e for the S �_/ew l a ck/ o e try. Randall also served in World h a r II and writes poems about the war, love, violence, a rt and the, tlack presence . His well~ known " Booker T • and W. E • B • , " <l i ge sting t !,e Was hinif o is controversy, was seen by D1 Bo isJ and this pleased Randall . The poem first appeared in Midwest Journal, 1952. Randall has also written abou t and translated Russian poetry . With ,1argaret Danner he co~ authored Poem Counterpoem (1966)1 and his Cities Burning appeared in 1968 . }fore to Remember (1971) pulls together Randall's poems from "four decades ." His work has been pub lished in Umbra, Beloit Poetry Journal, and other places . He initiated the Broadside Series (poster~) in 1965 with h i s own "Ballad of Di rmin gham. " The series grew quickly, laying the foun ~ <lation for h i s Broa dside Press, the mos t signi ficant,/i-a ck press in Amer ica . Tta dall ' s , or of t h is perio d has the stamp of formality . lle, /Vrites in fr" ,,... ,, if in ballad~ and free: verse fon'1s1 but he ha # a t i ghtness t ha t ,rl'!'l be relaxed L the l a te sixties . ------ mental, of a land "Lit t!1is cla II " Le gac " chronicles the hur t , phys i cal and a b·oody moon ." But the one who is "moulded from vo s : ~ ( .1y tea rs re deeI!l " er s pect ives" reca sts t ~ t I 1 Al ' le Y.lV tears . ti,Je- ir.nnemorial theme of , •.,e onlv pass this wa:i7 -• T e r e is no need to cor.1plain about dis comfort, the poem says, because ...... even the moun tains;f ·n their huzsnessf are dissolved " m1ay andall ' s Pacific E ita?hs e r e recollections of the war . are e i ~rammatic and haiku-like. 'J) 11 by the seas. The short pieces Here is a poignant one ("Iwo Jima"): Like oil of Texas My blood gushed here . Prominent in a g roup of De troit poe ts (.targaret Danner, Oliver La Crone , ·laomi Lon g Nadgett, Ja::ies Thompson and others), ~andall often enmeshes himself �in a sense of personal injury over his people ' s 1istory. This tendency , and a deb t t o the/ lack poe t i c tradition (especially Sterlin~ Brown) , can be s een in " The Southern Roa<l~' .w~~~ h e "black river " serves as a " bo unda r y to hell . " The country is " haugh t y as a s tarj " tJ) And I se t f orth upon t he sou the r n r oad . The variet y of sty les and themes f ound in these poets is found a l so i n younger poets of their generation: 1 '-' , Br owne , Re dmond , Pa tt e r s on Jay Fright, Ander son , Eernton._ and Pol it e come r ead i ly to mi nd . 'v poets, Patterson is par ticular ly i n t e r est inz . Of t hese His " Black ~11 Day" yi elded = from its second l ine the t i t le f or I Saw How Black I Was . .,J /J.~o (J._ Jt5Z /( •· piIW-sor1 l7 ~l Lincoln Univers i t y poe t , ~won a n awa r d f or h is poe try wh ile s ti ll an unde i.q, graduate. A nat ive New Yorker, he s tudi ed pol it ical ;;;-enc e and English ( and has worked as a counselor fo r delinquent boy s an<l /1..a n Engli sh /nst ruc t or . Patterson said i n Sixes and Sevens t hat h is f i r s t poem was writt en during World 'i ar I I a s t he " out gr owt h of a Ca i n- a nd- Ab e 1 conflict wi t ho ut t he d ir e consequences. 11 11 T:1ree .,/ iews of Dm•m 11 includ e s t hL " · h t, " s i lken shaw 1 o f n1g the disappeara nc e of " co rner spect e r s " and t he " s plittin~" o f " s tillness . " The musical " Tla Tl a" presents fre e verse spiced with a lliterative language ~ of landscap e , sea s on and na ture . 911!!!9311•1~j " Alone, " t he protagonist ~ " keeps poems warm1 ' as h e watcne s over t he sleeping l ove rs a s well as (R ~ who wak e and weep . Patterson did not publish a book until 1969; and its tit le , 26 Ways of Looking at J( Black Man, s hows the influence of Lnag ists and modernists 7 (see ~ Stevens '! 13 Ways of Looking at / Black_Jir<l) . much about thef It also reveals ack poe t' s ability to for ge and merge his academic training 45/ ~ - -- - -- - - - - - - - -- - - - - -- - �with h i s own i n<l i geni s ~ - The speake r i n " Bl a ck a ll Day" i s " looke<l " in t o - "rage a nd s hame" by a whi t e passerby ; but he vows t hat " tomo rrow" I ' ll do as mu ch for h im . Patterson construct s a solid poetic foun dation, "stone on st one ," a s he paints precise portraits o f "the br " ("You Are the Brave "), or t he In the work o f Pa tt e rson e who do not bre ak" when pr ovoked e " tirel ess and r a~ i nG s ou.i..,' ("Envoi") . a nd t he yo un ger group o f the period one finds ange r or protest, though the genera l t endenc1 is toward experiment a l verse As j lacl< poe ts, t heir sub pinpoints the surest and richest human feelings. -+he.y do n ot Shv'1 j ects more o f t en t han not ref l ect t!1i s f a ct. Butf\varie t y. iis•••••·ailiitrilllli?l!jQ._tiilta ( 0 Phf llis Tfheatley I .,A.: ha.d 6ee11 ~A the knm-m female poe t un til the mi' ~ c entur 'l when Franc es Har per t ook up t h e E , ·ra;;;;-~h n ~f s k i An elina Gri . ~l , . A 13 new mood ~ ~deuc ed "n}!:,J,..wor k of Geor gia Dougl a s , Johns on (th e mos t f mous poe t after Frances ..,, Harper), Gwendolyn Bennett, An I. "!'II .J - l . . /1 Spencer, Al i ce\ .:elson't,Dunb!9', He l ene Jo hns on //~.br 1 Gwendolyn Brooks . (a young s par k i n t he ~Fenaissance) , . !ar garet Wall-er~ ....., an<l Between the forti )t~nrr1cll,O, L women poets increasei and sixties, t he nu,eer of pu~lishing ~ 'fk1try :;J!~rf}"'~.is in s~eri!isrnrt .,._o f wh i. t es (r:ien) ; and since r emained unde r the women in general have not had the range of opp ortunities open to men, cert a i n l y the ack woman went t h e wars way of that flesh! r.s poets of the period 1 still __,;.:&ias- irapressive: I\, ---.__, But the li s t o0 lack women Gloria C. Oden (Yonke rs, New ..., York), !fanina Alba ( font gomery), Margaret Danner (Pryorsburg , Kentuc ky ), Mari Evans (Tol edo), Ju lia Fie l ds (Uniontown, Alabama), Vivian Ayers - - - -- - - -- -- - - - - - - - - -- - �(Chester, South Ca r olina), Audr e La rde (?leH Yo rk) , Naomi Lon~ ).Iad ;;ett (Norfolk ), Pauli Murray (Baltimore), Sarah Wrigh t :tar y l and ), D. C. ), and Yvonne Gre 0 or y (Na shv ille) , a;non 0 t :1e ~fay ~tiller • do zens • .,al names .%-n 1952r/,_ two years af t e r Gwendolyn Br601 s won the Pulitzer , /ri z el\ c .\ . Oden , who uses her initia ls "as a way of being anonymous , " received a John liay Whitney Opportunit y Fe llowshi p f or The Naked Frame: = / Love Poem .:ind Sonnets . She has worked as a s enior editor of a raaj or publishing house an<l current1y teaches English in Baltimore. In t he fifties , she joined the Village poets in Mew Yor~ where s he re a d her poetry in coff ee sho p s, reviewed book s and worked on a novel. Her poetry has also appeared in The Saturday Review and The Poe try Diges t . ~oting t hat she appeals "primarily to the intellect ," Hayden (1':aleidoscone) c m:ipared her to Cullen , adding t ha t she ''is concerned with poe try as an a rt expressing what is meani ngful to everyo ne , not just a vehi cle fo r protest and special Al t hough G C. Oden us es a variety of forms, her poems are usually pleading . " crisp and ~~ l l c ctaa.l:.f; tart . CV "The Carousel" in an empty park rid e s me round and round, and the dark drops for her as she ~~~ " her surroundings with explicit / word-choices : \ "sight foouss s shadow . " In "Review from St aten Island" an item in the view is "spewed up from waterc:;j 1 Late; we are tol<l : ~ ' One 3ets used to dying living;' and " even t he rose disposes of summer ." He hea r t he dislocated w01!lan in " .. ·r\s when emotion too far exceeds its cause" (phrase q_ from Eliz. be th Bishop) . Retreating from he artbreak , she admits that she t oo .,,,. knew "love ' s celestial v enturingitt": _, 0 1/ I, t oo , once trust ed air that plunged me down . Yes , I! I �; anina Alb a is similarly ters e and poi gnant . The Parchments (196 3) and The Parchments II were published before her death in 1968 . English , f6sic and French in public schools an<l was for a long time a member of the English Department at Tuskegee Iustitute. use of Greek ,Jtytholo gy to draw a subtle "unwi se" actions . ~ She t a ught " Be Daedalus" make s £iji' analogy between Blacks and Icarus,. Death comes as a "tax" fo ------- "parching" the sun: , Suns can be brutal things . " For Malcolm X" recalls "History ' s stonin~ ." Iargaret Danner is r ic.h L r·, sensitive . Born in Detro i t, s he has spent t he gre a t e r par t of her l i f e in Chicago.., where s he was o Poet ry . - e~ editor of Her poems in that pub l icat ion in 1952 pr omp t ed t he J ohn Hay Whitney Fellowships Committee to offer he r a t ri p t o Africa . And in 1962 t he literary group with which she identified in Detroit was the subject of a special issue of the Bulle t in of ,·e3ro History . She has published four volumes : Impressions of African Art Forras in Poet r y (1962), To Flower (1962 ) , Poem Counterpoem form er poet - ln residence (with Dudley Randall, 1966) and I r on Lace (1963). a t Hayne State Univ ers ity , s he f ounde d Boone House , a l i ve ly c en t e r fo r the arts i n Detroit, and a sioila r cultural program in Ch icago: y ologonya ' s . s She emp loys Afric an t erminology and theme,.,; but s h e can a lso writ e delight fully in other ve i ns/ a s in "The El ev a to r ~~an Adhe r e s t o Forn . " wings" t h e eleva tor r eminds her of " Rococo art ." , T e " tan man who Struck by his ele gance~ and 1 ~ foe-i ' Godspeedings" -the ijaQ-~-1onders why so intelligent an<l a rtful a "tan" man has ,.., to run elevators . I t i s a meticulous poem, subtl• y exposing the lie that education qualifi es you . She fin a lly wishes the elevator man ' s services could be employed i ,I toward l ifting them above their cripp ling storm . �Fa r Fr om Af r ic a : ~ Four Poens is a shee t of sights, sounds and s ugg es tions carry ing t he r e ade r ac r oss "mou l ting days " in "t he i r t wi l i ghti " ( " Ga rnishinG t he Av i ary" ) , "lines" of "classic tutu~' ("Dance of the Abakwe t a "), " eyes '-' lowered" f rora " despai r4 " ("The Visi t of t he Pr ofes sor of Aesthe t i c s ") and t) a bed of gr een mos s , s parklins a s a bee tl ee . •. Ma r i Evans is ano t her ~ind of t r ansitionalis t M shiftinz vf r om / ivil ~ j ights poe try of t he ear l y phase to , f i nally , a more obvious )t'1 ack" s t ance of t he l a ter per iod :) " ~ ~ wo r ked as a c ivil service emp l oy; t~l!f-V.::show hostess and pro ducer , and i ns tructor of writ i ng . Sometimes refe rred t o a s a spiri t ual , if t echn i cal , he ir t o Gwendo l yn Il r ooks , ,Ia r i Evans empl oy s i rony , s us ens· and rich folk i dioms in ,! ( fret death and funera l , wonders if ' ers 'i@ ~ " The Rebe l, " pond ering Ther e ~ hun or an d sa t ire in 11 : -, •• II r--' 11 Trouble . ...,,. a ck mai d) '\1aff i e .;_;,,,-' en in I'-.ome " a s t he poe t int e r l a ces (in t h e ma nner of Ves ey ' s "A Homent , ::>leas e" ) two di ffe r ent conver sations . ~ ~ h,,,_ ""'" Cv ~•os'~/,/feeke:_.s:_;; t o know whethe r she ha s rea_ly di.ed or just want s to cause a e clear , " i s al lowed to eat "wha t ev e r " she like s . The Alternating 1"0 ,,,, t he maid ' s s ilen t resnonses with t he recit a t i on of a menu 97tt he mi dd l e--=-class environment (" Rome" ) , the po en inci dentally r e cords t he tr ac.l itiona l s oulf ood it ems ~..____.., t he ma i d c r av es . " The Emancipa tion of George- Hector" (" t he co l or e d t urtle" ) s hows a growing i mpat ience wi th one- st e p-at- a- time social~ change polic y . ✓ The turtle us ed to s t ay in h i s " shell" but now he peeks out , ex tends his arms and l eg s , and talks . and sentimental. But t his same poet can wax phi l osophi ca l " If the r e be So rr ow" it should be for the things not yet dreamed , realized or done . . :J Add to t hese t he withholding of love , love �" restrained ." In " Shrine to what s oul d De" an audience is ask ed to " s ing" .) songs to " nobili t y," and "Ri gh t ousness. " The chi ldr en should bring " Tru st," t he women " Dreams, " the old men " cons tancy ." I ron ica lly the a ud i ence is told to ignore t ears that fall l i ke a " c r e scendo , " and c onstantly as " a sof t bla ck r a i n ." Her t r ib ut e to_/o spel s ingers is telling in " • • And the Old Women Gather ed." One cannot (despite " Rome" ) escape one ' s s e l f , the poet says , a s she notices that the " f i er ce " and 'not melodic " music linge r ed on even as "we ran. " . F1.e . ld s ,-ll.1:ru 1 y J u 1 1.a 1 1• II ( Tenne ssee) ,-in England any ~ YB"' 4 u~"'1,n . . 'I d . cl at r1\.nox Co 11 ege -tse~ nr I w:f1sp1.r1. t •, stu 1.e .._ co t land , and ha s t aught 6, h igh sch oo l and co lle ge . He r work a ppear ed in l:r,1br a , Hassachuse tts Review a nd othe r journals . with Ha r gare t Halker, Tor.1 Dent, Alice Ealker, Pinkie Gord on Lane~and . an) she is among t he few good / lack poets who now volunta rily live in the South. He r first book, Poems , was brou~ht out by Poets Press in 1963, the same year she received a National Council on the Arts grant . She i s substantially represented in R. Baird Shuman ' s Nine Black Poe t s (1968 ~ and her Ea s t of ~1oonlight was published in 1973 . Sh e also wr ites short s t ories and pl ays . Iler ma i n poetic subjects a r e r ac ism, death , l ov e, vio l ence and history . " The Gener ations " come and g<:,, and in between t he r e ar e "The wars ." And i n between them are the sea s ons, f l owers, "lavende r skies," dm•ms , " Sombre sea s, " a nd the " embr yoni c calm ." ,, 0- "A}\rdva rk" has achieved " fame " since "Malcolm die ~ and the poe t muses : .ip; Looks like }1alc olm he l ped Br i ng a t tention to a l o t of t h ings We neve r th ought a bout befo r e. She a ga i n salut es t his mart yr i n " Fo r Malcolm X" whose " eyes we re mirrors of J our a gony ." In " No Ti me fo r Poe tr'l" t he r eade r i s a dvised t ha t midnight is �p,t not A.time to be s eec 1 one ' s muse : too 1:iuch ' calm." " t he "spirit" is "too la gging" and the r e i s Bu t t he mo rning is idea ~ since it carries "vibrations of laughter" and ha s no "oran~e-whi te mi s t s ." "broken-hinged doo;;'' ,o 4A...a As a "woma~' listening,)~ e ar the man talk of war ("I Heard/ the narrator "somehow planned on livin;; ." Young }fan Saying"), And the "bris ht g lare of the neon worl d" s ends " ~as-words bursting f r e e " in "Hadness One :Monday Ev en ing . " ul i Murray a nd Sarah Wright a re ..:~ f ~ H, oets ~ also writeA.other Pau li Murr ay pursued training f or l aw while s he won academi c awards and fellowsh i ps for her wri t i ng . A r;{..vi1::/ights pi oneer, she publi s hed one 0.. volume of v e rse (Dar k Te stAn ent, 1969 ) and a fam i ly hi s t or y (Proud Shoes, 1956). In "Wi t ho ut :~ame ," s h e is revea l ed a s a fo rmal but excel lent craftsman . There a r e no names fo r true f e e l ing :caa, l et t he " f l e s h sing an t hems t o its a r r ival." ..__,,,, Sarah ilrigh t, known as a novelist (This Ch i ld ' s Gonna Live ), co~ ut hored Give ~1e,,£ childj in 1955) with Lucy Smith . Abo ut/ lack wr i ter s s he s a id(~ 196 1).J "~'.y mott o is tell it li (e it damn sure is ." "black outlines in l ivinG fl esh . " a nd tra ffic lights. In "Wind ow Pictures" she sees · -the e 1 at1ons11p · 1 · b etween d rivers . " Ur genc y" viewsAr " God" i s "t hank ed " tha t t he ca r stops s o t he passenge r can " glory" a while in t he " time-bit ten punctua tion}"?f t he "pause." Vivian Ayer s , t he daugh ter of a blacks mith , att ended Ba r ber-Scotia 7l,,7JC !..t • .-,C,. College (Conc or 1 ) and Denne tt Colleg e (Greens bo r o1 where h er major int erests we re dr ama, music and dance. She published a vo l ume of poems (S pice of Dawns) g::;J~ and an a l legor i ca l dr ama of f r eedom and the s pac e a ge (Hawk) pe r formed at the Unive rsit y of Houston' s Educati onal Television St a tion. Currentl yt s he lives in Housto1J whe r e she ed i t s a quarterly journal, Adept. '' I ns t an taneous " features a man being "s tunned" by t he bolt of "cross-firing energi e s" and grab be d u p in u blaze f) resonan t as a mi l lion ha lle lujas-l 0 ~ ;v\ 4 57 �ilt10 /AQ. r.1an i nhab it s ano t her man who , dy i ng , ~;asp s faintl y : - -- - - - - ~~ 1== '{y ' t • • r, ¾9 II • rty r, o <l -·-t ,1is i s fl' jom-s➔a.!aJ Virginia i \ , O ~ • ••• II 'In MO OO. diffe r ent/\.i s Naon i Lon3 :iadgett, who moved t o Detroit from 1946 to teach at a high schoo l. from Wa yne 3 tate University . She holds a/ aster ' s de gree Associa t ed wi th the De troit group of poets , Songs to a Phantom Nightingale (1941), she has published f our volumes : '- One in the ?funy (1956) , Star by St ar (1965 , 1970), and Pink Ladies in t he Afternoon (197 2) . Currently she teaches English at [ as t ern : Iichigan Univer s ity an <l runs t he newly established Lotus Press . projects was Deep Rivers : A<. Por t folio : One of its first 20 Contemporary Black American Poets . .__,- , - - - - - - - ~ -N-:-~---iM ,. . ,. .o--..dJ.~-=-a, ~. - (197 4), which i nclude s a teachers' guide prepared by lil I p ~ Editors for Deen Ri vers inc l ude Leonard P. Andrews , Eunice L . Howard, and Gladys _..,"t ludd. C;;--. ..l.kiat... Roge rs . Tie ~ ~ :-1. poets K r e Pa ulette Childress White, Jill Witherspoon, ...- l!llliam Shelley , G'f . Oden, tfaomi . !a dgett , ratterson, La Crone, Pamela Cobb, Pi nk ie Gordon Lane, Et he rid::;e l'night, Randall, Hayden, Thompson , :Margaret Wa l ke r, June J or da n, Ge r a l d W. Ba rr a x, Audre Lorde, Red1'1ond, 11 Har ri er a nd 1:a ufman . Ma01'1 i :1a<lge tt ' s " Sir:J.ple" ("For Lang ston Hughe7f is r ealistica lly humorous . Si n pl e si ts i n a bar , wan t ing to talk to someone , when 1e i s app r oached by a hand- s.,u-t- .:1'C e ke r who needs to change h is clothes " bu t ..iy ~ t he ba r ~ I ( B11t wJthing, l ad y-.\-, bo l ted t he doo r: ." AJ oy ce 1{,ill ta) "irapatiently " anJ leave 1 i n p l e wonderin -; uha t "h e wan ted to say ." In lea r n t ha t of " a l l t he dea t hs " this one is t he " sur es t." 11 11ortality" we Some d ea t hs are merely " pea ce " but vu l t ures " r ec ogn ize" t he "sin:~ le ::iort al thi n::;" t ha t ,~. old s on to l i f 7 and t :1ey wa i t :mn:;-r il _ for the time When ho pe starts staggering . ~ an mus t come t o grips wit 1 t he t hings of t his world, we are told in - �"The Reckoning": y And ,. h y and ho ·l and wh a t, and some time s ev en if . Po ems from Tr i ni t v : / Dr eaM Scnuence c onv ey uncert a i n ties a nd fe ars of '-'' woMen a nd humans. On e chara ct e r ha s been bes~ed by " dream and dream a gain" ("4") a nd a naked day "corrodes the silver dream" but the music will not ----(" 13"). " cease t o shiver" J "Af t e r" is a lament a tio n fo r "mortals " withou t "win3s " to fly away f ror.1 t he " purple sadne ss " of ni ght . And "Poor Renaldo " is " aead and gone Hhereve r people go" ,-, hen t hey " never l oved a s ong . " even "hell" r:iust have "rausic of a so rt." "7'l M ~ " But Final \ y s culpted, lik e t he ot hers, the poem tur ns to more sorrow near t he end . Re naldo , t ho ugh dead , i s " st ill unrestinr; . " qre~i e~rl'( Au--:re Lorde ' s /\•.-10 ,. k r ef c ct s ~ kill anci control. In t he early six ties s:.e wrot e : \ I am a ,.,. ~ ::e6 r o ,:on a n an<l a poet f all t hree thin;;s stand outside my rea lm of c~oice . :~ eye s have a part in ray see ing , my b reath in by breat'1ing , all that I am in wlio I am. love a r e of my people . Al l who I was no t born on a fa r m o r i n a f o rest , but in t he c en t re o f the lar gest c ity in t he wor ld~ a :--:iember 0 £ t :1.e 1 u;1an race :1er.m1e<l in by s t one , away fro m e ar t h a nd s un l i 3l1t. ,}u t uha t is in 1ay blood and s ki n of richne s s , coraes the roundabout journey from Af rica t hrough sun islands to a stony coast , and t ~ese are t he gifts t h rough vh ich I sing , t h r oug~ whic h I see . This is the knowled ge of the sun , and of hm: to love even wher e t he r e is no sunlight . This is t he knowl edge a nd t he ric hness I shall :::; ive my chi .:.J ren proudly , as a s tren~t h a~a ins t t he less obvious forms of narrm-mess ~ d ni gh t. (Lett~ r o.cw,npo.ny ;"j poems $ubm';1ted To ~i'tes pnd reven.s} �,...---..._ t hu s gives a balanc ed a cc ount of he\._3elf a s dirnenr.io'r "' And all these a ml po et . 1\--- ,! i-1oman, [3 lack she handles quite well in her poetry,~' Sh e ha s publi shed three volumes: The First Ci ties \,., (1968) , Cables to Ra ge (1970) and From a Land whe re othe r People Live (1973) , - _;;, which was nomina ted f or a :fational Book Award . In her early poetry she r e flects on " Oaxac a " (in l·1exico) where the " land moves slowly" under the 1 " carving dra g of wood ." The drud ging field work goes on while the hills are " Lr ewinr, t hunde;" a nd on e can observe All a man ' s strength in his sons ' young arms Q ... 'J " To a Girl who knew wha t s i de Her Bread was Bu t tered on" describes the gi rl as a "ca tch of b r ight thunder" apparently guarded by (a nd guardian of) bone s. Ordered to leave the bones, she watches as they ris e like " an ocean of straw" lid: an d trar.1 1 cl(, l-Je.-. ovel"seev• 11 ~ ,J I FB 1.nto th e eart h • II ..L1 ~ II • " forth in the raoonpit of a virgin ." ✓uHor r~ The " N_ymph " is brou;sht In " How can I Love You" the , . <l '' 1 ~l;kctd - · f·icent Ph oenix · 1· 1.·e ohF t e magni "comes like a thin b 1.r -- I later to become " ~;r eat a s h." 42 i M d ts,:1! ~ ~C.ot-ned 'o wonder , the s peaker confirms, (\, / The " I that you r s un went dm-m . " ~~u\"-e$ :roon- n"nded t he Sunf •. Kczcee that T 1e li<:> ht tl1at !'la ~es us f ertile shall ma ke us sane . And we hear t hat t he " year i,as fallen " in "Father , the Year<9 •• . work cuts sharp paths of '.'5?,••'l,lil a:1<l C.on.f\,~; 0 V'I ;.1i ii.-.-,- !!!t_light across the Audre Lorde's i gnorance ~ I~ sit in Judgment " "-examine s love, Fall shall J df'his i'5Trve of 1 around her • t(' An-: c onclud ing that " in al l seasons" it is false , but the same . _., whom A much- ne~lec t ed poet is May Hi ller, of Washington, D. C., aai Gwendolyn Brooks acknowl e<l iied as " excel l ent and long-celeb rated" (Introduction? - -- - - -- - - - -- - - - - - �The ~o r try pf f:)ocl · O·"e tjc ij). :.ma @Las se ll Into the Clearing (1959) J J• 0,. »Poems jp Hi ll If :tU 3!1 li&Ult& ABE l 'g Her work can be found in three volunes : (1962), and she is one of three poets represented i n Lyrics of Three Women (196 4) . Currently a memb e r of the Commission t;°n the Arts of the Dist r ict of Co lumb ia, s h e has been a tea cher , /:t-1 { lecturer, Adramatist and has published her poetry i n a number of magazines : - Comnon Ground, The Antioch Review, The Cri s i s , Phylon ~ a n d The Nat ion . "Calvary Way" shows a Christian influence wi th a t wist of i r ony a nd gore·. Mary is as ed how she felt, " womb - heavy wi th Chr ist Child, " as she tasted Re c all i n g the crucifix i on, the poem t h e "dust" of an "unc e rt a in journer . " " "Her e you af r a i d? " finally a s k s "Mar The "roac he s a r e winn in";" i n " The "st hrehouse" wher e h umans seek to " abne gate survival l aws " a n d k i l l 1 .) roaches unti l t h ey a r e " saturated with t h eir de crease . " 11 The characters in T11e wron3 siJe of :-:o r ning" we re shaken f rom a "nig:1t mare o f -1ings" a nd assembles ",:-,u,;:irooTJs of h u ge <lea th 11 as t1,e: roet power ful ly a He:~ inages and layered ~1eanin ~s. " Pro cess ion" cr.1;')loys the ramatic t e c hnique (made famous by ll rown a nd o t he r s) of i n t er l a cinz t i,e fo rmal Eng lish of t h e poem \Jith it alicized : I •iiik exp letive s a nd refrains s u ch as " Ring , hammer , ring!,; It is t h e p roces sion of C.1ris S but t i1e reader easily unJerstands ~ noting - · i- a t • • aL ro/ ' 1 ack. p ro c ession · . .,r t 1,1e pfl ac k 1.· d ioms , t.1 Lt 1.s~a t h roug h t h e 1 a b yr1.ntn" s of r ~ slavery and r a c isn . The r e is a s erie s o )' juxtaposed contradictions ~ ttV' "Time is to day , ye s t e r day , anc t i :'1e to come," " moving and rJotionless," and ''infinite take s f ami li.:ir fo r n , " :.:;a while 11 " we seek conv ic t io n. Christian mytholo r,y pervades ! lay . tiller ' s work (though she j lack=-bases it)0 In "Tally" the subjects "lay there drained of time" and empty like the ) " bul ge u f h our 8las s 11 while "Lucifer streaked to reality . " �- The deaths of Dunas an<l Rivers left voiJs an<l created still more anxieties , c oming as t hey diJ (1963 ) in the ~idst of racial turbul enc e . Howev er , by the mid-sixties both poets had written a g r eat and a great deal about themselves . wha t has been called an "impulsi 2 Rivers died an unnecessary death in 11 act . whit e policeman in a New York su u ay . other . eal of poetry Dumas was shot to dea t h by a w;i\n,n Both dea t hs occu{ ed/' EJ.onths of eac Ri vers was born in Atlantic City , schools in Pennsylvania , Georgia and Ohio . Iew Jersey , and attended public His college days were spent a t Wilber fo r ce University , Chicar; o State Teac!1ers College and Indiana Uni versity . I n high s chool (19 51 ) he won the Savannah St a t e poetry prize . Rivers was greatly influenced by I Ut;hes , 1v'right and his uncle Ray Hc i ver . His five books, tuo of them published posthumously, ar ~ Perchance to Dream, Othello (1959), These Black Do<lies and This Sunburnt Face (1962), Dusk at Selma (1%5 ), T!1e Still Voice of }:arlem (1 963 \ • and The .'rfoh t Poems (1972, ...__,, with an Introduction by friend -novelis t Ronal<l Fair ). Ohio Po etry Review, Kenyon Review, and An tioch Ileview were only a few nagazines in which his wo r k appeared . r Responding to a request (1962) to comment on himself as ack man a nd poet, Rivers said , auo ng other things : V I write about the Negro because I am a Negro , and I am not at peace with myself or t1e world . I canno t divorce my though t s f rom t he abs olut e CJ injustice of 1ate . I canno t !'eckon wi t h ny colo r. ---------- -- I am ob s e s sed by t he ludicrous ( and psychologi c a l ,:J behavior of hated men . - And I shall con tinue to wri te abou t r ace- Lin spi t e M LJ - -- - - of 1:i.any warnings~ �until I discover nyself , 1t1y f uture , my real r a ce . I do not wish to cap i talize on race, nor do I wi sh [J to begin a Crimean \far : I am only interested in recording the truth squeezed from my observations and experiences . I am tired of being misr ep resented . Adding to the statement, Rive rs saicl.> "beauty and joy, which was in the world I\ before and has been buried so long , has got to come back ." ,~•rr-Ot1~h eye. But River s saw l i ttle " beauty and joy" • ~his own mi nd ' s His po e ti c l a nds c ap e is o f t en b leak and f i ll ed wi t h deep psyc 1i c yearnings and wanderings t h rough the ambiva lences of / lack- \ hite re l a t ion s . a .,Jt- ...;i,.s also torment nnd brooding . Th e r e ~, In th'N> , _ he b e ars sane k i ns h i p to Duma s . '-../ for both d elve de epl y into ps y cholo ~;•l ut a re a t t he same t ime a cc e ssi , ivers spent much time researc1i 3 his ast and reading from t h e great volumes of world literature . e. During the mid1 sixties in Chicago he partii,, cipa t e d in d iscussion ~roup s J in·o lving Fair, David Llorens a nd Gerald lcWorter~ outt ,hich i:t• ' grew t he now wel l-known Or ga n iza t ion of Black --------- G\. .,...-- vehj/,t t or ~ l C11] 10 ~prominent • [ tr :ill 1 ~ ack L\me r ican Culture ( OBAC :J l it_:,, t . )(r ts pro ~rpa mst •s n,c fr __ poe!!ls. 05 '!J:, P.i'ip.. t:lk hs a ~out hhis ownb deathb1.· ~shev<le ~al The is a poem tot 11c:T s ou 1 ct not ave een pu 1 is e . narra t or says he was " living ancl in Harlem . And , t oy ing wit h h is dy ing and dreaming " all at the same time .--the. of Wright ' s "sudd en <lea t h , " own fa te 1.n~-1ake he recalls the elder writer ' s " p roph ecy" ~ t hat he too "soon would be dead ." The theme o f death can be found i~ eces 1ffe often moral , spiritual or physical/ as in aayde i "T 1e Death of a ,·egro Poet, " " Prelude for Dixie," (\ "Four Sheets to t l1e i ind , " "T'!1r ce Sons ," " Asylum " and all of The \1right Poems. I t - - - - - - - -- - �I n "Watt s ," iµtth ~ d1i e.s~ he ,z«!IS . of fea r , h orro r, hist o r y and a n gui s i ~enera t ions J~ epig r amma tic fury ~ f, a de c ep tively a pp arent e ase: .Iust I shoot t l1e .:,/ whit e man dead to free t he nigger ~ i n h i s head ? ~ l ~~-,eal~ ass e ssne nt of P.ive rs 't poetry , Haki )1a dhubuti (Lee) said tl1is :,oer.i. " asks a rev olut iona r y question" (Dynamit e Voices , Vo l. I) . . -w, Su ch a II ,son e l ~ 11 question , .__ of cou r se , t,f o n tin ~ turns or revolves . own semanti c s aside , t he corunent is blind to ~ i vers ' •~ co. vs;<! \"(l.C.I~ fears and sores/{¥@ L I by America ' SA_,"1i gh tmare . ~LApg-r::;· woula na '<e answe r s ~nDt4 verbal · t ut , ~1tl.e w1th Q &111 · At he I -ff1~1 I- e kn ew . <leep nei1ht "' , .-J\5imp1e~r"l'\.1n::,ed these h ur ts disappe ar . AF, · , suc h criticisn violates the poer.i. , robbin~ t he poe t of his many - l aye r ed conce rns and analytical po ve r s . River~ is not a l l sombe r antJ b l eak , h owev e r; in ro ic e of llarlem 1 1 he annou ces : 1 " The Sti l l ~ I o.m t he hope a nd t omo r r ow of you r unbo r n . t:ven a1:1icl M -., t h e contradictions and unce rt a i n ti e s of r a cia l/ p olitical p ing-pan~ ( " I n De f ens e of Bl a c k Poets") ! q A b lac· p oe t mu s t r eMember the horrors . Especially since Some black kid is bound to read you. ~~1 " Note on Black \ omen" asks (\t: liey teach the poet "honor ," "humor ," and " how to die, " p resumably t he r ebo rning death . s 1ee t . ( The Wright Poems is an cle~ " To Ilichard :{ri gh t " excla i r;,. s/ alnost with defeat ; -ttrn1:- c �P To . e born unno tic ed is t o be born b lack , and l e ft out of the gr and adventure. A n o t h e r " ~ Wri2;ht " ~ refers to t he novelist as f young J esus of the black noun and verb . Other poems find the poet wandering or searching through the "spirits" or " bones " of Yvright . In "A Hourning Letter from Parisj ' Rivers recalls knowing and feeli n 5 ~eve~o.L O ( . h,,. g1--aeu,~ui~u~eu~L;sl.-.ct pl"iti~d ,~~" ~•pTe,.,b•"' ,,1s~_,-1sse1~ l1lockhl!I • .. Of.r.,_, sinilar in feelin g ancl the~• ~t,ialmost neve r in voice and £,. · I\ f-let111f se 1 "Harlem's hone~ed voice." y'l,L~ r: roe... , f orm, is t11e work o f ~ ur:ia ~ whoA 11 ·, e,.,r tude ranges acro ss ti::rre and space ." "Oum~ &mer mui fe rn in Sweet T!onc , .\rkansas ,1'.move<l t o ~iew Yo r k when he was @ year s ~ old and completed publi c schools in that city . He attende~ ity College of New York and Rutgers between stints in the Air Force and other activities . Active on the little'=' maga z i n e circui t , he won a number of m,ards and helped establish several publications. At the time of is death, he was teaching at Southern Illinois Unive rsit y ' s Experiment in Hi gher Educa tion in East St . Louis . In 1970, SI ' Press pub l i shed two pos t humous l y collected volur:ies: Poetry for My Pe ople and Chatfield and Redmond. II eiti"~t\ ~ the nev ,rt; ± . (.ot1ctrt'\S l @ uistic :L....c~~ --~----t:::- fr "t· I I ·· qr Play Ebony Play Ivory ,' Though there hav e c:::'\<> <> <> -r• - t . > - • 3'5ttWB!e ) and Wr i ght ' s Introduction is retained in -H1AA i~c.nTI t',es ir\the Wri ght, hi111self a major poet of '-t era , ; 31\ and ca musical range of Dumas : of history. - - - - - - - -- -- -- - - - - - It is indicative In "Emoyeni, Place of the Winds," ~ <> - - poet r y, Jay Wright and Baraka f None of this is perverse, intellectual play . of Duma r; ~ ~ lledmond. •o ~ been no full-length critical studies of Dumas 'i assess ed him in the SIU • "'°"ts h,"7~tltt. ,-elitt r'~ 1fltd Random House ref} ssuectN1•A o·t 1 l · .!¥'4 "'""" •: ( Ark of Bon ' 1 and Other Stories, edited ~ Hale �he writes "I sec wi th n skin and hear with my tonf, uc." . . . The line , I sug~e st, as s e rt s some elementary truth about 1 ' 1 an d not a 1 one Dumas ~ ' Dumas A!. is grounded in that line . · . poetic tee h n1ques . Th 1s . b oo ~( . • What Dumas means i ~ t hat t here are racial and social determinants of per cept ion, ideas that he was j us t be ginning t o develop . The mind a rticula tes wha t the senses have selec ted from t he field, and t his articu- tion is, in part, determined by wha t the perceiver has learnc (?: f a I l. Id &S 68ilfa§ to did , Cii&E IE &JS& I 11 s In ' lI] hea r with my to ngue," Dumas asserts t ha t t he language you sp eak i s a way of defi ning your s e lf within a ::;roup . The language of the Blad· community , as uith that of any ~roup , t akes i t s fo r m, it s image r y , its vocabula r y , bec ause Black people wan t t:1em tha t .-1ay . Language can prot e ct, exclude, expr e s s va ue , as we ll as asse rt i den t i t y . is why Dumas ' language is the way it is. Tha t In t he r hy t hm of it, is t he act , the unique manner of perc ep tion of a Blact JI L1~n. ~}I.<_ rr- iJritinz with the r emoved passion of t he friend t ha t he was , Wright makes vital statements not only abou t Dumas but about t he~ • of f 1a c k creativity , perception and s tance in the wo r ld . Indeed Dumas jutted al l t hese a ntennae r from his poe t r ~ which he wrote to ma intain "oul\ precious tradition . " guistically , Dumas i Lin base is formal English, a blend of / lack African languages, Arabic , and Gullah from the islands off the Carolinas and Georgia . His cosmos �is shape<l by th e ric h t extures o[/ lacl· religious and spiritual life , expecially ol<l ": tir.1e church services a1~::V= ot. Hri g.1t notes : and gospel music, part icular ly , wer e his lif e breath . "The blues Only Langs ton Hughes knew more , ~ rat least as much , about gospel and gospel singers ..•. fi usic seemed to Dumas to be able to carry the burden of d irect participation in t he act of l iving , as no poem, t ha t was not musically structured, could • •.. " And o "Dumas was searching for an anal, gous structure fo r poetry . " ~ s a poet , \,\, iama8 combines t he past, pres ent and future , often ins epar ab l y , as in "Play Ebony Play I vory": (t, fo r t he songless , the dead who rot t he earth all these dea<l whose sour uted tongues speak broken chords, all t hese aging people poison t he heart of earci1 . Curses and curdles , mys ticism, bles sings and warnings -....,_---:.-------- (_t_, aboun~(,?;te'_?: / Vodu ) r een clinchi ng h is wais t , obi purple ringing his neck, Shango , God of the sp iri t s , whispering in his ear, thunderlight s t abbing the islan,1 of blood ris i ng f rom h is skull . ~ Later in t h is s ame poem r~ ~,~ , ~~ c.$,, precedenf over al l; what nust the wo rrf -"- ake s come , mus t come: .... �~ u No power can stay the mo j o when the obi is pur ple and the vodu is green and Shango is whi sper in~ , Tiathe me i n bloo d . I am not clean. l&\\C.~ " ·~ His int e rcontinental, int r gal~ ~exp lor es command . •~ JIIJi!ll,,a. plw" ny ,,,soa1k5 a and all devices at his t h e dens e rhythms ( " of per cef t i on" ) as in " Ngoma; ' he compares the belly of a pregnan t woman to t he d r um head . NV-... JJ;,I A hvJ/;x,. ruJ/ Thel\••Os r /" listens t o the baby ' s heart; the drummer lis tens to the v oi ce~~-t the ancestors :~r>t'IJ aiwa a iwa it is the ch est-sound same t hat booms my ches t a s tron g sound runnine l i ke fee t of gazelle I the 3oa t - s k in sin~s the boom- s ound l oude r _/ 0 louder sings t he goa t - s k in l ouder ~ t he ~oa t-skin sings the -boom- s ound l oude r (J s ings the goat-skin loude r l oude r l ouder boom the goa t-sk i n b:,om-s ound louder Ll louder louder ;f.,uc:"t!NIC ~ Th e rich, cxpe ri~c nt a iwJ.anguage , couched i n severa l " tradi tion s , " i s seen �e TQ-C"H lere in this r1a_io r voi. e ( " from Jackhm;meJ""): The j nck_' ack ,ackin;-\ back .::md s t ad:in~ stone city- stone i to crac1:ed hydraulic echoes of dust0 ()c (" P,oot Son~"): r Once lhen I was tr ee flesh c ame and worsh p e d at my root s . Son<:; of Flesh ") love) ~ naddened :!!~➔ h and need : Uhen I awoke) I took the s l e e p inG Mountains of your breasts t e n de rly tenderly hctrve e:-t m' ~uive r i ~ ips and I nuillotiaed the stallion s, drm-me d the ea ~les , anJ r ove t . e t i ge r f is h back into the sea o f our h eart . There are also "-.1cmy" ? Oets in Dumas . \Ja l ke r , coupled with t h e best of t h e rir'ling p oets of the s i x t ies) ~ pr oduces - - sanguine and hul:lorous / 1.:ick tr u t h ( " I Laugh Talk Joke " ): @) i lau ~h taF: joke s;;ioke <lope sk i p r op e, r;1ay tak e a coke jum? up and down , ua l k around dr i:1L nash and t a ;z tras 1 't)OY \Jith a bricl: tno c k a no-le~~e<l man to 11is ben<le<l knees _ _ _____________ - ..._ - -- - -ri.,~ �cause I ' ~ a movinl [ool nev 3r teen to school ~oJ raiseJ □e an tie devil pra i se<l 1i1e ( catch a :ireac her in a hoat anu slit his t;1roat pass a c:1urc , but 1 on ' t fuck wi th me c a use I uon ' t p l ay6 T, e r e are e;,ic poens r I ,. ~ "::osaic Earlem" and " r.enesis on an Endless !-!osaic ," a b~ues se ries, experi;1ents in African forms (us ins s pontaneity and ri t ual) , (•.,; anJ ,. ys ti cal/ explorator:· rioer.1s ~ 1 1./ .i i0v '') <lnd J ,, ~------ - - - - j) hou?"hts/Ima c; es ;' D:!_, '1 -:efs and Sab . MV$1C4.L po,,,. ~:-tw" ,s on'.) " '.:;aba"tfuma s u se _, bizarre iuage r yA to render ~hard to des cribe : s trc.:i;:is st r i::ins .:tor t a I 1vi., raphones sx vein i n~s I :nyr iads of fl a ~ella flu c .· sin~ r it e 0 Duma s possessed a ~ und less love fo r tr,e a coustic al lea p a n d the <l r ama ti c " i:nplo s ion" ( as :1e i_mt it ) of ideas in poe t r y . have on f.t ack poe t ry r e~a i ns t o he seen . 01 · ~ •"f.~,,~,..~ J.l/;.'lis uo r k , ~ lu - - - ---- \· 1at inf l u e nc e h i s i dea\ wi l l \ll.f,5~,I/Pk1~!eu!li;ft;;J $';'", ""'f A iJ- r.1uc'.1 0f it writ t en in t ~ie e arly and , i d t i x ti es , hacl K' ee n �o.. ,.;-. i"ct\a.L ..&...,,r i7T77iiil7J\of ~ ,,., Li the/e; ,- lack available inAcollcct ~ - wh e n the ~ ~:, C:,(.LV~r e(i -~ / oetryl\crs ];gjpg xws;rt The America n t e mperament (disfavoring tellin g their truths) kept Duma s and Rivers running . f lack writers Dumas sought his p eace in t ,1e deep well of his own fo l k culture and in occ a sio n a l e xcursions into r:1ysticism , Africa~ an<l Vo odoo . Ri v ers buried himsel f in the "identity" '-" i ssues and b ro oded ove r his plig1t as a b rilliant Black in a country where Ja -&it...., /i) ,:A~ess,,..,,..,. of buwn'f'~ OIM•y t he t wo adjectives to ge ther are ne ithe r b elievab l + or leg itimate both left~ e na cies .fo~ ..c.c,, .....,. QAl.4-~•·,,, (l,.. ad.it'.,.,;;~ ._ C1¥~eU.,lo"1 ''lffN-r l)u...S: 1.e,aoi .~.. 1..., ~ siK9e.-"tiJl<l.lA#~ 1 B. ' Griefs of Joy~ (t, The Poetr of Win° s & The Black Arts Hovement ® P • ~ No1 not":lin~ remains the same . And my spirit reach es out to y ou ny love without apol o g ies ui t ho ut embarra ssment uith only t he t h oueh t t h at this is ri:--,ht for us t~at novin 0 towar d s you is lik e touch ing leav e s i n a utumti ..... .... o ur minds and spirits Lnterlocked like death . I - ~ - ~ nkie Gord on Lane , " g riefs of joy" ) - One major difference between t he cultural /p ol i tical upsurg es of t h e twe n t i es and the six ties/ seventies wa s location : ._ the / enaissance was alwa y s e eog raphically , in Harlem; but its ..UN~ ~ . . , . f.e-.o.J.; ~ ~ p p 1 I~~ ti; �recent successors can be found in every North American community with a substantial ;(l a ck population Another difference was in degree of artistic-political consciousnes. To be sure, the cultural and po litical arms of the _)(enaissance were, on occasion, interlocke. But such marriages never reached the current state of "wholeness" and "continui t-kfJflr.n the "stars" of the / ewr i vi ties "outside" early days of this period there were (are) ack / oetry1' but the glitter often attended ac '!!!!' the poetry@ Or, put differently, the stars some time s put "outside" topical stimu li 11 inside 11 what is no longer defensi.,l ble a "poetr ." This oft en meant that the star poets h a d no connecti on whatever with a/ lack l i t erary or folk poetry ~radit i on as such Int stead, theirs was a "tradition" of i Jm11e* ~ ~ca l urgency , and n ewspaper headlines , combined with high-school type punch-linin ~ it is " This ed. is not to say good '- poetry (ef eda:te:,t; e,.e'!l."f\defin:.i;ier) was (is) not being written or that charlatans were al ways t ~n the take~ " There i s much evi dence to suppo r t the beli ef that do zen s of these soothsayers were sincere and honest itand had chosen what appea red to be the "simplest " and "fas t est" vehicle for expressing t h ough.ts about i evolution~ and j 1ack f ogethe:r_:: ness" or raising the 11 / ollecti ve J nsciousnes 0 • " Such a situation was not helped by t he learned poet-activists who sometimes advised young writers to give up "Western" influenees and a "white" languag e. These advis f rs usually stopped short of suggesting ways in which young poets and write rs mi ght assimi late another language into their work. Yet this need to identify and institute an alternative language is a pressing one. In the meantime, impressive contributions toward such a realization have ~ been made by SillaP beacons .-t(ames Weldon Johnson, Melvin Tolson, Mart garet Walker, Henry Duma s, Ishmael Reed, Jayne Cortez and others. However, the insincere versifiers usually fell by the wayside in a short t ime, paving the way, like th e Phoenix bird, for still more so ap ~ '--' box_moun..ters At tha same. t.imeJ !:l numb e ,.. o f' poets ~ <-f-7Z )IOSG. w-\ t s and er fts w -re �not about the1:1 in t'.ie ea rly p iase~ ~<l t o become much better handlers of t'.1e word . a'/;f;:n;;;;t. h vio l ence ." 1 this o ccurred, La rry ~ea l notes , a~ainst In e::, by over ..\1,re-ris a had been tu r ned U?v::ide of t he_l1acy Charles oen , the late six tie s,, f lack conuaunities a ll own by po lic e and spokesmen/suppo rters ~~ evo lut ion . " ~ung ;hock troopers " " Carmichael , ,.µr own, on Karenga , Huey Newton , and El 1.-f Cleaver had already )t1.~ forced t. e " ol :: time" Jrrack leadership to ta e a s a t. ~· Jiow , wit ~ father estroyed son ( n lliams , Baldwin) , the poe ts were free to decl a im , ...J er4.. l, tradi tion,~ 'T is t rend a lone ~ s'1oc ~ theJ p oetic p ocla.:i!:J.. .an-<l ....___.,,,, ., /{. having a.en since it cr eated a flood of polemicists and pamphl e teers who c ou ld / wo u l d ;n not discuss p oetry int,l_listorical cont ext s. It caused fu rt her s ho ck b y abelin:--- itse f "f lack" a c rene ~otiating its own " roo t s ." h s a pear ed th rou l':hout the his tor i was not use<l as Ilene ~ much of t he categorical ye .; p ack oet r ('fhe wo r d '1 lack" of f lack poe t ry, but before the sixties "-*tf.nc.e1o ( ■ poet r y written by Afro - Ar:lericans.) h as been vie ,ed as non- poe try or anti-po et ry d11~ (in a t radit i o na l lite r a r _ context ~ u ecaus ~ araon g other things , i t tiftttf.not d epend prir:larily on sub t le t y a !ld recond ~te r e fer e nces . ~t r eNains to be ~A~uLl)rieJu.-e t1 f' seen wha t impact this i!l :.f ro-A':!erica . Rt · • ..___..,, 2 is~ ..__,. ~ (o.-La~~ ac:~ poetry will have on t 11e lite r a~ rencls Jackson (~lac ~ Poe try in A!'1erica), for example , begins his o·m <l iscusslon of t l1e/ ew _/lack / oet r by bui lcli g a convincing -Nie. riew an<1lo;;y be t ueen t he rise in / lac · lit e racy and the popularit y of"-poetry . 1 Hen erson (lJn<lerstant.l i nr; t he ~~ew Black Poet ry) .::issures his reade rs that f .::ic k rec1de rs o r liste.ers clearly " unde rst a nd" what t he ir poets a re sayinz and are rnrticipatin~ r.!ore and more .:is judges of qualities in the poe try and t he poe ts ' deliv e ries. ~ ~ ~ aes t he t ic* t while t '.1is cha pte r will conclut.l e with a f ew broad cri tical observa t ions , t he i;;unediate aim is to �ca r::::=--... c1ue the sketcl1 of th e poetry ' s devel opment, interpolating : ro.i time to - t i::-. .: -..__-- -pertinent critica and illuninat i ng data . 1 here a r e dozens of ways t o a pproach t hy ewr fo r ~ a ck_/oet ry . ~xample , exanine its theme , s tructure and saturat ion (Henderson), or it s - - - - several t ypes (Carolyn Podgers; see biblio gr aphy) . i mp~ Starting with rt ant nar:es is another \.Ja y ; the / lack -jesth etic (Gayle, Fuller ) approach is - _ .:mot· er \Jay . .,..-----....., 1• One coulJ , e a ;:::.:_____...l , Dumas) . 4!SIP','\usic is a l s o a favorite 0.f p_t-00..l ~ ( !t!2!-J---- Crouch , &ei1&21 One c ould go on and o > but the poetry has been Har ~ e r, Jayne Cortez) . wr~ ten and one place to start is wi t h its emer gence . - j New York certainly pl ayed a key role in the new movement, but it did n ae-;:::::::::-,. ,tJ.,tY"e said earlier, p lay t h e k ey or only role, Ar eas of the Eas t _ _....:..;."':.ohia, Bos to<:, Baltimore , ; a s\d ng ton , D.C.) enhanced .....the boo,;-, ce~ Ree:lJ Then there is t he mag ic of } lack ~oe try ( araJr.j, Taunt (Phil'lt, ,!idwes t .cers were Cleveland , Chicago , Detroit, East St . Louis-St . Louis.__/ , and Rela ted events also took place in the South1 to name some . wh~ ~ re t, ere was anothe r "rising" in Atlan t a, }!ashville , Jackson, Baton ~cC-_ __-_. ~ ~e, Tuske~ee , :ou stonl a n! Toogaloo. The Hest added richl>; from Los ;i.,, :.~ -= · e les, San Francisco Bay a rea ~ amento • and Seatt::_::..:) ~ -t t 1nc.hJie -·--=.,;;,~ ,-- - - -~ e.. (connected ...:~ ,elopments r elated to~poe t r y ..-ie~numerous f1 ack / rts activities settlement houses, conn:iun ity t ______... cultural or nat i onalist programs) fo r the dissemination of ideolo gies, anti- poverty ~ - - - c2n t ers, nuseums, centers . . . i ns titutions . - -- - p ~oj ects, and educational Svr,v.or"t:lfcl~i]O.L~o\ fn #re /:oi,, wJo la l '-.: lack-oriented plethora o ~t,.,.. :: lyers, pos ters, books, p::imphlets t and re cords . '--" c:,e ne~ ~ L d journals, ~f great ---importance were lack books tores , Af rican curio shops , i-, alls of "respect (Cl eveland, :.kron, Chicago, St . Louis , :ilcw York, Newarl9 ) . . . . art exhibits, weekly ....___.., f es tivals and jubilees, 1 1 ri t e rs ' con ferences, writing workshops, the flood �'1V of liber a ti o n fl ag s (blac k- g r een - r e d ) ,/ .l a ck-orien t ed tal k and va ri ety O "c vl1v"6..L;r,boi.~ /,1/tliy . ~ shows, and oth er phys ical,\1p(:rnn:>---o .gneftaitai handshakes_!,-eer-~u&a i ~African (:pt.C.;tll.... clothes , h aird o s and j ewelry) . New York was an imp o r tant showj place for the It had t h e r esid u e of t he pos1 fenaissance years ( the new consc iousness . t omburg Library and . fic heaux ' s Bo okstore ) in Har lem as well as numerous 1fL~d<- s u rround i ~ ltommun i ti es . r1 ew · o r ganizations "the. s uch a s ta-. Barb ara Ann Teer ' s Na tional Black Theater , f\New Lafayette Theater, V"-""'w'shew ~ :lro..tec.T5 a n d .a.rNiarlem fultural-1; l · 1 f l owered i n t h e amazed light of~ older insti y a t u t ions ttke Freedomwa y s ma azine (Clarke and ::::,St - Kaiser )) which has published many of the n ew poets : J a u r e ._ ( Sne lling s ); Hadhubuti (Lee), Henderson, {n. Wrig ht, Clarence Reed, ~lel ton Smith, Llp yd T . Delaney, W fa r i Evans and oth e rs. Joanne Gonzales, Freedomwa rs a l so offers liv ely revi ews and commentaries on poetry , lit e rature and the/ l a c k j r t s scene . From t he variegated atmos ph e r e of New York g ushed forth a tid e of l a c k poe t s, s ome z!r / (1 937 ' 1n olnero.\"'eO.S hwi'nei JI 11'rr!a d e t . e i r T:Jarl~ earlie, r Henderson , Larry - ) , Peed, Pa t te r son, Su~t Ra , • • • June Jo r dan (193 6~ ) , S ·\C. Ande r son (19L,Jf ( 193 6J ), Jo.mes Ay-Uri5ron :to r1e s Lennox Ra phael (19404 _ _.,...___ K~li Cla renc e ' :ajor ( 1 J6l ~ - ) Ray Johns , ("J Odaro (Ilarbara Ronald Ston~.). ) Ba r bara Simno s, ) , Spell . a n , Edward Spr i j \)out,4h»'Y ) ',\Lorenzo Thomas (19441. 1 ) (1934/4, ), LOY'(} (I Cf4 .7 ), ) ,~fi chard Thomas ) , Teel Uils~ ~"floyd Addison ( 1931,6 Q'Ufi' ) r( ~ G.-csverio~6ct'1oN ':> ) , Jay Wr i ght (1935~ r:attic :!. Cumb~ Pritchard (1939,¢ ~ ) , Clarenc e I'. e e , f(us ef Rahman Le f t y Sin s , Helt on ~-nit h ( 1940 (19J 9L i'dH. 3bf Q-f · Hand{Yusef I na / sho..,,~n"&r;;Jri Jone s, 1 '.J .'.;. 6/2 Ai , Lebert Bethune (1 93717 ) '/\John A. iJillia Bobb Hamilt { , ), ) , Albe rt Haynes (fl.u ren ce A~ln~ ( 1Q47 ) ," Howa r d Jones (r94 ~ ) , Hernton , Ouint in llil _ (19 50} Ba r a k a , Aud r e Lor e , John .fajo r (19 ~ 1 eal I • anes Arlin;;ton J ones (193 47 O"lt1-5f ) ), ) , Jayne Cortez (via Watt s?J o.- _ _ , . . . - - ~ I::1anu e l, Ca lvin Fo r be j, Alexis Deve,tux (195 ~ , ) , Ni <ki Giovanni �Djangatolum (Lloyll ~l. Corb i n) Q.9lf9~ (19 40 1 Julius Lester (19 39 ~ ), ~q44 ') Simmons~ (194 7/; .@!!Ill ), Ron We lburn (1 944 ) , Tom \ eatherly (1942~ (via Fisk , 1943,f / elipe Luciano (19 47~ ) , Rhonda K.rl. Pr e stwid" ) , Ha e Jackson (1946;] Lof t i n (1950~7 ) , Elo'tt,s Gy lr.un ~<l r( ) , At:harles· Lynch (1943 <l'fro~ ;1i ll~, ~od i ·81tO.VOfl , ?.'- w 1 ) ' ), Joe Johnson ), Judy ), L-V· Hack arry Thompson (1950,J ) , I' The New Yor k pack/ rts scene (poe tr y specifically) was a 11f a- whir with the excitement of pub lishing and reading poet r y a loud at the infinite number of ~a t herings . olde r , often revived, ones . his death in 196 7 . ~ poetry1 which ;,as i1{!!!;1-T/ Joini n8 these younger uri t ers were Hugh es over saw much of t he proceeding s until .And there were ol<l , a s wel l as new , out lets fo r t 1e beint.'b:~,i ~!~~/~ollo , Carnegie Hall, .;ew Lafayette Theater , Sl u ~ a s t , ,\'"a" t : .acia Polok, a nd in count l ess c omraun it y cent er s and churches . Host of these poe t s were no t native even were not pcrpllll ew Yo r ker s ; and a great numb e r 1 lly t he re during t he height of the Bl ack Arts .tovement /~ o~ i~.,✓e ------1 in · \ out 1 yi· ng area.sf\ b ut u ~ R,r i· age ' port , (Yout h, Il,ri. d s e ) Ya 1 e , F c e d onia . , 1 Brockport , Rutgers, Brooklyn , Bost on (El ma Lewis's Center for Afro- American Alll Blc,,(. KAc.o.demy of ~~T.i o.nd Le.'ttei,-.s Culture;f !.., e d 30:,_t'errs• 3 1 csam,::; But while they had s epar a te / iack / rts programs, mos t loo ed t o t he movement in New Yo r k . Wo r kshop ther e were In addition to t he Umbra /µ_ Harlem Hriters Guild (Clarke , 'illens) , Frederick (\ Douglass Creative Arts Center♦ Poetry Workshop , the Af ro-Hispanic Workshop, Workshop for Young 1/rit e rs , the Columbia Writinr,,;o gram (Killens );:frack Qv~·-t..ttbLe to-ffie poet~ Arts Repertory and Thea tre /School (Baraka , Snell twe Amo ng the new journals/\ Umbra (1 963) , Soulb ook (1964) , Bl ack Dialo½ue (1965), Journal of Bla ck Poetry (196 6) (iron ic ally , the last three we r e begun on the f e st ~oast), Prid~ Black Theitre (1969), Cric·et (1969), Bla ck Crea tion (1969), Af r oAme rican : - -- - -- - - - �/ T:1lrd ~·h.Jr } ._ : LiLerar:,' J ou r na l (1 9 73 , Sy rncuse ), BOP (Bla cks on Paper, Brown L'nive r s it y , 19'rj4 ), Con tinu ities : !ords f r om t he ConlI'l.unities of Pa n - Afr i ca j ( Cit y Colle?,e ~~ew York, l9 7 l~, I mpressions (197l•), Cosmic Co lon,1 ~l.,tf~ ' ~ /\ -~ bS I'dl @ ' -/\( •r e doni a , 1975). urin g a spee c h a t Howa rd Univers it y ' s Fir st Tational Conf erence of fr o ~ e rican .Jriters (November + 19 74), Tour /, recountinb the tumu l tuo us y ears a n<l developments, sai d those res ponsible for t .1e :fl ack a rts a nd a e s th e ti c mo v ement " ,,ere " a ctivists as well as artists ." It seemed \...e~' :!ones so, f or this partic ula r patt e r n wa s mos t obvious a s 11:ai tthlf,\ returned to Newark (r e nal"lin ~ it ff, 11 1 e r.; • r k " ) and c h ange d h is name l i mamu Amiri Barak't , reflect i n g "n h il'Yl .1. _ - . ~ olor ," he UJeAT"n L JJl to t h e g r eat inf l uence of the Na t ion of I slaliY\and MSl{'h~S~ in Af rican ovn~1v l3Lo.d:. A-,_-fl eepe►tory-!t,eaf;e ct~ felt"°"'/.. cultur e . Hav i ng AL '/\'to re - edu cate the near l y ha lf a million Harlem 1:e:; roe s t o f ind a ( ~ewark ) ~ and ~~ .me s.,...... Free Sc~10ol (with i t s t(awai<la a Un ified :;ewar k , ar. ventio ns . ~:e ,-,a establish Sp irit House Spi rit liouse Playe r s and ~-lover s , the Af rican oc t"!'.'ine) , J ihad Publications , Committee fo r to ;ielp l a unch several na tio nal / a LOun,ler (1?7')) of lack political c ori, the~c.er,1}K.g, stri fe -r i J. <len Cong ress of African Peo p l es . Du r ln~ t he 1;G7 riots (insurre ctions) in Newark , na rak a was arr es t ed uith severa l cor:1:),.nions nev e r " ; 11 u:-ic. ch.:ir,;eci wit h p ossession o f two handguns and :1e owes you a nyt:i.in~ . o u ~,ant , e ven h i s life"; " Up against the wall n o t berfuc '. ;cr t:iis is :.i s tick up ! ·•; " Snas 1 the win<low at ni3ht 11 ; " Le t ' s ge t t ogether a nu kill ',iin r.1y n an": I • ·" �r) ... 8t 1 s z et t o ~e t ~e r t he f ruit of th e sun , l e t ' s make award we want b l ack f l c!1iLl r e n t ~row 311d l earn in do no t l e t your chil ·ren when t hey g row look f J i n yo ur face and curse yo u by p ity inz your tarnish ways . 1r k C4.U It was the k ind of,.__. . . . . ar~ . a ge tha t ch_aracterized Bara a I s ve....se.. ( p oets ')" lso..v-t11.\~o.. wo.s l4fi-' ~<jwT!d, bv1' 1; .- betwee n 1965Al969 . ~,imig tl:is pui~,"-.@h;c:clJIJ ! £2 t dev e lo pment~ occur red. wkom h.e me-t 1(.hile tea chin;; ~ tr»nll. . aui,\ other / 1ack· 7l / I a number of /\ett-Go ~o.T~ I mp res s ed by the Up, ~{~~~i , ~o f Ron Karenga ~-.i g at San Francis c o St ate Coll ege in 196 7 ) , l!! 1a ~~ ~ t).J --------- returned t o ;lewark and organ i zed t he Bl a c k Conununit y Devel o pment a nd De f e nse Organiz.:ition ( BCD) . /1-ac ~ !iis e ffo rts e ventu a ll y a i de d in t he e lection of a c\evelo pm ~ f:S nay o r { Kenneth r:ibson) . Ti1ese 'ii11i: 20 " sl\.were hav ing z r ea t i mpa c t on r e?, ional and natio na1/1a c;c po l::.tica l/ poetry scenes . Bar aka ' s p icture•pasfei,,. f (wit h bandages from t h ~ 196 7 s cuffle with Newark po l i c e) bega n app earing o n ~ al l s of cultural centers, do r i t o rie s and homes . ~~::Uy ob servers were sonew'1at ~ : ::-:· o " ~arakq , '.1nving seen h i m go t :1rou~:1 the " ch ang es" k!tl!:::::::__1_·_t___ f r o11 / e a t poe t ·__03ssz _r: to Ha rlem and / lack / rts , into Newark an<l p olitic a l u ork , l( f o r ~reat insight into all t h is, see Theodore Huds o n ' s F rom Le Roi Jones t o .-1.rrriri Tia raka , 1973~ ♦ in most c en t ers o f t he /ew)'(lac ·/ . ~ Ye t Daraka ' s influenc e, ~ fe lt -.....,/ oe try -and even in p laces wher e h i s poetry had no t ac tual l y been read; or, if r ea<l, no t fully unde r stood a nd d i ges t ed . It was ·not unusual to b.ear a f lack y outh quo te a few lines from a poster \ poem or from a l i ve re a d ing , bu t who , when questioned ab ou t Ba r a .·a ' s works , di d not know the name of a sing l e on e . - - - -- - - - - - - - Af ter The Dead Lecturer, Bar aka (also p laywright) published Black ,. [agic : -- -- - - - �Poetrv ,19Glk l967 (1 ;69 ), In ~ur Ter ribleness (1970), Sp irit, Reach (1 972) , . j as well as nu171e rous e_,says an sto ries . Hitli Hea l :1e codJdi te<l Blac'- Fi re (1 963 )) which , along wit ~1 Hajor's The -;-rew I', lack Poetry (1969) show!,cased the new poetry). In the Fo ~ rd to Black Fire , Baraka called ~ founding Fathers and ~-lathers , of our nation . ack artists "the lJe rise , as we rise (agin) the power of our beliefs , by the purity and s_t;rengt 1 0 f our actions . 11 ~~-t.. htw ~V'\Cl.lYI ma ~ a.ind s11n i~, he. v ,•e......,e.d in, poCI. o.n6 w,.iti~s: o.s :. J ~ . The black artist . The black man . The holy man. The nan you seek. ma ker of peace . you seek . speal~er. T~1e °lover . Look in. --- Find yr self . ..----------, Is you . on . Us1n_g his The We ar e t he y whom Find t he being , t he } 1over in yo ur soft Is the c reator. or r.1inus , you ve1icle ! co The wa w or . The voice , t he back d_~ eyec losings . selv e s. The climber t he striver. By Is no t i ng . Ue a r e presen t ing . Plus Your va rious We ar-e presenting , from God , a t one , yo ur own . Now . Ee t hus s e t • t he "tone"~ for poet..:,/philosophers , r e iterating at the same time ._,,. I ~ ~ b~n~ ouc· of what b Ii ' 11 ■■ iC \ J · ) -- ~ in other writings ao·O~!i the nD--u.60 • [Ieal, a percep tive cr i tic and balanced the or e t i cian, volunes: ..... ~ published t wo nlack Boogaloo: ...,,.:ate s on Black Libera tion (1969 , Journal of Black )V.I' Poe try Press , Fo nMJ rd by Jones) and Hootloo Hollerin' BeBop Ghosts (1975) . 1 Eis Afterwo r d t o Bl ack Fire is tantamo, nt to Hughes 'sfamou~\\ieclaration ~ £ t he twentie s . P esenting " artistic and ;-iolitical work" =A~~~ be "called a radical pe rspectiv,;' Black Fire s ho uld be read "as if it were a critical re-examination of He stern po lit ica l, social and artistic values ." and exhorting other writers, Neal continued: fr:re have been, for t he most par t, talking about contemporary Challenging �r eal iti es . {e have no t been t a l king about a re t ur n t o some glorious Af r ican pas t . t o tal past . , Bu t we recognize t he pas t --the ~1any of us r efu se t o acc ep t a trunc a t ed 1 'egro his t ory which cuts us off comp letely f rom our Afr ican "' ance s t!,ry. To do so is to acce pt t l1e very r a cist assump tions which we abhor . Rather , we wan t to comp r ehend h i s tory t otall y , a nd unders t and t he mani folc.l ways i n which cont,, L.::_emporary pr oblems a r e a ff e cted by i t. Speak ing aga i ns t t he hindsi~h t of ps ycho l ogy an<l turb u l enc e , ~cal added : / Ther e i s a t ens i on within Bl a ck Ame r ic a . its r oots i n t he gener al his t or y of rac e . And it has The manner in which we see th is h istory <le t ermines ;1ow ~,re act . shoul d we see t is h istory ? \ / it? How tfua t s hould we Eeel a out T is i s important to lrnm1 , b ecause t , e sense of how tha t his t or y s hould b e f e lt i s wha t e it!er unit es C separ a t e s us . Finally , he sums up wli.at can be cal le / lack/aet r y and t he I -:;1e B ;ick A~ts the cre<lo o r modus ooer anc.li of t i1yfew /V\,vement : artist and the po l itical a ½tiv ist a re one . both shapers of t ~e f uture r eality . They a r e Both unde r s tand and nanipula t e the co ll e c t iv e my t hs of t he race . war r i or s , pri ests , l ove r s and dest roye rs . Both a r e For the first v i o lenc e wil l be i nt ernal - the de st r uct i on of a weak ' sp ir i t ua l se lf fo r a more perfect sel f . be a ne ces s a r y vio l ence . nut i t will I t is the only t i ng that will de stroy the doub le- conscious ness/\'\ t he t en sion t ha t l2;;!. in t he souls of black fol k . - - - -- - - - -- - - -- - - - - - - - - �It w~s the ind of cha llen r; e t 1at sent man· a n ewly f ac~ened poet or a ctiv ist ·nto th e l on?; ni ~ht of the soul t o :rmr !;e h i 111s elf o f rea l or ima i; ined enemies of his peo p le . Poetically s peaking , however , it was Baraka 's " Black Art " tha t set much of the pace, form and violent tone in the/ ew J1- ack/ oetry ! Poems are bul lshit unless they are t ee th or trees o r lemons piled on a step . Or black l adies dying of me n leaving nic k e l h earts ea t in~ t hem dam . a nc.l t hey arc useful c ome at -·ou , Fuck poe1s w_v t h e y shoo t love what you are , rea t 11e li e wr estlers , or s m<lder s tr::m::;ely after pis sing . \.J e want live •o rd s or t he hip worlc.l live flesh & co urs i:1, , loocl . ::ea rts ~ r a ins So ul s sp 1 · nt e ri n;; like ~is t s be:itin ire . "' 0 ':.'e wan t 9oe as ni"•.:,v ·•e r s o ut o f J-to ' ck s o r cia:;:;e r poen s i:1 t h e sli my bell.:.es of o,mer- j ews . J l a c k poems t o sracar o n ~ir lena~_a nula tto bitches ,~ o s e br a ins a re red jelly stuck b etween ' lizabeth t a ylor ' s toes . \:-hares ! S tink ing \{ e want " ? oems t.1at k il l ." Assassin po~as, Poems tha t shoot Luns . Poems t ha t wr estle cops into a lleys - - -- - -- - - - - -- - -- - - �anc, ta1:/ . h ir \,eapo,1s leavh.;-: tlwm Jead 0 wit!1 t i ~ pulled ou t nnJ sen t t o IrclnnJ . l'.noc::off poems fo r Jap e s el l i n~ \vop s or slic -: l1.:1lfwh i te politicians Air p lane poems) rrrr r rrrrr r rrrrr ' rr rrr rrrrrrrrrr •.. t uhtuh t uh tuh t uh tuh tuhtuh t u 1 • •• rrrrrrr r rr r rrrr t · · · Se t t i ni fir e s and dea t h to wh i ties a s s . . .. He wan t a black po er:1 . / ,\ nd r. l a c .~ ~Jorld. et t!1e uorld . e a D acl~ Poem And let All Blac . Peep e Speak This Peen Silent y ~ --- o r LO 11 7) 0 . _ ~nack Art " · m s often cited as t . e sanguine embodi1:1ent o / est. e tic n d a rejection o f w1 ite cul ture and life( st y l e . t he J1 acl~ oems , llaraka s t at es , mus t not onl~ , a ve ~u t s am, ea rt h i ness (lil e Blac k s )) bu t t!1ey mus t a lso be we apo n s a nd shield s ag ains t raci s m, pol ice , me r c han t s , 1ustlers , . ,,.... croo k e d poli t icia ns a nd s t a t us - c i nb inr f l a c k bou r g e o~ ~ - )Ove a ll , they s houl d e xal1/1- a c knes s ( " sons ," " l o ver s , " " warr iors ," " po e t s , " a nd " a ll the loveline s s he r e in t h i s world ." ) The s ej then/ are t he domi nant t h e mes in much ....., o f t he_}(e~ et r y and t he ph ilosoph i e s stat e d (with radical d ivergenc• e s) -~ f r om coa s t t o co ast . >a raka ' s pu r :;e e xt e nds t h r o u gh/\ poems ~ tft- v " Poem for Ha l fl lhite Co ll ege Stu dent s ," " T1 e Ra cis t ," "L i t tl e Brown J u ~" ( " T,TE ARE GODS" ) , 11 1 .1. W. " (a t ta ck on wi3-wea rin; /Omen ), " CIVIL RI GHTS POE~l" ( " Ro ywi lkins i s an e t erna l fa ggo t " ), " Ka ' Ba ," and f i nal l y , in " l e r oy , " h i s l as t wi ll a nd test ament : �t~1en I di e , t he consciousness I ca rry I will t o bla c people . Nay t hey pick me apart and t ake t he useful part s , the s wee t meat of my feelings. And leave th e bitter bullshit r ott en ~ ite parts alone . But there ar e also sensitive love poems in t!1e lat er pe riod , poems caught up in tl1e stressed life of / lackness ("Sterling Street Sep tembe r"): "the beautiful black man, and you, girl, child nigh tlove, ••• : \.....,, We are s t range in a wa y because we know who we are . Black beings passing thr oug:1 a to rtur ed passa e of flesh . ,-.rd' In h is Fo~ r d to Black Boo~aloo , Baraka says of the world: €/h""if1 /]11 ~o..~Q W4S p11obo..GLy rt~ ;"e.,,~,ni n, -hil,,,set I..)~ poets will change i(f,"A What " t he so l die r Teal ' s volume c iange d has not ye t been ascertained but it c e rta inly contains ambitious a nd successful poetrv. - His debt t o t ,1e ~~ /4 older generatio n of poets, artist s am.I thinke rsi can be seen in" po ems Mle~ ✓ " ueen .. la t her ' s e rmon, " " The ~1id le assahe and After ," " Love Song in t he lliddle Passage," " Garvey ' s Ghost,"" ady Day, " " Harl em Gall e r y : J rom t he ~ Inside,i" ,( "~!alc ol m x- '-//.n Au tobio gr aphy .". P.aking u s e of my sticism, chan t and musicographic int er polations >J .. eal ( Dumas) i s ef fe ct i v e~ moving ,r ens i n~\ and feelin g : f Olorum Olorum Olorum. . . . a,,v,{ The horror of "The ! idJle Passagel\Af t e r " is seen in the " Decked, stac ked , pillaged" slave s . "Lung Song in }!iddle Passage " views th e t ' Red ~l ow of sea-death mornings. �Other poems ( " on~ , " " Ji had , " " Kunt u," " Or i s h a s") r ev e a l t eal ' s in t e r e s ts i n su pernaturalism , Af r i c an philoso phy a n d t h i n th e " word ." allusiv e, my sti cal powe r s i nh e r en t He seeks p oe ti cally t o i mp l ement t he i dea s he s t ated in Black Fir e and a s pecial.,J1ack i s sue of .111E- (~ D..t.™,. Revi e,,1) in s unne r of 196 8 . The issue , e dit e d by J:,12.B.'s c on t r ib ut i n g e ditor ul i ns, comp ile d i de as and p l ay s roo t ed in wha t wa s then c al l e d t he "new" consciousnessj a l s o featur ed -.N'0-4. work by Sonia Sanche z a n d Adam Dav id liiller . f was a b luifprin t for/ nlack fi re , 1::. c k/ :c a l ' s 11 Tl1 e ::3lacl: :.rt s : :overaen t " rt s a :1c po l itic a . change . l·:c ho i n 6 s t a t e:::ients i n 1e a r :;uec: .:?.i;a i nst " any c or~cep t o f the art i s t t ia t ali e na t es h i :i1 fron his c om;;J.uni ty ," and note<l: f ii1ac k t Art is the aesthetic and spi ritual sister of the Dlac k Po ,1e r concept . : s suc;1, it envisions an art tb.at speaks directl y to the needs and asryira t io s of Blac~ fuae rica. In orc.ler t o pe rfori'l this task, the Bl ack Art s . ~veme n t p r o?o ses a radical reorJerin1 of t h e ves t e r n cultu r a l acsth e t ·c . It pro;:,oses a sepa ~a te s_ . b olis n , v n y t h olo 3y , cr itiqu e , anc.l icono l o r,y . The Bl c '· .\ r t s a nd Bl a c k Pm-, er c oncept both relate b roadly t o the Af r o~ Ame rica n' s d esi r e fo r self - J ete m ina t ion a n d na t ionhood . Bo t h conc ep ts arc na t ·onalis ti c . On e i s co n c e r n ed with t ic r elation b et~een ar t and poli ti cs ; t he o t ~e r with L:-h c a rt of poli t ics . Bu t his i<le a of a " s epar ate" aesthe t i c , as no t emb raced by a ll J lack poe t s , ar t i st s , or in te llectuals . - :'eit h er ,.a s there • c omplet e a'.3r eement (o r unJ erstan<l i n3 ) amon:~ i t s own p ro pone n ts . Fo r e xamp le , Spr iE ~S , a versa t il e �artist and thin !~e r, led a 'uoyco tt of Hajor ' s The ::ew f,lack n oetrv on the gro unJs that i t ~as beinG b rou~ tout by a white publishe r (International Publishers) . Dut Spriggs had not objecteJ earlie) to use of h is wo rk in 1 1Hack Fir , also published by whites (~·torrow) . appea r ed in The Journal of Black Poetry ( Fall '.'.is po sition statement 196 3) : in t he hell are the black publ i shers ever going to ~e t into it if no t by the assistance of the writer, ! } ow 0 are distributors 1ip s ever 2;oing to mature with the publis 1ers if the highly 1-:ia r ·etable works of wm kelly , j . killens , j a \-ms , 1 1eal , e bullins , leroi j , o r t he lik e never come s t h e i r way? does t he conc ep t o f black powe r and b lack a rts _ , e x tend t hat fa r? _, i say yea , i s a y yea , . ea . rt Sp ri ggs joi e<l a lar 6 e n umb 2r o f crit i c s and pract ~oners of the / 1;ick f u U,,e.r- ) Le~ > / 1 y(- :, eal , Crouch , "-uuilins , f\Gon~ves~ i n the co n t roversy over / ' lack ~ / wr i t e r s ' roles and re sponsibiliti e s. Desp it e t he c on trov e rsy , however, Majo r ' s a n tho log: aprear d as a k.ileic.oscopic offerin:; of t he/ e11J'-lad/ ~ aj o r i n cluded a pe rc eptive and fitting In tr oduc tion : GI[ L,:r:R crisis of J l .:tc ~'- r e ality i s of t e n studded in these poems by the swift , vividl y crucial fac t s of social reality; which consist s in pa rt , anyway , of a 1 the i mp lications and forces of mass media , the social patterns , t~ bureaucratic and oechanical med iums of huma n p ercep tio n s , even of the qu i ckl y evolving natur e of the :1unan p s y c h e in t his hiihl y homogenized culture , in all o f its elec tric p r o c e sses and specia list fra gmentation . Dl ac1~ rea ity , i n othe r words , is l i ke a ny q other r eality p r ofo undly t! ffec t e d by tech n o l o;3y . The oetry. �c ri s i s a n <l d r a ma o f t he l a t e 1 96 0s ove r whelms an<l t h r eatens eve r y c r evice of ;1Uman life on earth . T'1es e poe:ns are bo rn l...::::!..t of t his t ens ion . /.l.v rve:f !. In his own poet ry , }1a j or, t t1cs s r 10e Vi e tr,am, a l i eno tion , impendi n~ wo rl d destruction ,j dreams . l a ck h is t ory , mu s ic, nytholo gy , a nd per son a l exc urs i ons into He published The Dictionarv of Afro - Ame ric an Sl an ('; ( 19 70) , Swallo ·T the La ~e (197 0 ), Symptoms and I!adnes s ( 197 1 ), Priva t e Linc (1 9 71 ), Th e Cotton Club ( 19 72 ) a n d The Svn cona t ed Cakewal!· (197 4 ) , as we ll a s novels a nd essays . He h as a l so d i rec t e d t he Ha r l em Writ e r s 1ork s h op . In t he ackno rl I" ledg~ .., cnt s to Poetry, ~!ajo r indebts th e a ntholo ~y to Many i nflu e n c s: Lowenfels, r.\ I-.!__J: Nat Hen,i5o ff, Recd, Raphael, . rt Ber g e r, J£.!!!s; Tt:::::Y Sr.ii th, Randall, D ec:bl At ins, Breme n, ~ ~ Ful ler, 'oun ~ , and David Hende r son . Ha j or's " Down Wind Aga i n st t 'he Hi ghest Peaks" i s typical of J ~ ( his style: { shd a ;i"\ angledJ twisted langua3e, spacings that r e pla ce unctua t i on , tidbit s of wo r ld knowl ed__, e a pp lied to t . e racial s t a tcMent (sa t ire or ex:1orl ta t i on) , and ex peri::1e'1t a l t y?o ~r.:1 1):1y . II ~ecalling hi s " p as s a i:: ) ' he s ees 'o nt o Sm'lJ O '.d ll..:. ~ •u 10 tin~ t ::.1 t e•, e n ~1exicof " a n a SSi(. ss i n3 na ti un" M "'lOW ;1as t he " s upe r-b l on d e " o n it s " ,; il l boa r ds." In t~ e mi ds t o f all t h es e events , t ~e poet s vi go rou s l y promoted ~ e x t e n ded t hei r c onc ep ts a n u v.:.sions . p r oz r a□~ Sp ri 6 g s and ;Jmed .\l~a .. i si ,.e r e c o r respondin3 ed ito r s of t he Journal ; Da ra k n , :·;aj o r , !'-;azzam Al Sudan (now El : ~haji r) a nd ~e al became con t r i b uting ed itors . was late r joined b y Tou r ~ Ed itor- a t - lar ge Bullins In t h e seventiesJ Er nie Hkalimoto wa s .:1dde d as a con t ributin g e dito ) witl1 :.ajo r ' s n a:ne c i.sappear ing . Sp ri ~g s , Dullins , 3a r aka , a nd ~lha□ i s i !!aj ar , Rand all , ~;eal , h ave a l l s e r v ed as 3 uest specia l e ditors . An importan t influ enc e o n ( .:in d o ut le t f or) t:1c n ew po e t r y , t he J ourn al was ,1) 0 �" in many ways born of Soulbook and Dia orue " (Co~ editor) . lvcs , now Dingane , Journal The magaz ine continues to prin t t he ne~~~c poe tr y , zeroin~ in on ~ other areas ~ ~ the West Indies ( umr.1er} 1973) , announcemen ts+ as well as revi ews and criticism . .pri ~i. ng live l y news and 1 It: ~pringl 19631 issue , for examp l e , was dedicated to Joseph T. Johnson, Los Angel es poet who had @1 recently been killed. and Co~ Abdul Karim editeJ Dlad: Dialoc ue with Spriggs , To~ lves serving as associate ed it ors . , Re l oca ting in :N'ew York in the l ate sixties , Di alogue ' s new editorial board was represented by Spriggs , Ni kk i Giovanni , J a ci Early, Ela i n e J ones, S .f . And er son a nd J ames l!inton . I Alhamisi / and Ca rolyn Rodger s became .{i dwest ed itors; Spelldan, Julia Fi e l ds and Akinshiju became ed it or s for the Sou t h ; and Joans and Kg os it si le took over a s Afric a and a t-la r ge editors . ff} Soul oo~ ' s ed itorial boar d now includ es \ Hamil t on , Alhamisi, Carol Hornes , Baba Lamumba , Zolili, Shango Umoja . gqond i ~1asimini and A.~ ons t he admi nistra tive staff is Dona ld St one (Rahman ~ whose work aup ears i n Black Fire ancl a l l t.1e journals . f u ong with Sp rig:;s , To ur9 and Larry : li l ler ( 'atibu), Rahnan ai eJ '>ar.::i ·a at Spirit Ho us e . /4 His "Tr ansc e: ~ Bl ues," full o f c '1ant / song a nd line1 e x perimen t a tion , fuses the wor ld of / f lac · ;___/ music (a nd musicians) with t he " s trife r-:· ddl e d c onc r e te bottoms o f sky s cr aper seas ." ahman ' s influences, obvious in 1is name , are seen in his statement I that a " rif f " so high and grand "Could be llah ." Finall)j. winding the poemf L into a tri~ute to the J'l-ack woman ("Bitter bit her b i tternes s humming" ), he rejects Chr i stians and whites and warns that d {f) ffThe Islam Hy s pears shall rain •..• influence is also seen in ot her poe ts of t he period : v Sp ri ggs , Tou r¥, Ila r aka, Iman, ~leal, Al ha mis i, Dumas, Harvin :·~, Sonia Sanchez, who ,.,_ro.e~~t"'""-·· poets . Ost ,.·-- • along with Ni kki Giovanni emer ged a s one of the m ) of the �era . I Th ese uor:1cn ;, octs a n<l oth er sM .'\u<l r e Larde, J une Jordan, Ka tt i e ~f. Cunbo , Jayn e Cort e z, .\le x is Deve a ux , ~ ~ Jones) l j S - vi eo.lt \ty slor M }I\Of a c tive 8 (U;f.. h e y, ---._ "- worn f exci t ement , ~etry b Adding to this ~ cJ/;I i!t.!!!!!0 a ma e o.zines ~ ~ . kIn · c· ■~ n womt.r)ipoetr II t A. s r 1. 1.ovann1.· , ~ int e rest are ~ new )'l a c k p rofound thinker and p rovocative s peake r J>.'(~tld \ f'l to ~ heL(>Cd Th e mo st f amous "' an d l-:§§©Dkl~· Loftin , Odc1ro (Barbara ■■11--lilili;. cr ea tet, a new wa a bout the poss ibilities and potentials ii Iae Jacks on, poet r y . ,>G ,t4;th:.~~l~ills Encore a and insights d o not Her rout e to New York was b y way of Tenne s see a nd Fi s k Un i v e r sitv wher e s h e wa s a member o f Ki l len s ' Writ e r s Horksho p . -J Fa me came i n t he lat e six tie) aft e r she pe n ned a se ri es o f v o l atile p r ose-like s t at ements WA~~ ~ ere star tlingj ~ eve n mo r e s o , c omin g f r om a woma n . t½e s i x t i e ' s he p r iva te ly p ub l i s hed B oa <ls ide ~ress and In e r p oe try a nd was l ater brough t out by a r ~e r . u lishe rs . He r v olumes inc lude Black Feelin 0 , Bl a c k Ta l · , Blac1: J 1<l,e ent (19 70), Ile- Creation ljpcai .iii:'- (1970), Hy House l/ (1972) \a nd a booi< of po ens fo r c h ilJren , Spin a Soft Bl a c k So ng ( 19 71 ) . I:er an t ho l oey of/ 1~ lace ,,;on c n noe t s , 1H r:h t Coues So ftl v , wa s ~~tUeJ. ,f"M i J I in / and s h e l o.s r ecor~ e d alhu~s , wri t t e n an a u t ob i og r aphy , and p ubl i shed a se ries o f "co!lve r sa ti ons " with :1ar '-'a r e t Walke r . ~ G\. nvmew,os t h e new po ets, s :1e h a s been a cc o r ded /\accolades : sub.Te(:toP Ei ghly controv e r sial among - - •"wo1aan o f the ~ o.n<.(S ice l "lta Ebony t and 1.:. ssen c e; appea r . .A on t he 'iea r J ,m r d ; #\f ea tur eS in Jisg · andMi~ Do~w a.mvc.h ~ ✓, J o:m ny C<.1 .:so~ fi lim* a sought - af ter ~ speake r on t he college ,;4-ec.lv,- (!? _ A.ec_i p ,'en t b f Qt'\ ..,,--- f.-oM v circuit; Hrx ad J •·'/\honorary do ct orate ~ - ~ lilbe rf orce University and ' =•A l abe l ed _,jf t }1 c " rincess o f 1Hack Poe try 11 by ~ Ida Lewis , Encore editor . enounc e <l as a n "individualist" by :!adhubuti (Lee) and praised by Ha r garct lfDHalker o.nd Ad dison Ga y le , ho.s re.Jeired :-:ikki Gio:1anni 1,J si il +.±£§di"'~ ';,(evolut ionary . " ~ '1°' H8££ ii a it st d ' ,.., , · 1 Iler s ing ing of " God Illess America" on e , as related reading, Andrea Benton Rushing , s "Images of Black Women i n Afro-American Poet ry" ~Black World, September £ff! 1975}. �! natio nal t el.ev ision , :if te r r ecciv ini; t he ~ llor.1an of the Yea r .,/4-1ar<l , pror.1p t ed .Som e So.w tol\i n"dlwons '1nih'£' µ., om dl\ w ho1 l e tt e r s t o Jrtacl: publ ica t ions q ues t ioni n 0 her s i n c er it y . A 7furin3 t ;1e sixt ie) ~ wr o t e " Of Libera tion" : ~ Dykes o f t he wo r ld are un i t ed Fa ggots go t t h eir t hing t o get h er (Eve r yone is o r g anized ) Blac k people ci1ese ar e f ac t s Whe r e ' s your power .. • . Honk ies r u le t he wo r ld fMllt The mos t vi tal co1'11!lo dity in faerica Is Blac· people Ask any circul"lcized hankie ... • The final s tanza o f thi 4~"po em'f varns: rur choice now is iar or dea th Our op tion is survival Listen to you r own Black h e a rt s 0 "Concerni ng gne I~es ponsible :~egro :::zith too guch Power'' echoes ot h er t.1emes i :1 h e_/ew_/1.a c~/ oe try . Th e " r e s pon:i ble""' neg;~ " a r e " sca r ed" a nd on t he run . t e lls t her.1 t'.a t (? your t on ;:; u e mu s t be r er.iove d s i nc e yo u have no b r a in t o k e ep i t i n c hec~ In " Ref l e ctions on April 4, 1968 , " she c a ll s Dr . Ki ng ' s assas s i na t ion " an a ct Th e pa nt s �'.(i'tf.) ~orat<>' of " Beautiful Bl a c.· ;tery'~'h ug! wha t i like t o hu~ . " The re is the chara cterist i c ....-. True r epetition an<l er.1o tion-freigh te d lan gua gJ as in " ·~ Import of t he Pr e~~en t Dialogue , Dl a c k v s J e gro": f ~igger Ca n you kill Can yo u kill Can a nigger kill Can a nigg er kill a 10n zie Ca n a nigger k ill t he ~Ian ... Can you s tab-a- jew •.. e Can you run a pro t es t ant down with your ' 68 I:l do r ado • •• Can you p is s on a bl ond h ead . .. . Th e poem continues , reciting name s o µ., the " enemy" and catalo gi ng crimes and wrong-doing s vis ited on Tilacks , finally a s· ing : (~ " Lear n to kill ni;:;ger s Le arn to be Bl ack ne1t9 4/4uch of wha t .. .. • l i • ,1 11(1( 1 Gi ova nni wa s s a • ·in"l , in the sixties mov ed...,.iiack youthM it was not ahmys sa fe o r c 1ic to disa '3 ree even if you wan ted to ~ an<l some of it was admi r able . But t1ese t hings do no t nake her uo r k defensible as poetry . "Hy Poem" ,: md "Poem for Aretha" are ce rt a inly worthy, even noble, subjects i--. 91t:1Kd -._,I fa 1 le i s ur e l y <lown t he pa ge, ani:;ling he re and the re but revealing nothin:; o f the insight i nto hur.ian be i nc s or poe ti \--\e\-- po,e.T~J(tld~.$)'piGIS.m <.\l'\d imo.<j t~ 4nd he power that one finds in a poem by ..-n....omesshow he .. AS~ vka.-.,o Hel ene J oim son , ~-!ar ga ret Walker , Gwendo l yn Brooks , or Jayne Cortez . /\" Nikki- Ro at) ft'I. C. t. otr6 f\ fo -H, ~ V'V f,e her 11os t oft en quo t Qd poem from t :ie ea rly e riod, is I( hi !ifa p Lr at ·• • I l1f :e nira: I t has a believ:::b le_, ~iiu .:.l'i_:!.hx: conversa ti n-like lan;;ua ge (cha racteristic o f �l t.s hone.sliv 1at) . her poetry ~ and -.Nletail ~ ~ the inner reach e s of the col ec tiv e jiackf a pe ri enc~ as she unfolds t e story of fa::iily un a nd r.iisfo rtu e : 't,) your bio:;r aphe rs neve r und erstand your fa t her ' s pain a s he sells hi s stock and a nother drean goes And t h ough you ' r e poo r it isn ' t poverty t ha t conce rns y oug .•• ~fy House is a n ewe r ••t ~ f Giovanni . The venom h as l e ssened, tho u ~h so . e of t h e r ampage i s e v i den t i n a..:..!,6 e::r li!ss: " On Se e ing Back Jour nal and Ha tchin1; Nine Ne g ro Leaders ' cave Ai ~-11P1°h.ere 41'-,J'echn"b~ and Comfort to the Ene!11.y 1 to . .· " 1mp._~"em.et1T wn sty l f £) ~ Qrig..,o.&e ~ l~t')O.iSWf'.i~,~.. . a ttf! l'! IH@ uot e Ri c hard ,rixon • ., The poems deal wit h love, t h e c i t y , chi l dhoo d (alway s her rite s o f woman-passage), Africa and Af ro-Anerican culturc .Yf.,r p r onise and ?Otential c an be glimpsed in 11 .'\frica I": on t he bit e of a kola nut i wa s s o hig h t!1 e c l ouds blanket in::; CJ O a fric a in t ;;.e n i , orniE::; f ; ~;ht , 'ere pushe d m..my in a n an:.; r, A fl lc :er of the sun ' s tongue . . .. ,., .,inlsce3 Fr>O.rloel '1(:akki Giovanni's i1,1 por t anc eJl\,ies 1-1....,e,.'J_, in her personal influence (especially her great drama on al u1us and i n pub lic).> wh ich ha s inspired many youn3 /-:;,k women to write about t:ienselves ano their world. Jack so:7 who won Blnck Uorld s Conrad n ut some of the m, e nt Rivers Award, ~ : Iae ave ye t to show t he Mu $Cl~tsor,~ "stuff " of poe t ry in the ir writing s . 1969 by Bl nck Dfalo~ue :!:ub lis:i.crs . Can I poe t wit :1 You ,ms pub lis hed in " -:::;; :al·.ki Giova mi wrote the I n tro d uct io ~ a n d �lla e J a ckso n, i n turn , l.! e ic:i t e<l tl.c book to lie r . ro e t is f ul l of t!lll " c or.1p l aint s " t hat quickl y becar,e n onotonous in t 1, c oc t r y o f t ~1e s i x ti es . In themes an<l usa ~es , tlw poems r ese1a8le ::i ·l:i Gi ovaQn i ' s worL "To React ionary , " " To the lle g ro I nt e llec tu al , " \rl t heAcon Som ei,'mQ.S fused are fam ilia r • aml rl istur oe<l anna l s o: the new po etry . Sonia Sa nche z, c lo s e l y i · enti fied uith t he new poe tr y a nJ t he new cons ciousness , a lte r na t es be t we en t e r s e , exp l i c it ver se a nd t he spr m1l i n3 , - pr osaic meande rings t hat often serv e f t he auditory denands of t he new auJi en ces . Fornerly marr ied t o te poet EtheriJ~e Znight , she has ac t iv ely wa r ted a s - ~ ler playwright , poet ancl teac:1er. People (1 970) , It ' s a ~fou Day: V - ooks are Homeco~ing ( .6 9), \Ca Iladdddd Poems for Youn 0 Brothas and Sistus (1971), Love Poems (19 73) and an a ntho lo3y from her £ oun; Writers 1fork shop a t the Count ee Cullen Librar • i n 1~ew •or ~, T 1ree Hundred and Si x t v De~rees of Blackness Cominl at You (19 72) . G "Ha lcolm" is a lament and a night - filled memory fo r Yet t his n t h is dre u1.e r, t h i ck- li p,e~ with uo r ds will neve r s peak a ga i n a nJ i n each w~t e r when the col<l air cracks u i th frost, I ' ll br eathe his br eath and mourn my ~un- f i lle d ni ~ht s . He r " f or unborn ma lcolms ," howev e ~ is ano t her app ro a ch . Constric ting words i ~ structure , anJ -.,: t emp ting to achiev e aj iack str e e t sp e ech, she t ells Bl acks �to " ~it the word out" to t!w " man/boy " ~urdcrc. r , ho is tal:in•; a " 1oliday ." IHacks are " hip to his shit " and \·: hen " blk/princes• cie a8ain white " fc1 6 gots" oeuUtn 1'ttue " will die t oo ." , n experimentalist, Son · a Sanchez ad<leu he r ~voice to the derisive langua ge in the new vers e. (" d~: ition for flood of angry , c yn ical an blk/children"): 0 ~ a po lic eman L, is a pig in \a z oo 1aninals . and until he s t ops killing blk/peo le c r ackin~ open their heads re enber . l t~1e ~ pol iceman is a pi • (oink/ [ ... oi k . ) She also joined the poe tr, of~ ac~~ l o•;e and man- woman unity , seeking throu ::;h her part icular s t yle a nd voice to hea l wounds of doubt, ~ i s tru s t and loneliness . In "to all sister 7" she says " :1urt" is ot t he "bag"f~!"en " shd be i n ." a re advised to love t.1e / l a c k man who ma. e s them "tu rn in/ side out." journey ha·s carr i ed her fro;;i t.he ~ 11:ed dtclo.m<A.i'ihls ..,,.id£ t h e They Her revolutionary to the be~vTv ' I\ -----quie t.ti••l'{Urbulenc e ~of Love Poems -b eing , maybe, amon '.; the fi rst of the new poets to fu\!fill Ran all 's pr ediction tha t / 1act poet r y would " move from t 11e - - - - - -- - -- - -- - - - -- - - �declama t or v t o t he sub j e ctive mod e ." P· June Jordan ;>ublished Hho Lo ok a t :ie (1969), Some Chan~e s (1971) , -trrr a n tholo gy Soulscr i p t (1970), and a volume of poetry b y stud en ts in h e r Br oo;~1:.£reativ e wr iting workshop , The Voices of the Children (19 70) . ,4,,le.ol\ l>oe~ ~ !.f ~~ ~ ~e'Mi.t.'l H e r ~ volume of poetry i s ~~ w Day$~ 1974 ). Concise, analy tical , and ~ based, her poetry is ~ a f r ee: verse / tyl e characteristic of p ractically all t h e recent / l a c k ~ t r y . " Un c l e Bul l - of a nan whose eye s " were rink with a lcohol." .~H Jn y" re la t es t h e Jea th l:u,nq Tl'fe"-b rot her (uncle) ren i n i s c cs , t h e mann e r of / l ad~ men , abou t their s na r ing of s tr ee t l t al;: , e xp e nsive ~ s h o es , and a l cohol . ; n<l finally : deacl fron d rin!~in 6 drank to c lear h is t h ink i n g s aw the roach insi<le the riddle . Soon t h e bubbles from his g l ass we r e t he onl y b its of c h arm whic ov e rcame his foldc<l arns . udr e Lo r e' s "f'..i t es of Pas sag e" ( fo r ,, t Liz Jr ) e u log iz e s Dr . Kin~ : J ; ~1 ow rock t he boa t to f a r e- t ~ e l l. r er:1er2b e r s lii~1 t h is way : Quick c h ild r en k is s us we a r e g rowin::; through dr ean . Huch of Au d r e Lorde ' s recent wor k conc e rns young peop l e; even t h e title o f h er latest book , 1 ::-on a L~ 1Jher e -~ ther People Live (1973) , carrie s the a we and d r eam of t h e c h ild ' s world . !:{ S:1e writes now about teachers , mj n-wom n ,... relations, seaso ns, ,l rea:as : "As I Grow llP A6 ain,.'._' anJ ._ ---"=-- - - -- - - - - - 11 :S lad~ l!other Womar;; ' �who t hinks of her mm mo t he r' s s t ren g t h when '' s t ranger s cone t o cooplir.1ent " he r : I l earned f rom you to deny r.1ys el f t hrough yo ur denials . Among t he yo unge r New Yor k women poet s , J udy Sir.mans , Alex is Deveaux and Elo~ 1 ~ of tin sing ou t. Jud ith ' s Bl ues (Br oadside ) was p,: li s hed in 19 7J . The poe!!ls s ubmerge themsel ves i n t he t r oub l ed hunan psyc hE! ("S chi zophr cni ~ i a nd explore the "Youth Cult ," "Hon en , " and " Daff odils "i althou ~h the titles do no t reveal t he poet ' s pi t hy sea rchings . Reflecting J udy Si mmons ' s t udy of psycholo gy , t h e poe try yiel ds i t s meaning a s t he multiple layers of tensions a nd ins ights a r e uncovered . In "Schizophrenia " the "animal squat 5 ' next to the " piano " in a " co r n e s" with an abno rma l number of l egs , arms , and a mou t h t hat stre tc.1es from " or ehead to abdomen ." ... ~ei,15 But the poet ~ssu~ ~,_.,., he rsel f that i f she does no t l ose control it uon ' t come back inside of me(;) ';- a,J-~~ Lof tin ' s poe try (J umb ish , 1972 , n e r so~ Hal ~ -the eo.se o i ma ge r y , indica t ive per haps o ff,...t hese new t echnic.:.ans ha s yout h fu l , zes t y K.th~tt9Cl4~ 8 t. " Ra i n Sp r ead " informs : ~ f Las t night t hrew her leg s open to me .. • . --the, She has the new woman s ens i bili ty , a good knowledge o f /\so c ial land scape , and the cynicis m of t en fo und among t oday ' s young , gift ed and / lack . " z ett in .:::. ca ugh t" dis plays he r humor and wi t: - - -- - - - - { i f t h ~y ca tc h you �uith you r p:m t s down f~ yo ur cuar <l o r peeing f or fr e e i f t hey catch you do i ng s omething c razy with quotes a round it and t ry to mate you feel like yo u been catched you raust be <laing sone # Spirits int e Street s (197J) ls A e:~is Deveaux ' s s t ran~e but fas cinating e prose- poetry accoun t of 3rowi ng up in Harlem. • A We st I ndian mot her , dj s paid ~- ov e r a hus band ' s mi s use of h i s wife and ch i l dr en, compla i ns : / l . lor<l uhy he bea t that ~mr.,an s o? and them c;.1i ldren r, od only l:now wha t ' s gonna happen t o t.1em. . e a t i n po ison . jesus hav e mercy . c:iildrcn . has l _ e . ea t you up inside you can ' t be too car eful with you :::;ot t o wa tch t hem every sec ond . T ic world is s o ev il ho ney you know wha t i 11ean? ne rcif u l jesus s hane t hem wi th t he l ast word . T es e e~ ~amples rep r e s ent only a fract ion of the new poetry be i ng wri t t en by youn~e r (and olJe r) new York=area poets . P~illip oloDon , Ca y l e ~)• Ot her s are Cathe rine Cue stas , Joner ~:le,w~ ~wartler,~e~:~l~w.ff ~M.\~i;~· - �!.OM e_ an<l Glen Th oTI 1 son , t o :1; ~ r.ie I' !'lrlmdfal. oc ts we."~ L11.1.11,<..h e d Wl!OA•z ti . in "'--' the earl ie r pe ri od a l s o pub lished n ew it er.i.s . ~ ha) Hende rs on ' s Fe lix of th e Sile nt , For e st (1967) was introduced by Jonesfi... Jlill n ffn e o p:raphcd The Poetry o ~ Soul Jie also pub lished De Haye r of Ha rlem in 1970, t he s ame year bea rs no date . he •® tnv•ctd m11 t:a~to Berkeley . r:s sentially a Harlem poe t , Hen e rson sur v e ys every thing fron the " Harlem Rebellion, Summer 1964" to "Ha rl em Anthropolo g · ." 1(;.he t ransitions a nd outreac hing s of these poe ts are also evid ent in ., r,oet I . ~ Tour~ who in 1968 went t o t e ach ..)"'fa c kfa udie s at San rrancisco Sta t e Co llege . l.• . wor.~s are Juj u (1 9 70 , Th i rd Wor ld Press ) a n d Songha i ! ( ,11.s the l atter puJl i she<l b · Songhai Press and intro uc 2J by (illens . " Soul-bifts" are anpl' sp ic ed ui t :1 ph ilos ophy , / 1 c:. h istory ,j (1972) , ~ Tour l ' s lc:.c'.z :-1usic, Islaraic influ ences , anc: " Juju; ' w',.ic:1 says Coltra,e ' s ho rn is "cas cad i:1;; fountains of l oad and bone s . " Son" ha . a n[:;es fro r.1 satir e ' o f Di a na :'.oss ...__,, Pp..fTiqql,m_$oF .;,rnionne Uarwi d:. 1:d"/'--i n!hnc e re a ctiv is ts j _!~e ;-1.igica l powe r o f wor e.ls .---...i- • s tructurf J dea l _J'J. a c.: socie t y . :P"!.,::.,~ tS V!.€crtb Tour ¥ ' s ~l ist of inf luenc e s (see ' sm;;e of . t~1e / ✓ ' l, acl: poetry er.1anc2 t in~ f r om t 1e ,' ew York area : __;;eal , Dur.1:1s , Tiaraka , r;o 9a l ves , Coltrane, ?;,aro~ h. Sanders , Ce c il ,.., ~ :1cBeeM a ll ~ ~\,~• s.,.,.;r-:•roets _,e l a te of ::1 ::ation- i - Fo rma t ion ." deve l op::1e n t s o f t he ~-lew Yo r k n ovenent c a n J e s een i n suc;1 projects as t~1e r'~J.:'!' ,g ' r., + ( Sol Write rs in liarle:n ; T;;,1-~ra , 3 B~ tt le ) an t~1olo._;y o f the 1.'o r- k s hop fo r Youn;; net) Bo s ton- ased. journal devo t ed to the exam~ nation " o f e vents , t h e arts, i deas " ; Betch A.i:i ' t (1974 ) , Celes Tisd.'..l l e ' s anthology ~ o f " I'oems from Attica"; a new an t ho l o:3y o f " Oun,-; poets , He Be oe tin ' (1974) ,' 1 i sd ale; and T!r iters 1·:orkshop Antho l ogy . /\ L;o unifyin3 thread runs through t he wor.· of ~Icw York.::: area poets.!-,exce.p t that of a relentless accept a nce an<l pu r s uit of -the ir j 1~1ckness . - - - - - - - -- - - - -- -- - - - -- - --- - One notes, howeve r, �t llnt L.;s t i c i sm , e :~::rni n.:i t i on of t: ic o c c u t, cosmi c - mus i c;i l f o r ms an<l s u bjec t s , o.nJ t he inf l uen ce of I s lo.11 ;ir e ~ i ,ore ~vi<l e nt 4lilllae t h a n i n the poe try of o t he r ~ Du t t hes e a r e , of co ur se , gen e r a lit·i e s rc~i o n s . await mor e h i n<ls i 3h t a n d r es earc h befo r e t hey c an ~e f i n nli z ed a nd p r es e nted a s sign i f i c a n t phe nonena in the l a r g e r t ape s t r y oi' t)1e po etry . Fina l ly , fo r the Hew Yo r k a r ea , . ~,r y ( <l rurnt h e f i r e of th e oral t r .:td it io n uas i :3nite d lJY t h e d r a mati. <:; 1.ncant;{? a c companied ) <l e c l ana t ions of " t he Las t Poets " a n d " the Or i g i na l Las t Poe ts." ack masse s ~ Along with Gi l Sc o tt- lleron , t h eir ir.1pa c t o n t h e "triem h~s ~lHIS I NJ e e n Aobo .:. . ~u.-+ w;11,11t~ exceflliirt ot 6, l· Scoff-lltro1t(IAll.o h~, '" J0111y-t••~lt\,tse. "'•..,•-..;oti• h"'-vt ;f'em-,;oro.ry s1i.. ••~- ScotF-He,,.01t C,.omb1r,!S 1:>t·cr~iJ"°J3 And ft't-•~reonue,,.1«71~ ,'7~ 4 "' ,!,,2;.:i1':':&6~,,ei~~¾;,;c Uf!z~,,~of ;~dt;~c~dlt•~,:~;.}r~':22 ill ,iilJ f Hf s r , § il B L l @ ff i i t ] p- 11 i. ~ &Etdti J IHtU 4 p L Ii iii I I g@§LCf b§§ Llj§ I iii r ~II :ms L SL&) 3 SC 7 1 lQ?!: ast 9 lti± ! CL 5-2 }, 2d El .&?E t 1 t§E pt6 0 £5 s l g hi &125![J!l!C, 15 & El.!H&dslplt!lmti JI I Qi: ti l Lk ts b f dd 21!!1 ts srd ts nl q . u ~se , th d 1 llfllll!i 1111 111!11!1 g. :.JUrin g t h e New York r es urg enc e a n un b er of t n i ng s we r e ga in;; we l l lo 0 ac1 / o etry in Pennsy lvsnia . Linc oln f ~ ~ c, .,.ovp o P .'r.iv,~r si'" ~ , hi c h p r od uce d T Jl on~ Il u8h e s ~ j.~ delivcr e d a not he rN1 iver se -ef. p e ts dur i n-.; t h is p e r iod : '----" , ndcrs o n , ~ on<l othe r s . H Ca rl Gre e n e , :fa r y- Lo uis e Ho r ton , Eve r e tt Hoa 6 land , Benjamin, C:il '.:: c o f Hcro n , lle r n a dinc Tinne r, r,it a '\lhit ehead \ ~l a n d i s a Br o ad s i de ry o e t ( Bl a ck Velve t, 19 70 ~ a nd Scott- Her o n ( Pr e e ~ ill, Pi e c es of a !~n , e tc . ) i s a r e co r d ing poe t- s in g er . ', o i n _, li::e t he ~luntu / 1:ick a r~i s :: :-: r o u ? ~ foun de <l b :'l e al, Conve r g ing at c.\H. Pul l e r , t he oi reti cian Ji;;lr.ly St e ua r t{ and ~·ar be ll e ~fo ore AI\Philadel phia poe ts fo und various Co.~ I Ot h e r Philadc l ph i~ p oets are,.c r eene (1945F ), Lucy ~r• Ma. t--k TI--o. 11\oh Smit h fr on t'~ c o l ,l.::r schoo l, -;Br ya n; I\ (1943J ) , ~ l a r ence Ma l one y (1940J kinds o f n ss i s tance . ·lT. -J ), �Pat For ( /' , Joseph Bevans Busl\_, . , net _!. Brool:s , i& t,.rtd ·'=' Carol Je:iifer /\ Don ~!iz l ell. (]@( J I ) 1-.o r 1-:s b y s me of these y outhful poets are in \;/ Black Poets I rit e On : A,n ntholo 5y of Black Phi l adelphia Poets (197 0), published by t 1e Black History '1useum Committee. Har o l d Franklin ' s Intro~ duct ion states : 11 " A BLi\CK rOET IND OF WA~ OR - Lthus linkin g Philadelphia M ~<lvltv.,Cl.f t..QnT?ii'oJ s ent iment s to those in ~Tew Yo r -: and Bo ston . The Black Butter fly, Inc . ,"-was o ne of the several cross} oads for various cultural / pol i tical ac tivities in Ph ilad e l phi a . 1]2.r nin~ Its foun d er wa s : :aloney (now Chaka Ta)., who se Di mensions of s published in 1964 h ~ celebrates a " sul try brown Girl1' l na , Spain . 1-7:10 " Good Fri ay: "s eems a s uperio r a nina l. " "sepia siren" also holcls t:.e '';:;e:·1t:en' of a "vi vid passion ." poe ts explore c ity l i f i .\frica, and exal tf a ck n ess . 2 '.::::· " T' is P:1i ladel?hia There is, too , the rage and vehemence often f ound in New Yo r k a nd Chica2;0 poetry . 111-••••J1 12• •• "Co o 1 ~·~"' ~lat chfdd o.9Q •~ <iraylow also captures '1f blacl: ~-: i ;;:1ts " driving street rhy t hms an<l~'hy..es: Cool b l acl: cl· oes an t hem fine -lookin~ 0 fine - walkin~ fl --ie- t all:in; \ fine-lovi:1g them fine soul siste rs .. .. 1 wll.S ~In Pit ts burgh t here ~bor:1 die s:1ort - lived Black Lines : .•j (. Journal of iHack S tu J L!s (197 0 ) . ~ It publishe<ll'P ittsburgh::: area poets J ~ EJ l~ob rson , August �~ a)J?,o_~I\, 8,u10tl1 l~ilsont\ Inan "s d.J'/ t 22 / \ s ,,d l .J3/\ poets fro m th e ~-'. i<lwcs t ~ .\l Crover Armstrong and l{cdr.1ond . Tile University of Pittsliur:-; :1 Press o p ened u p t o p..ack poets t hat s.:.1.r:ie yea r, pub li shinli • Coltrane, 1970; Song : /\ ~ .. ~Wi ,,11,:___ ( Dear John , Dear Can I get a ·, it ness , 19 73) , I;.obcrson (,Then Thy I:in3 '5 V ____y_, 197 'C3 l·lar:1 er and Gc rnld Barrax (Another ~ind of Rain , 1970) . m~es. 11,e o~ -t-ed.~1%ue.s poetry ~ / \the gamut of spacinr.;s and slashes . I Roberson ' s - ¥ 1\and st y les ~ fror.i ne.:it Jr.:1m.:1 t o slant ed In " :nayday " t her e is an "underside of :waven" ,:rnd t he warning from one misunderstood t hat he is " armed" to fi, h1: the final kindlin g of you r dreaning . " Ot hello Jones Dresses fo r Dinner" is a satirical look at the "Guess L"ho ' s f Oming t o Dinner " t ~1eme . -= After datin;; a whi t e wcm.:1n , t he n arra t o r ass ur es her paren t s that he is " well 1::~nne r ed . " group of Pit t sbur g poe ts E Ro erson adds his voice to a 3 rowing includes Kirk Hall (194!~ hM'l~w(>,.;'~ be~ 'fe,th~~utlt · • ~ i r ed .\.n t ' p l in Poe t ic talent •• ). L'ashing ton, ~Ly ~even1ies Sterling Brown continued to teach into the 1('5te iaiut ~ u . . C.> uhere I!oua r d , by nm.; leading all/ lack unive rsities i:1 t;1e neu consciousness, was the scene of a number of significant distu r banc es ~ •!'! . r()'l~t\e toward Aile new~Ii ~'· ] - ,\-h GA ,,._nud ged t he school Hhile Howa r d ' s poe t ic history can b e traced thro u~:1 t h e early days of S terlin:; Brown (and in t o t 1e Eo m r d / oe ts) , the school has produced a nuraber of youn~er writ e rs : ..,Clay Goss , Ethelbert 1!i lle r ,ichard i!esley , r: . (Androniec'i1, 197 1+) , and Paula C:i dings . 1m0-.,"l. ~ / ( . • Jntibew was deep ened and b ro adened b y the appoin t men ts o f the r.u i anese poe t D.:.u:ia s a nd tephen lientlerson (Cnzlish _,P1airman at Morehouse ~ who heads the I n stitute for t ~e Arts and Humanit ies . was~Z1t..o ,., ra t However i ward dram.:i against a series of <levelopnents in t he surro und i ng communiti e s : Federal City College ( Scott- Heron) , Center for Black Education (Garrett) , 500 �School of \fro-,\Jrlcrican Thou::,ht (Gaston ::cal), - --~"' ~ ~ni anJ Press) A.. t.1c D. C. IHac · :lepertcry ~ Drum & Spear ::'.oak.store ._,,, In add ition to Da:nas and Henderson, t h e / nstitut c has a<lc.:eJ . '.::.J: ubuti (Lee ) , Kil lens , Goss, Grown, • rt rnr P . Davis and .\ mos t,e progra:a ' s service to poe ts has been invaluable . have f ton . Ctl\..l Selected for#\nonori11111 een Baraka, G·.-,enclolyn Brooks , Joans , and Dotlson . .Zn tf.te~ Al rea<l :/ ~ A nun er of -..;, poe ts were a l so featured i n t hel\.t i rst . nnual Synposiu~.1 : .... Lucille Cl fton, I Goss, Sco tt-H e r on, /1.desanya lakoye, Hiller• ,_, Johnston a nd Kgo sit s ile were gu es ts for a ~ ltural__,,Yr e s et ce in t 11e A-.,ericas . . read and be recorded or t : e and llar Evans . Toure, r o;:;raM e:rnminin;:; th " ,- fricnn Several po e ts have b e e n ' nv it ed t o ermanen t audio/video librar y : J aye Cort ez , Crouch, Davis, Sa r nh Web s ter Fabio, Harper, Jeffers, Joans, Redmond, Sonia Sanchez, Scot t-Heron, Br u c e St . J ohn , }!ar gar e t 1·,a l ~~er , a nd J2.y ': ri gh t. L 1 963 Ga s t on :·cal s.:iit: .1is " 11hilo so phy" was " to pur ge myself of t 1e whiteness wit hin n e a n ' l in\, c r-::1 l :2 t ely t:it h ~ay / t o d e stroy t '.!2 e,,e:-1.1 anJ r :::'Ju il .:i jl , lC 1K / a~ _r o t h er s in t . 2 str1gJle .2 t.1on ." • a t tl1a t tas c fo r a \::1::.lc ue:o r e t':2 Af r o- __cric a :i s cho o' clos c J. . o. " ; r ,_.,~ 1:1inglcd" In " TmLty " w't 1i. . 1 e :; w.u , . c,1 , 1,1au, •oe • an cl h e 1_:i:'l.ente cl t'.1e Jun;; en JI (/) I r <le f ~ouerell b:· no.pal . ... • 't{;;_a rl Cart er , anotl1e r D. C. poet , appears in l.:r1( er : -, ncl-inG the Xew '.Hae:~ oe try. lie evokes the s, irits of t 11e " :ier ocs' ' of Orangeb ur g , Jackson , }1e□phis, :lew Yo r k , anJ ~7ashville , r e c alling t h:.it Jurin;; a riot in ::.ishvil e he \:as f) lUJ. in:3 s0':ler.:l~ere in uy n ind •.1i th ElJ ridge Cleaver ... • 5 D/ - - - - - -- -- -- - - -- - - - - - - - - - \ �" noo t s " i s an u :1succ..:ssful at - e.1 , i t lnngua::;e wit h a fonaa l En:::lis 1 o f\l SC the d r ama of coll oquial ,J'i- ack narra tive about his grandmothe r. #ot!1cr poe t s liv ing o r pub li shin~ i n tl e D. C. a rea during the sixti e s anJ seve nti e s ,,.~ Atlcl Ccu-· ..-·, e o l'ld l<a erTA. tfo ir'\ ~ were Bernadet t e Go lden (1 949J ) , le! len Quigless (1945,ij )"ca Beatrice Ifarphy (19C8j of p ) , w10 ov e r t he years has contributed greatly to t1e g rowt h hA) ~..edit ed ack poe tr~ thr ee i m ortant anthologies: Ebony Rhy t hn (194 7) a nJ Today ' s r:eg ro Voices (197 0 ) . He r o,m volu1aes o f poetry ar e Love i s a Ter r i b l e Tl i n1_3 (1945) and , with I~an1 Crv Out (F~ D~oad s id ~ . in the new phaset with tensions caused by ove r emph a s izing " white " a nd '/ l ack, " anJ war . te~perament. h r to g ~ someo n e i\rnez, The Rocks Ee r own p oe try has moved from a trad itional meter to a t r a ditio n a l free vers 7 d ealinei a nd s i x c1.1ilcl r en . r1e~ r o Voic es (193 0 ), She is currently Even her ti t l e s sug:;es t something about lie r spirit and In t he swamp o f d e p r e ss i on an<l b i eakness, it is indeed warming ,rJ.o "\& 11,os p r oclaim Go o ci ;-:ews ! ~ " Eld rid ge"A.i s compared to a mea t " cleaver" will not " r ust o r b r e a k ." And the r e ~ ur.10 r , irony and truth in �,~ " a tel~" I ~ h e;.Q. t l1c " always c!run.·" de ivery nan says : , {)) ~ 11 I ' m 25 years olt! and a ll t he whit e boys are younger t 1an ne . ~~ t II hile some sine good tir.1es in the kitchen, t:ie r e a r e a l s o o t her acknow{ led iiraents : " falcolm," " Eldrid-~ e , " " Bobby Seale ," and -•,. s t udent1par ticipan ts\in dernol\ ~4tt'- V\S /\f t Jac,,su n and Kent / tates . t er.i.porary set tinl~ to f Good :1e\ s i lie al st ories . bout the I:arth ::;i ves a } lack ~ d -t~e ve;.x womo.»Lf on ~ . 'Y Mo st arc unique, l ike f\ Mar y ": t his kiss qS !\.s of t a s cotton ve r . y bre ast all sh · ny ri i:; t so et i s is in this g t o e Lor .1avc ,. ere' on i f ee a c;a r c.en in my out bet .;reen my l eg s i see a tree . n Or dinary .Joman is consciou s l y mma1:; and t'he ,roeTTls , like those in o t her vol ume s, dea l with eve r day ¥7■4fl- "or ,aJ-ta. ,Hf~ become more of the r.1 _ (' l p LutiLle cL\ for1 _inar y~ I\ hin" s . Howeve r, .,._,:,,'1as sti~ , usin~ surreal an d al uso r y ima ge r y, a s i n " Ka li," t,ho.L';Y, -th ere ,s " The Coming of TZali, " " Her Love Poem~ ' a nd " Sa l t ."A'Cod 's Hood " : • �(() .:e is tire j o [ cone , 1• V it breaks . lle is tire<l of eve ' s fan cy an<l a<lam ' s whining ways . ,. ill\i <@ntr OCl Cornish is a poe t , teac 1er and editor . / (~ A,..dt,...._J (19 63 ) , -=-=..:;.__,al!ll~...=-:-..:;.:.;=-l~ ~ 9 70)~ th ..t.r.ie Wi bo oks inclu rf:\ 'en ~ r a tions ·d th i·i . Lucian , he edited Chicory: ....,,Younc Voices ,9!) which developed into a series still be in::; pub l i shed by the Enoch Pratt Fre e Library (Community Action Program) . ed it or o f Ch i corv i s :•:elvi n E· wa r d Br own . Current Co rn i sh ha s n uch s t y listi c ar.n:11{, nit ion and is a preci se navigator of l an~ uage . Ee tells 'n u~:-'. CLASS G I'..LS F I T I Cl.I PPLEu FL~GEl!S ,;AITD,G FO~ , IT: TO LI GHT TffCIR C GXR •,'l'iS " \ yo ur finger s '--' fol ed in your lap con tr ol the serpent i n your eye s your face never s tarin;; with a ST'lile in yo ur ruffled your eyes po:,ulate the 1ric.· wi t h re s t less s tares . The influen ce of Cornish and othe rs c an be seen in Zxpress You rsel ~(l973), an 11 antholo gy of student writin g s 11 from ~Qmondson Hi gh ~choo ~ and I Speak (1973), poems by students at Copp i n ~tate Colleae-'-" the c OPPin Poets . F, "" II �~ (1Iew Orleans ), t~w Ex - Umbra poets C- ortl1 Carolina Central University)., c_norih Carc,Linct ~~re Vtvi'~tTy) Gates Wile s College , Alabar.ia ), Gera l d Barrax (1933J aY\o Powell), Leo J . . :ason (_\tlanta) I\. .o .. en zo T e tty ) , Ladele X (Leslie , . T~onas . The 're,tnl ~ receive ,$ an<l s give1 new blood to po etry t irou ~ . Co~ltr'\ U 8A!l ,•: c, : Sor.1e we J ef f e r teachers co and frorc. the So uth . ~known o ] <ler n a::1es arc , ohns o~1':(James ), Bra i thwa it e , To l so n , Jla7dc:i, a 1 cse ,. ---'••vt~...,.a.t 1·,pt(t.11 yu,.s. ,;, #te _A~;..4 ~ ~un ~er p oe ts ~ ou t a re 1 udr e Lor e (T Ot!al oo ), Redmo nd (Southern ) , ~fr i ;"ht (Tooga o o a n d Ta llad e ,,a), Spe /i , an (' lo r e house) , and K~ ositsi l e (. or th Ca r o l ina ~ • ment . 1iJ: --~ 1 EL IA.cl r anat ic C an" e & T). s a re s ult , bols are everywher e : 0 ti, {3- ac, w nsc ou ness T 1e Free Souther et and t~e Das iki theat e rs '--" in Jew Orleans, SUDAN Sou th /Hes t poetry-rausic theater g ro 11p i n i.i.ous ton, t he Theater of .\f r o- Arts i . !iar1i, a;;c. .\l an.ta ' s i",. a c ": Im.1"e . o r ;;ani z e·: t h e Cen t e r fo r l, ac:.: .·.r:/ f1ic' In At l an t d., SpcJ/i a n pub l ishes ~:w t :.": (1 9 70) . S t one bcr...11 e e<l it o r, :J.,0n (S ize:-1on 1 e 1: 1a rlos ~~i·-::'.ce::1 i ) poe try e d it o -::- and Spellman e J it o r of e ssays a '.1d f 2atures . The s-1:~:1e r to fional cl L . Gra:10.r.1 (l l;/, 'i ,... ( l S: 71; issue 7".... , :'net-th eore tici un ~-;.10 succccdeJ l~ille:1s us Ji r cctor of tl e 1::ri.ters Worl-.slwp a t risl~ . ~wcl ~mb l · 3.1e t:1rce coo <.s : Grah:m , who was a lso o. nusician, B ::.c\ Son~ , Soul .._,; ro tion w and Soul ,!otion I I ....., Rhytim sai<l he '\.,as runnin'._', o:ie of t~e b:idclest ,10 r kshops in t'.1e Sou t h " and " te':ch ing a t t he Revolutionary Peop le ' s coller; e in ,:o.s. vill e ." 11,~ ,..-.fu.,enT,o.l :t"sm\)te ,f 'the ~o..~~ World, AL.so In "-\L~Vl\O... \~ - :1ar :3aret .Ja lker , a lo, z.;.:- tine teache r a t J:.ickson Sta te Colle~e ia :iis sis si?P i, '.10s t eJ i.n 19 73 tlle b it c c nt ennfal cele r a tion of th e pu lication ~ - -- - - - - - - -- - - - - �. .(. of Phf l lis l. .1e.:1tley ' s PoeP1s . He r m:n r,oetry , :1mjev0.r , h.1.s ch.::in 6 c,J sm:i.e~,ha ~ T'ro :)hets f ron t he stanc e s;,c too:z i n for ~'.y Peo 1)l2 . an<l Octob e r Jo urne~ (197 3 ) a r e tl i f:icu lt t o ju<l:;e a ~ j11e st her o t :1er ,.rn r lj ~ turned to t l1e n ov e l in t he fi ft i e s a nd sb;tie s ~ were p ub l i shed i n jou rnals iJetween 193 0 and 19 60 . t he / ivil,,f-ght s {ovement , about 11 c:::::'..' s eve ral poens i n Oc t ober Al I D !!!" She .-rit e s Birr:1in8han, 11 " Street De mo ns t ra tio n, 11 " J a e s on , :-tissis s i ppi , 11 hibL,.c.o.L on Ha s h ing ton , and t he ~ J}u-f/!,Ji,w~ rophet s ~ • Prouhe t s i s a ch roni cle of ~ ant: IJC lid for a ':e\-; Day (197') ) ro phe t s : v " J e r er.i i nh ," " I sa i ah ," " A..-:1 os; 11 ~ the ;Iarc:1 and " Joe . " ( :alcolcr , :ledgar Ever s , Andy Goodman , Michael Schwcrne,J) - J a mes Chane).) . - . __, ought " opp r ession" in Louisiana, l:iss issi::,pi a nd Ceor;;ia . ,(AA Oc t ober isAa quieter noo<l , e~ployi~~ a v ar iet y of verse forns inclu<lin 6 the ,\;\. bal lad in " Harrie t Tu .>uan ." I 1 "1'r9tl v-e. t wd Li<• ... s J I 1- !\own uni9ue , ·' sonnet · is IJ,,d. Hc Leod Ile t hune" and " :or Paul Lm-Jrenc e Dun bar ." seen in " For ;-:ary ,('ne ear l i e r p o e t i s su g.; sted i n " I want t o Hrite" ! · (i,, I m mt t o u r i te s on '.i s o_ All· ce nI', a l : e r , nave i' s~ t a11 • poetuni st'tarl !Jlltll e , ~ wit h n ::ir'."; o.ret Hal k er . and Revolutiona r v C:::.S, a re Once (1968) / ~ J ~ - - - a pun . Her poems ,11c.LvJe A'mjf(\her ovt~own g eneral e x J criences, and f\.some sa tire. Once relates t he stor y of the you n e / beach in AlabamaA\ in the " nuJe ." "' st a te of '-.' 1.' ss1·c::s1. · pp1.· ( :JAc · ,:,.,.,·,) ~ e tunias (1973) t '!-le ti tl e of wh ich, judg i n~ from ot her riz hts a ctivitie ~ to Pe tunias: ~ d i e r volumes s t a temen ts she has .na de , is p rob ·1b v civi people . 1:iy l ac <. A peen in man who wanted to i ntegrate a wh it e She announc es 1er deb ts in the dedication Ge o Y." ~e Jackson, " heroes and heroines, and f ri end s of early S~JCC," B~b Moses, an<l Fanni e Lou Hame r . These poems (written in p ersonal t o nes) deal �fol:<l with historY; ~ 11 r ona n ce " t h at " s tr en;; t h a nc t he stuff thej -a ck South is made of : 0 ssome<l " in pc, s a t fune ral s ; wo:::en wi t 1 fi sts t 1'1t 11 " b a tt e r ed" doo r c: ( ''S unda y Sc .1001, Ci rca 1950'')j a " ba ckwoods wo::1a n ,,1h o kill s her husband ' s n urd e r c r, t h en r emind s her exe cutor s to wa t e r t , e II pe t unias . And she also wr ites of a different kin ij of a ,.,e " : The sil ence b e tween y ou r wor ds rams i n to n e like a sword . f Yet an~the r Hi ssissif,,1-an and poe t is Julius Eri c TOompson, a histor y te ache r at Too ga l oo . Hop e s t ied u p in Pr om i s e s was p u lished in 197 0 and aims a t :;.. l i ft i n g t he new c onsciousnes s above me r e " hopes . bei n g a p " Black 11 nck I!lan . in Hiss is si?P i, "Delta C. il r en , ower . 11 Th ere i s also a ser ie I n Lo uisiana., nuch n e ' ? oe t r ha s neiadui p oets ali.:_e ._ re s s, in ow (\in er. eWe 1 i dd e r, San Fra . cis c ~ a T, ompson i1rit es about 11 .1artin Luther Kin:3 .._, ; nnd of poems on Af r'c a . een flTfl,1~ from the pens o you ; a nd «,LL . C. , /\edits Hoodoo ma ~a zine throu~h Ener ~: le forner 1.y c o edit e d T ; e .eva, "ew Ye r . Cr> 1) V ok i e/ h n s ed in l oodoo I, dedica ted t o t wo f l ack st uden ts killed b y po licemen on t h e campus of Southern u nivers i t y i n November of E',2 , co nr: a i ne<l uor.. b:r Lorenz o · 1on.:1 s, ~·ay ::ille r, P inki ~ Lane , . 1 amu Ya S a 1 nam, J e rr, " arJ, an-,➔ ot.,e ' ,,-.. .ba se <l poe t s . '-a r sout.h @oli@..__,; - 1[00<100 2 & ::i, ~ a doub l e is sue :>ublis r,ed in 1975 , con t a i ns u orl~ of r.iore s out hern poe t s : Ar t:1enia Bate s ,~il lican , ,\li c e 1!aU~er , a n d Charl e s Rowe l l , as well as s e l e c tionS frora t he b r ander worl d of;'1-.:ic l. wr i tin~ . Ener g Bl a c k South Press wi ll a lso pub lish A l i .,ger e d M,e n , Zu-Jo_ t on ' s first vo l ume o f poeras .1 /~nder t he guidanc e v11ive rsi'v of t he la t e [ ng lish c ha i rna n , !!elvin A. But le r , So uth ern1'est ab lshed the sho r t - lived Black [ xp e ri e ncc , t.1e f irs t iss u e o f which con taine d s everal �po c .1s edits b y ,\lvin Aul; ert, a Sout:1e r n al bsidian: 1, nus ,,ho now resides in ::eu York a nJ Black Literature in 1;.eview . Aubert ' s A'"' ainst t he l', lucs \,- (197 l) surveys blues , love an<l :1is Louisiana herita6c . i1inkic Lane, nt:!\, Englis h Departnent h ead at South ern , publi s 1ed lin<l Thoushts (1 9 72) a s well as severa( /r-::;;;;~d'!s: , Two Poems (1972) , Poems to , Cy father (1972), and Songs to t h e Dialysis Machine (1972), all lHou 6 ht out by South a nd '.lest, Inc . , of Ar,,ansas . South and Hest is also t ~1 e publisher of t l1e annual Poens b y Blacks (197 0 , 1971, 1972~ for which Pink ie Lane has beco1:1e p e r n anent ed itor. ilutl e r inau~u r a te<l t ~e annu al Bl acl Poe try Fes tiv a l in 197~. In t he pr og r am o f t h e fi r s t f e s t i v al, he stat e d : r The Black roe t r y Festival prov i des a rare opportuni t y t o b r ing t oge t h er p r ofe ss ional an apprent i ce poe t s in an effort to d e fine a n d le3 it imi:3e all for.i.s of rnac:: poetic talent as a ~relu<le emu pos t l ude to tlefining a~d lc iti~i2in~ t he reality of Dl ack people . 0 Eo?efu lly , t he r es u l t s of our effo rt s wi ll be a bet t er under¼-, s t anding a nd a ~ r cate r a~prec·a t ion of t~c lives , asp ira t i on s ~ d a chievenen ts o f Dlacl~ !1e o p l e . t<--~ inc.tvc!,hq -a..-1:he festivals ,fk A) !ta a ttracted a nur.:b er of poets/\ ::~ ~ ~ &.k'J ~ hy0f t~, ~ p,.i111 ~ Si,tcl."'J Sonia Sanchez , f\i-,andall, Re<l:uon<l (writer - in-residence , s umr.1er s , 197 l ~ 7 2) ' I\Zu-13ol ton, .lb.'i"'t Cotrt•JJ. M11tlf'll.tts1 1;eu,•J Knight , Aubert , ~Luc1.lle Cliftt i::i-:,r a l m:m Salaam, :;eal ,,/\u<lre 41.or<let a n .kLaurin . B proql'4IYISJ The ~ •• rl ll!t+- whic Irr.ia -..:.,, include d student poe t s and musicians , h ave i nspired a Poetry !fritinc \forrnhop under the supervision 0~ well , an English i n s tr uctor .</("The first~ ~oluri1es o f Poems by Blacks c o n t ain a rich l o de of southern poets : Leon E . ~:iles (Phi antler Smit1 ColleEe) , Elijah Saab (Litt e ~ ... /tff."Y (i;hso"Cfallo~ .. Cotte,a~ Roe;·) , Booker T . Jncl<.son (LittlcJ oc ~) ~t\y B~c«.C.l.e"'avnc Owt11 C0Uf9 (i'.Ier:iphis) , t(\ r thur Pf i ster 'J , A Eddie ~~,tA Wil.r(l~,_,,,-~) Scott Gfet:!phis) •A.O tis ,Toodar<l ,, (Tuskegee Ins t itu t e , Beer Cans Bu llets Things & iec e s, �L, nd4,. HtNind; 1972) ,/\.r!pto':l P earson ( ad:son, :'.ississip_ i), k T.:lcquel ,n ~ryn.n t benv,\ s H- o.. ~~tU.. ('fo.UMA~see); C'criJin. n , ~ oi.s 1t,.t. fe.dd___ Hi l ler ( Baton ~.ou ~e ), K ar ara Jean ;(ni3 .. t ("emphj s ):11\ ~2.ml 1:a t l l~ccn n.eed • voL:al ) (sJ.tdii~,\ ot edit th e fi rst two i.ssues of Poerr.s /\ ") ( Shrevepor t) . SC i s s .e a cteLl as advi_ s e. , r and 1 er own uorl: was sn stantially r ep r esented . . ee1i\. 1 a £i iftec~ wo r dl1:1anip ulnto ~ with ~onl unna t e skill a nd ~ assion . !orth of Ea ton "Q.ou;.> e/ in :·i ew Orleans, the fre e Sou t hern T' .e t ~r burned out 1t out o y th ~ l u t e sixties, it s .,orksho;.is c a111e n ~o. b oJ which Tom Dent, one of t he found e rs of car ri e s t e wor· of BLK, RTSOUTH writers . Some BLl-(Aln s ouT:l poe t s are 9al.o.arv1 t i on . FST, and tMl m •f\nou ~o i ntly ed it t h e publica / I (Bar bara ' ln..l c olri ), r\.ayr.1onJ ;'cnt , Saln..an , ?,e nalclo Fer nar e z, :·ayo n ov e'.cle n t a r c o fte n ex? r esseJ ih:: tt ~r outsi<l e or- ,__ ...:.._...,- ?oet r ·:::::_:::y ., ,....,.. Q L1 l_..,,J .., :ash in:; t on rv 1· ·1.ons . , . ,.,. ,0t t o ) . .J'✓ro'.:1 t.1e ,_., ✓ Afro - .\."'TI.e rican s alvati on . ,:e a dv i se s ula c l:s to spend l es s t i r.1e r appin;; drink.in~ a a<l nore tiI'le ,-;o r::in;; for S tat 1• lJecit /ul _'/ :1e c2.··se . ,.1.1u In " -:'-ay Ci1a rl es at :tissi..;sipµi s ay's : I bear pe ople wa it i..:; for t:. ·. rio t t o '.Jc,;i:.. in 0 • I.1ea rt s .• .. t .. eir /' Of " The P. lues ," . alaa1:1 says : --~ { , IP> ,\ ".' - . (/ ·-- - ~~b ·· · · I"', i t is not su mission . ~ .... ;~ut t:oe. nuch of his wa r :-. is speect t . 11 Sal.::ia::i h as also ,>uhlis:1e J Eofu ::i ·wenu : ~Iy Fear Is / or You (1'?73)') \-1h ich receive<l a 1-ri ixcd rcvi cu f r o:n n.owell in t h e , �is . ae of 01::?c:: '.·'orlJ . ~J~ h.:ls ~ an ~ Vtl Lvo.ble ::c,-1 J\ Gr cans - ascJ 1:ilac:.~ Colle',;; i.:r··.1) editor pubLt,Ji•n, ell ow ,LK.'\RTSOUT :e r ner iiayo urites a " edtir.:e S tory": ._an c:.;:ch::mGe betwe en r.1o ther and son about " revolution ." .\nswering t :1e son ' s question , "~hen we go nna have t he revolution? " the mother " But , says " ~ oon1 son . If The other poe t s cas t igate ~ hitey an' praise Blacks . ironicallY, they write very l itt l e abo ut southern life . Den t curr ently leads ") the Con~o Square lritin3 ~orkshop . Dillar an Julia ~1oonl i 9 T1ere are also writing workshops at ,~avicr _;{i1iversities . . cu~l\tr\ i~lds , ~ ~ i v1.ng in North Carolinn, brou 0 h t out East of tly 1t i n 1973 , u t one of h er mos t e loqu ent t est i non ies is " Hi gh on the I I o J" \ hich cs t ab i s h es .1er ri ::;: t 6 " r ut" or " 0 -11 . 11 to hav e "caviar " or " Sh rimp scuffle" over ~e nenus an po litical stances are over exoticizeJ by revolutionari es, she says, ,:1..<l she has " earned " t 1e ri ght to do w~rn t she li · es . "' c :c::s even hear :~as pai er due st clo.►t "· ;n tf) ·:.'.lus " sc rear1ing and " oma tici zing pa in . " and irn<l eno •~;h p ressures f r om 1e su t le~ ., le,e , Dut irect ~ ( s•,...e•• ~~im:n;shtw_.tll@ ~e"tt-r. Ai1.1i1Y" ~""1":'""""'s•f ...... ~l'Jll!fl!lli ht111Y".~.\.,L11: e=:Wts · aiill.:- 1e1) of Julia ot.1 sides of the color line . "h'~'lfo~..e F .. .,. iel s suggests ~ ca~~~~~ ~~v e r Ilut she Jna c k poetry. -- v.'- 1.· 1 e ns / • __1 ry st1MJ21. ct TT .. r 1.' t e rs /) f Conferences at Fi sk l' ive rsi ty, t 11e mos t ir.1portant one taking plac e ia p r ing I\ of 967 . Hayden, who had been a t Fisk since the fo rties) left in 1968 after a seri es of brus hes wi th pro ;-,onents of the .Jfiac <'. _}(es t h etic . fcrence (::,robabl_ b t.e s trm that soT'le ,:,.s a l'"!aj or · unctur c in t!-"le T;i_e 1967 co ttl, rake the came l ' s back for Hayden) is seen /ew/ lack writinG. Gwendolyn Broo ,s tall:ed .:lbou t it in h e r :1utob • t o 6 raphy , : :ar~are t i:alkcr dis cussed it wi t~ ilikki Gi ov a n ni i:1 their pub li s h ed " con ~r sa!:ions , " and Hoy t Full e r wrote ~lowing l y of i t in !Hae._ 1-:0 rl . l-!rit c r s ~ ttE.mlins t:1e conference ~vere David Llo ren s · ull~r , �Ron llilner, Cln r "-e, Bennett, Hargaret Danne r, t-: i kki Giova nni , Randal l , Lee, ar ga r et Walker, Sonia Sanc!1ez , Jones.,., and H.:ir 6 aret Burrou r;hs . ~ Probabl; held in the South fo r s ymb ol i c reasons, t~.e conference provided the first real n ationa l d r ama t i c arena fo r old and y oung wr i ter s . Gwendolyn Brook s (a " Ne g r o " t hen, she ha s said ) recalls b ein g " coldl y res pe ct ed " after just having flown t o Nas hville f r om " white white South Dako t a ." However, s he was among the f i rst (wi th Randall and Fuller) to take up the banner of t he j 'lack ./esthetic and the causes of t he y oung wr i ters . Such a c tion, of c our se, was dis p l e asin g t o a numb e r of white a n d _}(lac k poets, not the l eas t anong them Ilaydcry i,ho r efuses to a cknowled g e the existenc e o f a "s e parate" a est he tic for Blacks (Kale idoscop , ~ J anuary.., 1968 Bl a c k Wo rl<l po ll) . Alt h our,h the Fis k I -e~QMOLt ML fu k L ' has b een fo llowe d b y dozens o f r l a ck college s all over the South, Mi dwest a nd Ea st, ther e i s s ti l l n o mo n ol i t hic s tan d on • II b . rs 1,zeep tr •in;; • . di L a 1.re c t1.ono/ u t s ane ~- rite t o g • ve t 'nen a n yway . ~~d ~ ne in 'Y II ' . cation of t he heal t hy diversity anon~ / l a ck writers_ is the jour n al ~oa ts , published a t Te xa s Southern univer sity . I: itors arc Tor.my Guy , Jef free J,me s , Lot"tn301homa~ is tl.LS~ Assoc.lo.Ted wi't"i thE J>ubUc4,rt,n 7 urne r ~faorton , a nd r'.a:ice \.'il l ",:1. s . " Vo lume I , n mb e 1 ~~ con ta i ns e s says, a r t a nd t he works o f several poe t s , no st of t h en sou t hern e rs . ': The f poet r y , d e v oid ...., of monotonous theme or style, represen ts a broad range of interes t s in linl t ~uis tic s , subjects and f orn s . ~ gaz ed forever backwards." In ~ ' lo., n "a love suprem~ says1 "all my eyes 1' she ' 11 never kno~ " 7[ickey Leland writ es of vario us aspects of t he social and physical landscape, including the "Kink/ ) h ,:iire<l boys" who b ui ld "a rsenals of str.:iw . " Clarence \la rd notes in "Hanging • On" t hat t h e rent has gone u p, eviction i s ir:unt nen t, t he r e is no food fo r t h e baby , and (!!} a anging on aint easy ... . ,... r. �1 j. ahr.al j .' s tit l e " i'.a r ~l l'ea(: : 1a!,cs a Sof t Ass " i rap lie s the poer.1 s statc:ne11t . Tour.iy And fantasy eternaliz cs , " liLc - [1:e ·• k E t !1e T:1es of unity , self - es t eem , the : frican " raot:1e rland , " and i anger rer.1ain in t i1c n ew poetry as t. e :riJwest and ~.'est contr· i bute ~ ;nrilliance i mmensely to ~ and th e controve rsey . .i Ohio , for example , r ep re'-\-' sented a unique gat]1ering of diverse views on t he new cons c iousness , a ttr acting a number of poe ts to aid t :1e wa r. of ~;orman Jordan ( Kili:;o re ~ ( all f ~ Cleveland ) and Lern t on . ')JoJ ) , At\ins , Ja::1es ;Tow at Oberlin , Hernt on suc ~eeded Q,,-4 ~ P.eclrnonrl ~ . i , . & 6 uriter-in-residenc e there..... -cvv d@"el ,.,y Trou C began a resiclency c:t Oilio Unive rsit y . during lle rnton ' s leavetofjabs e nce . / Sara·-~-~~;:::J~~a~ also t a u; !1t : t Ob e rlin -:;..6./l,IJAy Howev e r , Cleve lan~ activity was s purr ed bllk~G.~J by a lon;:;; t r a ditio n o f, /l a c <. wri ter s i nclu i ng~ ~u ::; ies , t found er s of Ka r n u .:ouse) a nd At ~i :is . host o f y o u ze r ooc t s : . "' , n t hony 1esnutt (one o _ t:w T:1is c ont inuun n roduc cd Jord.:m a !1d ~ u<l g e , La rry Howar d , Larry \• ade , :\ ft ;; i xon, Clin t Nel son, !\obert F l enin"' (;,u \:a i s ma~azine) , Alan Bell , Ro land Fo rte, Ted l..ft\l~ Hayes, E 1\J uf o r d a nJ Di ~l Russ e ll o f t;w 'fontu acts . Ot her partici µatin:; "ritcri: ar tist s , ;er e Clyde S 1y, , -iee r ~ashid ancl Anett.:1 J e fferson . Suppo rt for poets and their activities c ace f rom va rious p laces : and Pos t, AL r o- Set lllac~ Arts p r oject , Vnited Blacz Ar tists , Free La.ce and ~ j.u ,iC:t- Karamu Ho us e whe L , un. . .:ia ' s p ays ',ere p roducecl ~ ~ ()I)~-~-~~ . writ es out of a stronr tradi tion of fl a ck hur.1anism nur t ured in r~fG~; relig i ous howes . His volu1~es arc :1,1.e Big uffalo and 0Sher fgem§ MiJnight Hast (19 70 ) a nd A Tirne of Black Devotion (1971 . ( 1969), The poerns cx_os c t c contradictions in Ame rica n ,/euo cracy and surv ey the " Hi gh Rise Dr eams " of ct I 119 Blacks caur;h t i n the urban:renewa l scrabble . Devotion, ded i i catcd to Co retta Sco tt Ki n/j , vibrates with conc e rn!,, for / 1.:ick studen t s , T}iirJ - - - - -- -- -- - - - - - - - - �\!or d survival, an<l a fo ci ati n with Fra;{.. Fanon .~ poet , Jo rdan is sorncti:::ies angr y , cynical and violen ~ and mys tical. He has r, ublished t h ree volumes : 1971), Above ?,aya (19 71)-f nn<l ,\·:ith :!arc. a Ga ge , different kin<l of o t her Destination : ti□e s .._, pr ophetic Ashes (196 7 , Two & &ts ( 19 7Li ). Ded icated to the " Cor.ununity , " Destination contains Jordan ' s best and nost memorable poems . In Cleveland he ener ged as a maj or fo r ce in the new. flack poe t r y, uniting the older tradition, symbolized by Free Lance, and the !·!un t u joets . Destination, first pub lished pr ivately by J or dan , was l a ter brought out by Third World Press (Chicago) with an Introduction by Lee , who sa i d he " l earned" t hat Hu;;hes had no need to " r e -writ e and revise! " ( ! ) Anyway , Destina tion chr onic les J or dan ' s ovm dev e lopment f r om t he per iod of civil ri 0 hts t hrough; (lac / ower. na r rative ma k~n;:,- amp l e use l "fe . ~ T:1e r e es s . r r anin ,. , f o r "I 11 alco b ve Jlis po e t ry is a ll free v e rse, f d ra1:1a ti s persona f r om ev e r y walk o0 -ack li s . , violence, poverty, een '11ira c le s . " and dancing , " but no"":, at Ci,- 'tltt t.Uey) onel i nes s and exal t ation of . c " de scr ibes t hose on r e lie f, hunr; r y a nd c ol d) 1\ e l i e Reed us ed t o be a ' i rl ab nu t town , "L;m ghing 6 s he is <lead and her zho st "trc .bl es'\_in a ~ _i:;i 3 J u · nc bo tt l e, 'need i ns · fix . " (~ usually~=~li!.\ ---- Jordan also spoo fs " Eiz:-i. Art and Al l t;a t Jazz ": ~ T'uck you an<l your <la·,m ver'"'s le t rne tell it li;~e i.t is ,..,. pas t fy ",:,2 Ji!1z - am~ fo;1key. t. e Lions '' (1966) is 111s r:J OSt an t holo gized poe The " a rmy" of brief -case-ca rr yin~ social ,,mrkers invade s / l a ck neighborhood s each no rnin:3 , pas!l out checks , raov~ quickly f r oP.1 one Joor to another, an<l , af t er f illing ,- ;,, �~ quot{ , leav i "before Jark . " The r e are ~ lso poems about r:rystici::;:1, reli3 i on , mytholo~y+ and ka r r.ia , incluJing drawings of eyes , trian:;lcs .:1.td c ircles~ all r eflectin~ the nwny influences on JorJan ' s work a nJ t he approachin _, ..., new Mood (Above Hava ). Du t De st ina tion, with it s short , e• pizrammatic ve r ses ...., and para bles , sees t hrough allusory , romantic " un ity" near the encl and n ount s an attack on revolutionary charlatans , backt liders of t he ri1ovement and t hose who view violence as t he only soluti on to racism. Yet " Cosnic ;.1i tchdoc t ors" reaf firms his faith in . flack writers work ing far into a " liquid nigh t' 1' the' prov ide the f ounda t io n U fo r t omo r row ' s l ibe r a t ion . Jor dan ' s b eli ef in t he r.iy st i cal , mag ical p mve rs of t h e wo r d c a n b e s een i n t he name Vi bra tion , a Clev e land na 0 a z i ne wit h wh ich '1e wa s closel y associ a t ed . It is " De d ica t ed t o t he Re s u rrect ion o f t h e .!e nt a l ly and Sp ir itually Dead . " . . Ohi o poe t s fou n d o u tl e t s fo r t h e i r wo r k i n Vi ra t ion a:1d o t '.1e r journ als ; Dlack As c en s i ons (Cuyaho ~a Co1rin un i t (Ohio Sta t e Cnive rsit y) ar.d Li. el ine : Co l l e g e ) , Pr oud Black I r:1a3es ~- 1en Ane r ic a . in z s Sh e Cr oaks C :Je r lin ) . Obe rlin s tuden t s a l s o pr oduc e d a sp ec i al f lac k issue o f t h e co ll ege ' s Ac t ivis t raaeazine; it c on t ainer! po ems b y b oth s t ud e nt s an d well: m own poe t s . Fudge , a staff member of Blac k Ascens ions, publis , ed Eig ration in 1972 . · .t;{Lmer 8v~on5, Jt11nOJ11 Clevel1nd poe t I\ D. , Fel ton (1934~ ) , brou~h t out Conclusions ) with an Iutroi duct::..on by Atkins) who praised the young poet for n ' t conscious ly engagin3 in the " d isfigur ement of percep tions" to pole1:1icize '' constricted kin d of ~ \If.Y'S~ ' relevance . ' " 1 j In " An Elegy to i~ ternit y ," Felton , a vibrant ~ oet , says : Tear- ducts s,ell , b ursting in a 0 ':i de ligh t of flood and fury . Garfield J ackson , a young prize- winning poet , is one of the editors of �Proud Blac k I mages . } any yo ung a nd older Oh i o poe t s are included among i ts pages: ~Forre st r.ay , Di anne Go uiJ , Jacki e Toone , Ibrahim Aslam (Chris J enkins ), I3a ttut a Lu.·amba :Oar ca , Linda Ca l lender, Beverly Cheeks , Antar Sudan Hberi, Le atrice Emeruwa, Roslyn Perry Ford , Ray riont gomery , Ki l gore , ()... Jordan ♦ ...., and other s • Alt hough t he journa l ' s ti tle s e t s ~,._conc e ptua l pace and places it in t he st ream of the new conscious ne s s , t he r e i s no un ify i ng t heme or idea in the po e try . John Hhittaker call s " Singe rs, Dancers " t he " doer s of initial deeds" and P1 1mp l emen t e r s of t he i nevit a ble Hla ck lif e . <;,\,- He rnto n , who a t tenclecl Ohi o sch oo s, became wri t er - i n- r e sidence a t Centra l State Unive r s i t yi Ee published Tl1e Co□ in~ of Ch rones to the i n the sixties . House of Nightson 0 in 196~ and ince then he .-!as writt en man. on i\merica ' s social/ se1:ua l !1an ups . in t1e first issue o shovs Hernton playfu 1 t h i ngs . t hi 0 e of lis mos t po verful poens appear ed on front a tion: (summer4 19 70)/ founr1er a d c<li e oaks and articl e s J ournal of Third ~or d Literature bv Troupe a t Ohio niversit, . " Street Scene" o ·n ~ at the identit _ question along wi th other When he '.!leets and s -r-eak s t o h i s " dr e an " on t l-ie " stree t, " he r ece i ve s an si:Jer: "Go t o hell, s onofabi tc ." Confrontation a l s o ublishes other Ohio poets; y eti its conce rns are broac_y as seen in the names of contributing e dit or s : v Damas , Ser gio Mondragon, Fernando Alegr {a, r•;ea l , Redmo ncl, Tam Fiori , David lend ers on, :.'·!el vi n E<luar ds 1 d Wi lfre d ALSI llaowe-1 ,~ictlll,i,,,,o,11,c n~C.IOOMS~ • Ca rt ey . ~0the r Oh i o conmuni l e sA: ci II · l(l t OST r '. Ci ncinaf t i ' s first s: . '" ";.J.' _ /lac~ t , 0s t ival was o r ganized by Nikki Giovanni i n 1 963 and ou t of t. is e ffo rt g re,.i The ~fow Thea ter . i;er ~e rt Martin (19JJJ ) , ~rew "ark t h e Nine ) '/ �::111 io:, u:i.J ( ther 'oc'''S (l)G'.?), 11:.1dc an i :11:1easurably valuab e contr ' but i vn to t:1c underst::m<lin~ cii j-ac:, puc try \Jh('.11 • c or'-'anizcd the P ul Laurence lJun ar Ccntennl.'.ll lu l':.)7 _ at t!1e l'niv2rsity of Day ton . Indiana heaved for t!1 precious words fror.i. Gar y , Indianapolis , PurJue , Terre Huute and otjer areas . ::ari Evans organized ar ts and c onsciousness pro~; r ams in In<li.:1;1.n )Olis and :Hooming -on . I An a Black Wor.i.an, ~ ontainL O poer.i.s written ove_ several years , unfortunately <lid not find a publisher until 1970. However , tie book deservedly received the Black Academy of Art s and Letters Second Annual Po e try , u arcl . Sh e has been closely identified with activities v'. in Chi c ag ~ where Thir J ~ o r ld Press publ i shes h er c 1i l<lren _"'s wri t L.-1gs t i tle po er.1 is :cnar:; .;:1 .1 spiritual , 11s, c 10 lo~ic.'.ll a n J his t orical j o ur ney of t !1e;{l a c k /' • s e " tri ,:;et ~-r c /J fincers " nou seek t'.1e softness of ny w rrior ' s ,\ 1aajor . o er.)1 • ~ ; ~~ . it co..1b i nc sv the ~~ -~~ -=s~ so s in::;ing or acl~ un it y an<l :\f r i ca . In bet of the ~od ernists a s t o ~ive the imp r es sio n of someo ne ~ar i _vnn s s c a n s other fie l d s iur.1.r.1ing .:1lon::; witl of ,,.Zl ac ~ life , ,;ri i ng auout eard .•. • J _:2,:'..::.!$h & techniques ,,it 1 a sw> :: s ~ Her one l y and JejecteJ wo::1en , sel f - pri de , v i olence, " T- _10 c.:m be Do rn Bl a ck " s 1e j o yousl; anJ Je fiant l y asks : can h:: Lorn and not e::ult ! - ~ -d Also closely associ.:1 t ed with the Chicago an<l De troit movements is r. t I\ 1. ge Knight (1933R ) , who ,J.:;.s serving u @:.year tcru i n Indiana State Prison when Poems fron Prison (1~68) _appeareu 1 -£2!!9 wit}\ @ a Preface by Gwend olyn .... �Brooks . She called h is poetry Vital. Vital. This poe try is a majo r announcement .•• • And t he re is blackness, inclusive, possess e<l and given; freed and terrible and beautiful. Her ovm version of t :-ie,)flacl:/esthetic was expressed in th e same stat ement: ''Since Etheridge : night is not your stifled artiste, t here is air in these po ems." Kni gh t roams the deep crevices of/ lack s piritual and psychic experi ence s a s he comb i nes the language of the pr ison subt culture with the He bounc e s or drives hard- a poet r y M of " har d bop" ~ looking at pr i s on life , love an<l ancestry. Exceptional pieces r hy thms of/ lack Americ.::i n street speech . a re the folks y " Hard Rock Re turns to Prison fror1 t he Hosp i tal for t he Crimin~l " Insane, " the 11 T:1e Idea of y s t i cal and m, t hica l "He Sees thr ough Stone, " t h e genei l ogica l 1. ncestr · , " the innov.::itiveAaiku sections, and " On U i v e r s a l i s~' . ~ lru.k.$' wh ich wa r ns against applying " unive r sal lai-, s" toA" pa ins " and "chains " in Ame r i c.::i . d, - ab i l ities a r e poi gnantly displayed in haiku "9": Hi s technica Hak ing j a zz S\:i ng in Sevent e en sy l a blc s AIN ' T ~!o s qua:-e :1oet ' s job . l~ni;;ht , w 10 was l .::i t e r r eleas e d f r om prison, also edited Black Voices / ram J Prison (1970) and i n 1973 Broadside Press published Belly Song and Other Poems . J He l oses his r each when he tri0s te- ove r --h ntellec tunl iz his poet ry. /{ ~~ ds \:» ~.01:' s'-'~Pt~ed, v IS Wi L )32& J ± 1 slips into polemics. & ~ p ;=-;-:-:---;;--. , , , • ·- C"@ri T:H?. ..,..,. boo '!!!'! B i1 e y s ong •3 t '1as some fine monentsJ but it sometimes However, Kni ght i s still stretching out as a poet, currently doing r esearch into oral lite r ature wi h the aid of a Curygenheim gr ant . 5.f? - - - - - -- - -- - -- - - -- - - - - -- - - - -- �Bell·, shows hi!!l pur s u in ~ tl1i s trad it ion in "Th e Bo n es of My Fathe5 " which smile a t the n o on i n " !issi ss i p] i from th e bottom !) of the Talla hatch i e. Fina l l y , a numb e r o f po e ts f r om t h is i ene ral r e g ion of the fidwest and South ar e include d in a s pec i a l ,Jl ac k j oet r y issue of Ner,ro American Lite ra tu r e 19 72) e di t ed by Redmo n d . For um (springj The Forum is published by Indiana St a t e Gniversity School of Educa ion and ed ited by John Bayliss , an Englishfilan . I t regul a rly reviews,/J-ack litera ture . Chicago is a ~Ii ,'west heart an · has a long tradition of/ lack/ rts, going bac k t o , and befo re , Coun t Bas i e ' s opening at t he Sunset Clu~ i n 1927 . l~wever, some of t he 1:1or e recen t forces h e l p i n g t o shape the new poetry movement there -theArm , da.b L.e a rel Sout h W or- K!,,lu, ta wtd . \ Bvrri v,J,J} 1 i d e Conraunitj1 Arts Cen t e r , ~J ohnson Publications , :<um3:: s~ JA.~•.,.~• Thea t er ( Franc· s antl V 1 Ha r d), the DuSable !!useum of Af rican Ame ric~ eu.c.(c. ~~ Cutlti~J , /i ns t i tut e of Po si t ive Edu c a t ion and ory,\) 0"'94tliJttic'M OC, Third 1-:'orld Press (Hadhubi ti~ Free . - - - .; 1alc ol::i. X ~ Sp eaks , Ell i s Books t o r es , Ens enbl e ) • Def end er g e , ~scar Brown, Jr . , Philip liJlan 1uhammad ( Artist ic Heritage 3 ;:uch of the new poetry scene g ene r at e s e Ful l er, Bl a c k Wo rl d mana g inc editor , is also advis6r ,OJto OBAC ' s Vriter' s 'Jorl(shop . I n " l9 69 (fall) issue o f :fommo , the wo r k shop ' s a n d Gwendolyn Br o o k s . jo urnal , Ful ler said : [l B ac k L, a ,my o f lookinz a t the world . The poets of OGAC, in revealin3 t ~eir vis i o n , celeb r a te t heir b lackness . I n t !1 i s r.1or:1ent in iis t o r y , what mi gh t under lif f erent circui I �stances be sinply a ssumed must necessarily be asserted . And the OBAC poets know-/4if others do not ~ that pale men out of the West do no t def ine for mankind the perime ters of a rt. This L.!!!.ey want all black people to know. In the /ournal ' s winter issue of the s ame year , Full er said OBAC mei'lbers were " seeking" to be "both sinple and profound." They display an "imag inat ive re4-, presentation of their e;~periences, " but they also seek "to be revolutionary . 11 In the first quote , Fu l ler ' s tone , carrying the ba ttl e - baiticg p1rase i f o t hers do not ," s eemed to cows , as Lee ave been a signal f or , anong others , Don L . . .own Lee ( 1 9421V ) , to cont inue ~is~t tacki on all fronts. s•e~it , " even o..w-t. There .......no s acred a nd since "others do not" know what t he youthf ul Ch i cago Blacks presuma bl y did know , Lee ' s a s signmen t was t o teach t hem . Gwendolyn Brooks concurr ed wi t h nos t of t his feel i ng , embrac ing a s it i;ere a "new" _)D-ackness and (un f ortunat el y) y> ::::::=- !_ enEag i ng in @ 1 I SJ? sel f - depreca tion: ''It f righ tens me to real iz e t ha t, if I had died befo r e the age of fi fty , I would have died a ' ~re1~ro ' f r a c t ion ." Lee/ f ollm, l n8 t he exar.1p l es of RanJ all and Baraka , be gan T, ird \· or l d Press,!a valuable vehicle fo r the new poets~and changed his name in t he early seventies to Haki R . ,'.adhubuti. He also e st abt lished the Institute fo r Positive · ducatioJ which publishes I3lac c. Boo .c.s o.w-e Other poets ,_,i ncluded in the editorial staf [fi Dulletin(<.with himself as j Sterling Plump p (19 40~ ), Johari Amini (Jewel Latimo re) (1935J ,..,.. ), Emanuel, r, Sarah Webs t er Fabio, the lateALlorens ( who launched Lee ' s national career in ~le,.. _, Ebony , Harch h 969) - and~Ran% 11 . OBAC was founded in 1967j ~ poets of varying t ~ ,t;; temperaments were a ttrac t ed to it and Gwendolyn Brook s '~ \workshops : 3 arolyn Rodge r s (1943 1 1 ) , Ualte r Bradford (1937J ) , Ca rl Clar~ (19324 ), �I ), Ronda Davis (1 940~ Cool: (193 ~.; ) ' ), ), Peggy Kenner (193 7; ) , :...../ Sigemonde Winberli (Ebon) Other Chicago= · rea /" Lucille Patterso, ) , Ruwa Chir /). - Th e wo rk of many Chica go ~a r e a p o e ts can be found in ommo, Black Expressions, BL c k Wo r l d, Blad~ Wr it e rs ' News , Huh ammad Speaks, and in the antholo gies A f. New Chicago An t h olo gy (1 971 ), both Broadsid e Tr easu p , (1971) and Jump Ba d: .J edited by (;wendolyn :C r ooks . T:1ey c an als o b e found in - nationall·,t .:istrilmted ant·10 o~ic s a:1d jo urna ls . 1_ as n c1::iG numerous other 1iil!.: Black h'orld , 0.. . n won b y c h i· cago- a rea artists . .. an-!. concept , was f'.concc. sio an d act ivists Ut1'11 l •,-t "11,,-t.•11. .tohnSOr1 Li~s'1~~~~ ,,,': _::;.:e<l aea~ s t ~:;~;;;;J\'<egro igestJ n e late six ies. Fuller , ~ gui<le,._ 111 11 c rgn a · ac s n e w i ma g e through the ~ - • • • ua ters of 1 ) c on t rove r s y a nd chans e, Eu t □any rea der s have been critical of ·11 Som e. _.. :Glac 1' ~:o r lJ ' .., - :_' :1rticulariz"2.J s tan 's , ~lac k of " open" forura on 4ts i ss ·es , .::m<l ~ t2:1uer jo· r na beeY\ c: to circ u::1scribe individuals and g roups . '- 'S ft1 n -f.n,fisp nsa!)lc a.i.c.! t o ~ NetJe.,r 11.eLeu I\,_. t he J lack poets and writers , pri. ting nu11be r o f accoL.1 <lcs anJ t l~c cor:r.1 erc i a l a ttentio n he and his poetry :1ave received . A sA~ pl i n3 of c ritics , poet s a nd scholars who feel he is one of the great est o f t he .e.: po e t ., u oul d h:.i ve to in clude Stephen Eenderson, Fuller, Gwendolyn Erook s/ ia r ga r e t h'a l ke r, Paul a Gidding s, Daraka , Ha ri Evans , Randall and Gay lL. �Gwendolyn Brooks he as s.:.1iJ :i& !11t1lL@j\ r ::-se~·-:nles Jesus Chris ~ .:mcl h e r Int ro i 1 <l ucti o n t o J ur.ip nae 1;:iils 1in a s " th e r.1os t sign ifican t, inventive , ar.J influent ial bla c k poet i n t :1e c o untry ." Ove r l o o k i ns , fo r t he nonent , the P\J.e. ~ qoi.sife,. ·be 1 !ila'.,·l\of r e a<ling " a ll " the poe try in t he "count ry" be f ore maki ng such P4rA.d-t1Y.1c ~ L J a statement , it ~ is . IIP • ~ln view of t 1e " collective" polic y ~ a::-id ?~$1l um,s, I · ~ t he an t i - ind iviclu al i s t w, 1; 1§£ ~ ~~ - .:illegedly forr.r'. t he cornerstone of 4 t he Chic ago po e try s c ene . 9 '~ ~ ~ 1~~1! ubl ished five volumes o f poetry : Pride (1 968), Don ' t Cr v , Screan (19 6 9), (197 0) , Directionscorc : (197 3) . 8 • tc :U 4 of t h~ Jlac:~ (1967) , Black fo '\ a l k the Way of t he :-iew World Selec ted a n d new Poems (1971) and The nook of Life Hi s Dynamit e Voices , Vol . I a study of @ Think IHack! (Broads i d e) , publ i shed i n 1971, is I -- - - - - -- ~ :t.:-r,---._ p o e t s of t 1e s i:<tie s ; b ut it r ev eals y like his other c,.a,t11IC I Sm) \~ tha t he1'a h a z y t ½i nl·e r ' t who l a c k s discr e tion a n ~ irm under stand i n g He spe nd s an entire p a g e , f o r e xamp l e , l a c k po e t r y t r a d itio n . illumi natin z and a pparen tl y a dvo catin 0 t he use o f t he wo r d " mothe r fuc(e r." And any boo k a bout ...,the s i x ti e s s hou ld no t cone of f t he press wit h out exami l ning t h e poe t r y o f LeRoi Jon e s / mamu Jara.~a . of the / few ,t'1 ac·~ )Oe t r y to th e .na n ' s po e tr y . .:tr k i ~fadh ubuti a ttr ibu t es t . e fa t hersh i p ut ~ : i@ it11 R ; ~ m ~ rscuss 11·_.._ There a r c oL e r , incredible flaws i n the boo: , for • ;1ich this y ounz p oet ' s ~...___.., nen t o r s ~ us t s ha r e some bla~e . As a c r itic, h e did not (could not ! ) cul t iv.:it c t!\e " d istance " of a J oh nson , Er e .• , Redding or I ,,---..., . I Henders on , a nd conseque ntly M a-1FetH1¥ la c king d i s cip l ine and tr ainin gM c ould not ____.., - r eal l y see the po et r y0 The boo.kl Is redeeming values, I such as t hey a re·; i-T.S . pos s i bly reside ~n~incidental ·i nfonnS:t :ion ·and tllll biblio graphy. @I �, . poL1i:r.:~ l 1 1-111a ~~c l"'~"'et'il i!l l'ill!'1MI il ••f•n• (Plura n, Cunnil ~lwm, Rod:;e rs , Gil )crt, etc . ) His t:-ie .es 11 ra n:;c fror.1 what 1 r t 1:m P . Davis has c a lled "The ~!ew Poe try of Bla c t Hate , t hr ou ;_;h l ove nnci jlac l-: p r ide, to t 1e he ~ ar_tl pontifica t ion s i n The Boo k o f ,: ,.,.,U .1i. rran ,e s sa: i n ~s a n d parable s stat ed b e tt e r by Aes o~, bush Life wheTrr he r e..y r f ric a ns, Plat o, ~ Daraka♦ and 'i:'o ls on . Li ke _ ik i Giova nni a nd othe r s , h i s -...;_; ea r l y work ret infor ced t h e s elf- love co11c ep t , c as t i::;a te . flac! ~ unity. ~hi t ey and enco ur aged \c\eQ~ wer~ :ros of hi s t ire a, IM!IIR"sur,nc<l up in the titles Thin~ I3lac · ! and nlack Pride; ~ :11s devices arc everyd ay conv ersation\t often not wellt '--" r ~n.r:,1'c.o.1ion 1 uroug1.1t bu t _,oi:1.e tir:ies quite s t.:irtl ins ~ .d rr{us i cal rhy t :ms ("T: e .:all" ) . T.1ese h e a<l justs in .:in often effec tive t yp oeraphy w·li c h raoves in parallel colur:ms v;rtically or ho rizo n t:illy on t ·1e pa~cs . Loo:~s an{~r:.ticaJ! 1 article ) ~:a :m'.mti ~ . , , , . . f \il.s wri t ersJ - as ,le oes .1:1 rmcn o · -..e poe try . "'1 Injntro<luctions to l is ivcs "directions" to / lac:t ~ .,.,.,r irst . _lr.p ressions . -~n Aa a~,1-ov-1~n~/ h ... c,l"IIC.iU <1.'1 Poe t's L-e:ith , '' . . .A le::;y for Co7.r.'.lt'. Ken t f.iv e r s ,,._ un- tall:ed- about 4£!£S3i oP caus l>vf r1uch 11 sex aml cirinl~, he sn:·s , ~ ,f!, 1' rer.1a t u r ~ i _a jl!!3 At:1e often ~otne fR4Jf d,e l a c k <leat:1s . Sr- sl:dwt Aof " t oo " I) oc t s who poe t' seldom die fron ove r e ;~pos ure . I,u t '.1e can unknowin 6 ly dabble ui t L "'lhe Self- ~iatred of ;.;on L . learns t o love t '.1e out er . 11 1 the most c omplex aspects o f / l a c k. l if :, a s 12e_;• w::ere , af t e r s tud y i n~ j-ackh i s t ory , inne_ 11 :JC r so . a ,1d 1,a tc (l1ith vehenenc e ) he �Certainly a profound ,H d tragic dilemma i s stated here$' since hating one 's color will not c hang e itt and since one has to live with it fo r the rest of one's life . It is a :soo<l poem for s tudyin g the so-called "solution" that ·, some Xlacl· writers claim to have "found" to the identity proble1:1 . r :· WI, ~CZ " ] , ' - 3 6£ CS!il&Zl of his l'ilOS t far.10us poems is " Doa' t Cry , Sc ream." 31 ]) ·: SHJ. 1/o One Praised highly by Stephen Henderson , t h e poem paraphrases t1e her { tical rantings of Ron Kar en8-, who encoura ged Blacks to renounce the~ues . . --------I ] ( 11, e..-.c~ yph\c...~ r) ,'i- ') A tribute to Coltrane, 1,._is largely Eraph ic j\;·Tid1 occasional areas of int elligi bility . t·1ere is this sa/J et>t e l f - c.isgu s t : ~s Then n i c ri ed fo r bil ly hol l iday. v t he blu es . we ain ' t blue ? How C.ovLd C.c,LTrllr\ ~~v -•evot.ved 11 w ithoo-r-#l,e bt..uel . t~e b l ues exh i b i ted i llusions o f manhood . r:ven t h e Ge :ma n Janheinz Ja1m ·new bett e r. (\ And cert a inly, toda y , ~-!a <lhubu ti r.ust fa c e t h e q uestion : _ i it " ? t. e b lues we re de struc tiv e, t h en b ow did !1e "make Ind eed, how d i d a n one " ,. ake it" ui t hout t he t o t em of survivalis n s n eces sar t o " c r o ss ov e r" ? Ha d h ubut i ' s i n f luence on t h e n ew p oetry has b een subs tantial , however , though in most instances the inf l uence has been in the area of politics rat 1er t'."la n poetry. r-.e ho.~ \\e lp e.d t~ \)GP" La. ,,i3c lJJ jth oiheY' ''. tfirJ''o P-tt,e)(rw)1Lo.ll'-folTt-YJ \-t, Carolyn Rodgers ' volumes are Paner Soul (19GB), Songs of a Blac kbird 1r (1969), 2 Love Raps ~ Got GYtl, (1975). o dside )~ (1969), Blues Gittin Up (1972) and How I 1:omanly and convincing , she .,rrites of young wor.1en, love , revolutio naries and music . In" hoen ix" s , e recalls traveling " with the wind" and hearing the many voices screaming blooc.ldrops of " Jazz " describes " t.ire e" at t he bar , 1 1 and the mur ur of t:lick nouths ..•• . �" .ebo l us!lina r ? :-:- '7,u, / e a s t u; ju li c 4/e t c . e tc . etc . " is a satir e o n " in i itan ts ." An ci s h e t el l s us tha t c? hits of r.1e s p i n ter e d irC_to a 1:i irror in " Look at :-1y Face a Co lla;; e. " T e se ideas an<l t hefiles , .: ind many others , can also b e found in th e poet r y o f Jo hari Amini, Plumppl: and Cunningham . Johari Amini ' s books include I mages in Black (1967), A Folk Fable (broadside) (1969), Let ' s r:o Sor:iewhere (1970), and She re ies heavil:1 u :,i on l ac" co lloq u i alisr.1s , usual y ach i e ving succe s s . s h e has other r an°e~ as can i9.9 / lack le , wh e re thev c a e seen in 11 Bro t ;1er " whic!1 ./ on g s for wo .. 1($ he " so il " o f fe e l t he sA or .. e a ble S 1 ( 1969 , Ha lf Bl acl:, Half Black.er (1 9 70 ) a nd t o Br eak t he (" r e e (1975) . fOU t her er wi t ha s stu~ • c a lled Bl a c k Ei >-q;lJ sA ( a s o writt e n a r,r ovo c ativ I But unive rs e shud e ~ ... \ J..,,' T'l u "'D' Hip Tale in De th Style (1972) . a 1~::. teps und in psycholo ::'~ , he C,,13) ) (!, His interests ~ l are seen ·n'\ tit le s -H:k:2 " Fr om , ~an l e ss Sis t c rs to Bi3 Bad Rappers," "B l ac :: ,essa~es" ( " elieve in · s " ), " Livin g, T uth " ( " olac\ ]1is t r ~ .. . a Lanne<l ep i c "), ,.,.l) L ,. ;::~,~- t eyr -I or ~J 1_ac~ u ~ \ _ __ '' II : ." .o t ,1e r 'noouJ , C''7c oF t.1c cios t pe r ce7tive , s:.<.i l lfu l ;::,.nJ i:mov a t ivc poets - l=lewevs;i;,.. is Cunningl1a1:i . Hi s one volu,:1e is T:1e Blue l~a rr :i t g_: _(1 974 ~ a nd h e h as b een p ubt ll.s'1ed ,..;i•..!elv i r:. :1eriod ic als . " ";'Le Clty I.i se s" 4s a ~c1<l s t iff \:oo•ien plac Et:)· .. } II .,t . • • I •...:~ic-n s J'_ve: • 11 $1abbecl 1 • .; " t '11e nar r ci t o r L n ,·:.i r • /' /../_Or _,n ,:~n~l.s urnss II ~ Gl5' • l '/On~• r r1.u11 :,r n i;~es t,1e senses; t he "' 11 II l .;y ,.,.,r;:i,1,:1s , an cl ,_1.., en +-..... 1cre l as a nan s tands won ue ring u 11 ows :; r e. c1 t oe t r y .• �11 wh? do~s t he riv e r fl oa t U? t o t h~ sky~ ··· \ -.A Tolsonian ~ t h r s t , " P-.app inL Alo n:; ,vith TI.o n<l a Davi s " is a de l ight ful comb i na tion of :foon beams & yams a n d shows Cunn in3h..;m ' s ab ility t o r lac e d i spa r a t e o r derin z s i n ;1 is poe t i c v i se. " A S t reet i n Ka u f::i.an - vil l e : _,.o r a n o te tlirm,,n t o c a r o l ::, fro:1 r oC.:;;e r s p l ace" i s a stu d _ of t h e " f r a gment s " of Bob Kau f man in who1:1 t he ,1oe t sees a madne s s unlH:e my m·-'!1$ ••• ~ 1f!.. _drr :1.· v :1.· n::., " "."·' r om the :~a rra t or ' s A r,r ·· :..., :.: Tr.:m ce ," \ a song thum.,Cl .: lmm a c r uise r f or a rid C:?J . .. Cunn i n; ian a l so ~.rites of o::.1e r poets a :i.d artists . t 1"1 com u c ti n:; hi s fasc i na t ing ex?eri ments ,,it h t he language , h e celeb r a t e s the wi de sp2n of t he hybr i d Afr o-.\ne ri can h erit.'.l::;2. ~ cert ainl:r, '1e re i s a ?Oe t t o be c lo sely wa t ch ed . ) Ar:long ot11e r C:1i ca:;o :,ac ts ~,~10 " Gi l e rt , :!v O\.m pub ~1ed v olut:les .'.l re ,,. P.a l lel u.ia s ( 9 7 ) : Ci1 ir.:. , ,\:1 c\:10Tvle'<l r- . ~1en t t o : r'l .\ fro - ,\.T'Je r ican Bro t her ~1968) ; Pe r k ins , r, a c, is Zeau ti ul ( 19 6 ) ; ~n:.1 er ~i ( r:b o n ) ~he tt o Sc e n e s ( 1 9 68 ) a n d ]{ev olution ( 96 8 ) ( " ::i ne:1 Dl a ck v o ice to a l a r m t h e es t ablis hment " ~ Perkins); rfar garet Burrou ;;hs , :1:1a t . al l I Te ll mv Chi l d ren 1;.11 10 are Il l a c:<. (1968); Green l e e, Blue s f or a n Afri c an Pr i n cess (19 71) ; Luci lle P a tt e rson , o.b• o. '"~ dN11tt114~ Hoon in Black (1 9 74) ; Steph a ny , ~-fo v in,, Deep (1970) ; Roy ster / 'AtheBl ack Door s (1971); Kgosit:i.le , Jp ir it s [ nch a ined (196 9) a r:c! For :'e lbn (197()); Butler , . " - Black Visions (19'"3 ); and ff ~ Je,f~~ To Pa int a Black Picture (1969). §) n o t a ll C:iicagoans , have been p ublished in Th ird ~fo rld Pr ess '.s ~ s erie s : ,.. An g ela J a c k s on , 1 oodoo/Lov e ~!a g ic (1974); Damali (De nise Bu rne tt), I J\.'11 t hat Ue l lav Be (1974) ; Fred llord, Aft e r ours (1974) and <f!l};> �Sandra Royster , _i~_o_n_ 1c_n__·a_l_k_· (1974). • wui"l Th e se y oung po e ts deal h'it .1 a ~ ari':.t y of \'\O. II"~ (1\llf j'\ subjects, th ou,;h u ith a n ll1 r, variet y c f forris; r: ostly , ho,·eve r, they ar c concerned with r evolut ion, self-pride, he tero sexua l relation s and/ l ack life in urban Ame rica. Gwendo lyn Brooks who, as we saw i n Chap t er V, 1 p 1as a vays -ee n solid in he r ackness and wonclerfully ma g ic in her poe try . The Brooks of In the Yecca (1968), Riot (1969), Family Picture s ( 1970) a nd Aloneness (1971) is not drastically dif fe r ent f r om h e r f o r me r s e lf . In Repo r t /ram Pa rt One (1 972), h e,;-a ut ob i o g r a ph: , she appa r e n t l y app r oved the use of a }{adhubu t i which t e lls more abou h is own r e adin 6 an,J writi a b out t h is g r e;, ~ woman ' s poetry . ~ Pefac e prob ems t~1an i t does Ma dhubuti c ol'lplains about 11er c omp l e ~ v e rs e; b u t her po etry h as never bee n " e asy " t o r e a d ( pr ob a b ly ev e r wi 11 ) 1 a nd rrio t c on t inue s tha t trad i t i on of tou gh ness , a poet r y v ' clds Meanin;; a ft e r man • reading s . She en ,l o: s nyt h ology , history , sarcasm and dramatic dial og u e t o r ev e a l wh i te middle - c la ss oomposi t y ev en in fa c e o 5n~ ".l a ter ~u'7-1~o~es 'the <l~of A V A• " a " Ri o t "j sv .. vey~ Rin~ Cr osby a d . !elv i n Van ree les, and a [ -~~ love. The "Black ph i l osopbe r" is t h e t hre ad t h at s p in e s t he section called @½d Se rmon on the 1.Jar p ~ . Th ere a r e t races o: her t en:; ~ ea r lie r s t yle, _.,; ? articul a rly 1er uni nu c wortl- sounJ pro g re s sions: - - -, ) a s "i1 er unde r fed haunches jerk jazz . An~ a w~ite liberal , obs ervin g a rio t, asks I, " :3ut \{'c-lY do T11ese .People offend t;1el:',selve s?" a J J in;~ t :1a t it is ti:-:ie t ";1elr . "~ a::lilv Pictures contains t he snapsi10ts of he r new youn~ heroes, t!1e people who helpeJ he r .) ecome " Bl a c k ." 11 ' ~ 1 ,el l-neaning t,....,,R..J.- 1 • ~ f~ radfo r d , and youn::; Af ric ans , t he r e :~.:E.: ~:;;J'~~e~';'/ is pe r fect , ~me she is ap p a r ent i y 2 5 sal ut es to ;',, osit ile , "' is a nonoton y of p r aise . --------- -- - - - -- - -- - - - -- Uut d es pite - - -- " _, 6 �struggling .:i.s lwrd with commitment .:i.s sh e is wi t'.1 the new poetry . In ~pe.edyfo 'the Jrog re~s - To~ i.> ln t t" "Speech to t he Young .'' dedica t ed to,-mm ch i ldren , t :1c sensitive mo ther- poet P Live not fo r The-End-of-t he- Son7, . Live in the along . c(J. vtioa-) Such 111B :t•i\come s at an i r.1p ortant juncturej when t]1e wo rl<l is nov ing ri ~h t . ; along , to use a cliche , and leav ing beh ind tho ~ " self-revelations" to look , listen and l earn . o mired in their mm ~ "one crowning salute to t his grea t l a dy of_)tl acl: letters was an i mp r essive antho l ogy of poe t r y and j( Tribu t e t o Gwendolyn Brooks (197 1) , t es t imonials , To r.wen u it h Love : a s sembled by Na<lhubut i and others . Chicago poets we r e only a skip from p 1 ac ,Hi 1 ~ Ga r y , Ind i a napolis, ~ \ a tl o~td I• De troit , ~ St. Louis , Cleveland~ Kans as City~/ anJ the closenessl\12 j int erchange s ,W■■li••~ on all levels . ~ ~o r i 11o tm-m ' s poet ry out 1:m t, like tha t of o t h er com.• ,mni ties , was _ . in t erwoven wit h rela te d symbols and exp r essions of t 1 / t h e Arts, Rev new cons ciousness : ~ •argaret Danner ' s Boone House for Cleag e ' s Sh rin e of t he Bla c :: ~'.adonna , ~·o town P.e cords , Broadside Pr ess , Vaughn ' s Bookstore, and a r ea/ 1a c 1<~s t udie s p r ojects . · The po etry hub for the late sixties anJ seventies, of course, is nandal l ' s Broadside Press . Randa ll has changed as a poet and perso n , he says , in way s t hat perhaps para llel the changes i n Gwendolyn Brooks . .\ " f a ther" figure among some n ew / flack poets , he publishes dozens of t h em (over ~ at this writing) , releas es new books of his own poetry, serves as distributor of Breman's Heritag e Series , and tra vel s widely as J l e cturer , t eacher , libra rian and tr an slato r of Russian ..;;,, po e try . A formalist b y training and temperament , Randa ll described his new p oetic stance in a statement in t'.o<le rn an,l Con temp orary Afro-American Poetry �(Dell, 1972): ,..-- \ }1y poetics is to try to write poe try as well .:is I c.:in. 1) l think I have sai<l elsewhere that t.w function of the poet is to write poetry . !~ earlier poetry was more formal . Now I am tryin g to write a looser , more irre gu lar, nore colloquial and more i<liom.:itic verse . C'Y I a hor logorrhea , an<l try to make poems as concentrated as possible . Ind eed+ Randall has tried to do just th.:it~ moving from a traditional to a loose, convers a t iona l ver s e . ,A and Aft e r the Kill i n3 (197 3) . 11 o lumes ~ Love You (1 970) Th i s he a tt emp t s i'~ 1n1en .andall is describ ing a g irl in an Afr i can village or t he " ~Ii rac le " of love , ~/ .e y 1ii5ii 'f senuine - and stro ng . r.ut [lt him -- a~'nrt Me'ltLe Afl/l hi s I\~ . po ens ~ "Gr een Ap les" and " Words hards fords " The s e and o t her pieces are n erel y vert ica pr ose, appe ar i ng as ,-_•• a)12d @<II.IP lette r s . to/ . Bu t he i s p ri;:1arily a li rar i an , pu _is her , an l ac k poe t s h as been anc rema i ns i p roduc io c1,c; r of Wit h C1 ' cagoa 1 or 1 , t i"1 ~c alua ble . r~e.Tihe.s A ~ ~ <:\ n cl e d i to r whose servi c _ his is s een n ot on l y in his __ a ya fr 1 rr ' cs ~ c has ed ited . " ar :;::iret Burr ou ~hs , he co edite, Hnl c olm: Poems on t!le Life~ and De a th of ' la co l m 'C ( % 7) , a fore si c,htful and command b c, ah!§ ~ a th L~ i3la ck P . ,-mr•,.~l\.'aJJJ . etr 1 (1%9) and T 1c Rlack Poets (1971) , the '\, atter""l:fflbalanced a nd apparently quickly thrown to gethe5 since it has practically contains no bio-bibliographical ma terial on the poets . In ad<litio.i to r~an<lall and Irar3aret Danner , other poet$ in t !"lis upper.:jidwest area arc James Randall (1933; ;---- ~-:.a Thomas (1930" T;1ylor Atlant ~ (T~ ••■ ) , Ja:;-ies ·~wnpson (193 ~ 1 ,,.. ) , Itichard ) , :; Lllimn T:1i~pen (194Sfi M 71) , iiaor.ii Ha<l ge tt, Hayden , P-ocky f"\1 o~~boni) (i'JL1 ~ , '.!al.:li:<a (,'N-" , ) - ) , Pearl Clea~e Lor.ia\ Wan~a r a (193 9~ ) , Ahmed (now livin::; in _l: ar,lisi (l<JlfO I ), A Ntc.~o~S(_~okcMP1tui ~01-nin~ etttt\,~1"f~ ~~P!!!'y~~l)/ �) ) , Carolyn Thom!Json (1..,4 17 I ) , La J;onn a To lbert (1956; Jill 1. ;i t h e rs poon ( 194 7.!.. N I ) , Darne 11 (195ON ) , Shirley t 'oo<lson (lC..,36/J ) , ;:elba :~oyd (19 50p <l Ba i ~ ' (190CJ Le~ ), ) , Stella Cre\ls ~ "r; a\-1i·in , . s (1 0, -, ,;'lb- , I ) and f renc/{ Hod8CS ( 94 q_j- Son,a orihQ \t" worik.s ) . A 'fl-✓- c an be fo und i n Ten , :\ Broad s ide Trea sury , The Bl ack Poets l and in t he small An 1'm por1' &.h"i lfolufl'le ~r,ol'Y'\ tl,-e. a.t-e o. is~e1= ed\l'o"" AL ho.m\si ~ 13 LAc.k. Ar1'~ A»tlioL 091 af'~'1t&e91'1S(wi#r indivi dual volu,'leS re:;ularly pul5lished b y Br oadside Press . /\For furtl1er del , 'NN ~6"'~~~ t ail s o n Detroit anJ other ~r oaJside oe t s s e e Broadside Authors and , rtists a d Ba i ley , 1974) . Ja::1es Ranclall has publi s11~ d Don ' t As k He Disas t er_/;j (197 3) . Eis poe tr l.,, 10 I Ara and Cities ,:md Other is ir.tc:-1s c , c onnancl in:; an<l dramatic. n " 1{et\:o r k r' ews " we a r e tol d : ~ For years 1e ' cl ~.1atc:1ed t ::e 6 rowing madness of r t.ic S t ate . t:~ T~ere i s irony un<l pa thosJ as in " t e e t Games;" ~ a boy is blacl~ a,., the a n cient cu r se o f A dif f e r en t <.ind of po e try i s written 1 fric ~ ... \ ; 0 o ~b on ~ u 10 intermin~les drum r .•y t hrns , inca~1tatory ne<li t a t ions an..l s l.a rp es tabli shment -d irec ted barbs in Drum So n 0 (1 969), / ·1tro<lu c ed ·y (>.-rendol y n Brooks . The poet is also a .-ft1''f'-i~i;.; who t e l l s us in " l:ntitled " t hat t:1e ni ;:;ht co n ta ins i ndi feren t st a r ~ ·· · / lay<len has been t ea ch i n g a t t since t he l at e s i x t i e s) wh c' 1:ourni 1·_ii me ( 9 70) a nti c I h; lin i v ersi t y of Hie 1i~an, his alma mater, he l eft f islc:!f- cs' er pr@ " Sllf9-. ::is Hords in the ---:..,_____-' s at L'!. t ~.e t:1ene o _ Jayne Cortez ' t overpower in~ \ " Fes tivals & Funer nls ." ir~ secl·s a p l a ce where man will no longer be called ni gger, ~ook , k.l t:.~ o r ,O'l ki e , bu t " nan ." There are fri gh tenin8 poems cmd terrif y i n g i ::-iages in T;o r ds a s Hay de n su rv eys the " Sphinx" (";ny joke and oe " ), " So l eda d" ( " cradleu by d rug s, by ja2z "), " l'odachror.1es of t he Island" �1 (" fin ge rless hands " ) and " El- Ha jj ::ali, El - Shabazz " ( " the ,'.:! .: in~ <lrear:1" ) . ~ € poet~ " Zeus over Rcdeye " r ef l ec t s on 1,.• visit to the Redst one ena l. It i s an intense d r ama , joining other great poens as a major sta ~_ment on ou r times . 4~d il'1~et-lE 0 , man ' s l\my t hic totem , h i s dep r a vit y , h is qu i xo t i c mov ements,ta -.. l,l&,~,v,1,t.,O t he h unan "loom" of tension- Lall a r e staged aga i n st t l1e . (\I' ot'tht backd ro p ~missile arsena ~ where deatht ma ch i nes b ear t he names of ancien t .., Grieco- Roman mytholo g i c a l fi gu r es . my t h olo g i es " t o "c or.:e t o bi r t h ." Such naming all ows " new L\r:io n g terms a s s o cia t e d wi t ;1 Hayden ' s ni ghtnarish wbrld of visible/invisible and antici;?ated violenc e a r e dra gon, hydra, basilisk, tulips, c oro llas, Zeus, Apollo , (a , e nnd Herc ul es . The missiles tower ("stasis") a sacred phallic :; rove!- ... t Appa rently t he g uides at th e a rs e n a l cannot sati s Dct o ril y an s 1e r qu es t ions about the missiles ' destinies an<l dan ge rs: Your partial answers r eassur e me les s t han t' 1e~· apilall . I f e el as t o u8h i nv i sib l e f u ses we r e b u r ning a l l a r ound us bu r ning a l l around us . Heat- quiverin g s t~:itc:i. / dange r ' s hyp e r sensitive s .dn . The v e r y s unli p,h t he r e seems f l af'll:1ab le . An d sha dows s ive us no r e lieving shad e . Dismal a nd fin a l , Ha yd e n's poem a dd s i ts own part i cular tone, style and la ng ua ge t o t he len3 the nin3 tot em of t h e/ ew f lack / oe try . Fo r , de s p it e .i s d is a o; r e eiTlents r,1i th the ) l ack / cs t heticians , t h ere i s no doubt tha t �" Zeus " r caffirns a b elief expr essed hy y un ~e r, s oI'letime s lo u de r , poets : _,t ha t the West e r n m r ld is doomed t o dest ruction a t · t s m-m hand s (will " off · tse l f, " t h eme of an approaching end is qui t e " American " in poe try, s t i ll b e ing preached e ~ b y wh it e poe t s a nd spokesmi.n: from ~obi t Dylan t o Lilly Gr aham . ?ic!1 con t ributions h a ve ..1lso Illinois .an· :'is sour i. diff erent states an ee :-: :nade by poets an<l artists in sout:1ern I::ast St . Lou· s and St. Louis , tho u gh separated by t:~e ; 1iss is si pp \ , have a mu tual history that The se / 1ac k c ommunities , a lt ernately warring a n d loving , uor zeJ clo sely to3 eth er ring the height of the o vement . Poets and ar tists u e r e cl r awn to s u pported by BAG ( Black 01 .\rtis t Group) , ifouse of rmoja , T e Blacl· s ml t h Shop o f BL ~ q/ in t wo goes bacl~ before t he days of the f amous Dr ed Scott / a se . B la ck ;\r ts v1~ -:1:-8-e@.e@@ R\v-&.- Libe r a t o r proj c t, t:1e House of Tru t :1, Imp a c"t House , t h Culture ,f\ Inack Expe r iment in Higher Education at SID , Soph i a House , :Zat e rine Dunham's Performing Ar t s Training Cen t er ( EllE- SIU ), Black River i· r iters , a n d t h e Southen d Ne i gh b orh ood Cen t e r. ~is r::(AJuttt) (1141/,- ) Some o f t: .c poe ts.' ~ area fa.r e Brue Rutli~J 1 1ea Sharl em G.!'r ant Sher man Q4~) Fowl e ~ ia Conley/\(w}10 la t e r joined OBAC) 'AArthur DoziE(S,,' llobb Q<t4J..L ) ) (who went to Lo s Ang eles ) , Fred llorto J ~ -~ °#..-.c llilso J enkinf) "- S,~p~ooLl'IS"'f ' ) ,, , ome ~in:; ;i ; tr • ltl liend~<r;..r l5:r t :::;rHe~,-:.~nn O, v~ f arl R e~~~; tN".n';:;:;.~Q C J~5ii )afke'k Vinaqn;JsrellA. Hayne Loftir/t) ")errick Hri~hrr Crc ~o r ..nt honl' 1'a therine Dunham, a nd oth er s . Wr it in gs b y t h ese poe t s a re incl <led in Si de s o f the r.i ver : / ~1ini-An t 1olo3y of Bla cl· Wr it in?S (~ Proud 1na ga z ine G :1i c ~ , Betty Lee ' s f fer s prizes))@.:J1i ll Cr e'3?> Intell igenc e r , a specia l i s sue o f Sou ' west e r (fallf ) ') A-Ahu Br(J(µf'~4.- , Ellio t ~, i ust ·, i3 lack (19 22'' (iq)i 1 Dwlgh, SaundWJ..Re.tJ'nal$/.!lf.t'f Sl-/r ~-e..V..'tt.\(s;J'e~ Z"'o~:,,\c,..),__ Red1.1ona~ 196G , se lect ed by>i.;t~dmond) , The Blac k Libe r a tor, Th e Cr ea t or ( 1969 ), Tambourine ( 1 9 6 6 , \ lite a n d Schwar t z ), Collec t ion (19 68 ), st. Louis Wr i t ers Wor~shop, guided by Shirley La Flore, includes Marci Howel l, Candalaria si1va, Patricia Williams, Wale '{!J,A new Amusa, Geraldine Col e and Debra Anderson . 53( J �Vo lume l o f Poer.1s J 1- bv B ac §, (1970) . / Dun as, u h o t a u ~ht fo r a year at [ a st - St . Lo is ( ~, 19 67~~ 63), ,.rn<l I~eJmon<l c ot s p onso rL~<l writ in~ prog r ans in the Rap-Hrite ~;ow 1;orkshops a n<l Black River Writers r;rou p . Collection was student-proJ.uce<l under Dumas ~\supervision , with Fowler and Linda Stennis serving as editors. Elliott writes , in " Tie Dream Time , 11 about the " spiroch ete womb " of r. ne mo th er of the univer s e, th e Phoeni:~ , and th e <lea th " fashioned at t h e end" of @ years . Great Phoenix t ha t s he was, t he mothe r o f the univ erse now l eav es t h e dreamer t i t , onl y h e r c r e at mur ky s e xua it~'@· . . \ <(,Elliott is a dreaner and jur r eal i s5 but Bla c is Th e Torna do in ;fy :~u t h (1966). ment wi t h the usi1ers in a d i fferent te. ..1peri He has t h e irreverenc e of ea t s , th e fun·iness a nd a rive of the har d boppers, and the sexuality of one in hot " Asexual Flight " says pursu i t . (V cl! to fh• lo&1.,n•·,,, to11a I fw,4 o # t'a"" i U bG"Ult Y.." le11t. "'l1h1ut • k,u .iLi~ , wm.oll'T'(o~ "..,,n', ,~st w'1ih . { in " P,azor llama Democrac -,.. / the t he lue h aze ~1Urts an<l nowt e hair is turning " int o an ach ing g rey. " g ladiator " i « 11 o.1'.L Coeva 'Yo~ 1':111« .,,~-~;no.y a ._.. of ~ c ~ ~ Druns fo r Lero ~" /\.-.... in the meant i!:1e • " the rine" ; " ov e r t he wlndo,,1 of my and finally " He r pouer in how ling wi nds " brin" s LY cov ers _ ead ar t e r ial insanity" ; " futil i ty L1 j a 0 ged crag s " ; " Kierkegaar d/Sa rtr e "; " li;~e d ri ppins A DI'-~: E T <;;,'-~...) Bl ac'.<. salutes "t .1e ror:. 1::::.01 . e i n...," ; I �OUR :;oc1 !" in " DAi' · r,- ,,.,,.. \C.ol"I OC.ltH m & run,y " is subtitl ed " a " Black is His "( a poen or ; 1ALCOL:! ~0 " ;e~·• •••-• is subtitlec! "the lib e r a t e s i-se • II .1 " Ca rry ing a Stick ," Fowler .'.:sks: f vho cares, t ha t I had yes t e rday ' s s tal e ,o,un for U breakfast? "Th inkin g " a llows various i raa r;e i trea:n and burst forth7 vomiti ,g ti ding s only t h e mind ca 1 h e ar . in t<at f:v..,-/' St udent - no ther ,o . ene t h a Va s h i n:;ton wr it e ~ ou t t . e p re s s u r e s on to y's \U~~ J1ac <. woman ,-_wat c 61 peo le f Scurry in; from sun t o sune , •• t Al s o pulled along, she s a y s I protest but still I r un . uses irony 11'> Loftin, a y oung po e t who wri t e s wit h e c onomy a n d s implicity, A?ummar iz"mg !r igh t · " R~e a 1 i· ty " : a n d I3 a 1 ll~l· n ,,,.... ._ in out o F t h e cott o n fie l d s CJ !-.J anJ burnin:3 suns to overcrowd ed cities 0 L; and shades of slu'.11%, necl::.ond an:.l Fowler founded wh ich ~r o u;;ht out Sid t!!J. Dlad~ River Writ ers pu blishi n3 company) of t~ e ~ iver . Currently under the sup e rvi sion of Cat h erine Younge, t h€.. ,1 ress has publ i s hed r..ed mon<l ' s volu1:1es Tof'ls (broa<lsiclet l A Tale o f Two \ 1963) , A Tale of Time & Toilet Tissue (pamphle1 f196 9 ), Sentry of t he Fo ur Golden Pillar s (1 970) , River of Eones and Flesh and n lood (1 9 71 ) , Son3s --------'-- - - - -- - - /r,m an ~ - - - -- - Afr o/ , hone (1 9 7~), In ;( Ti!:1e of I~a in t, Desire ( 1973) , I �,:rn,i ull L11 , !',loodlinl:s and S·1cr>2cl rL:ces (1973) . Thin,3 s u::ts published in 1973 by Cent~ o St di ~ l Con:.:;icler Loneliness ::is Tiwse Sc::i;-,, i Internazionali i::1 Italy . ) Redsond , a native of East St . Louis , strives f l:f) j lack fai:,ilyhood (inl>:iediate and e~:tended ) in his poetry1' though he a ttempts to do t h is wi t hout forced alleGiances , withou deed - shaping words J disfie;urenent 1 t 0 11 G lownaturally. hu:-:10rous folk port aits f) o~ ~ ~d by of perceptions, " ~ 1 -I · sts# 29 1Jr allowing the His poetry ranges from -----" Invasion of the ~~o s e": Hi s nos e was his rad ar , l:is eye s icy dart s that moved fa s t e r t 1an s peed- of- so und r jet s . e could r ap like a pneumat ic' dr i l Or croon l ike Smo(ey Jill when t he o cc a s i on a ros e to c onsiderations o f l ove un er st rain_, as in " Ins i e ; ry Perir.i.eter " : Inside my perimete r Of fea r s 1 uni t of z ueri las ~t r ikes a t t h 2 ba r Jed- wire Hov e l s t :ia t ~w nn: ou r love : That incarcerate ou r needs , ~ An i nsur 3ent arny Starns t:1e bastil_e of pride 1ells this f @ de of cus t o~ , 1(nells the collapse I Of t 1e straw :::en inside us M Accepts t he sun , Al lows the contorted face o f ~ �Stress to smile an-ain-'- "' N To ~low again! Allows Love to Live . Elsewhe re in the larger ar ea there \Jere/ are o t her go ings t on in poetry : Iowa , Ne ras ka and Kansas Cit ~ w ere Hilb ur Rutled~e (19lf0J • ) and others 1-~ • •t..&.~ (CM"'ttMtfN.•V Pla.ye~ o~ ~w c,Ty, assoc ia ted with the Af ro - Ame r ican Cultu r a l CenterAand the Blac k ~ iters Wo r kshop , t.1l.o4o~ r ec eived as i s tance an 11 ~ ~~ ~ exposure . a..u.trtvaa~...a;.,.y,o,he..kyWCA. Amo n g the~ ets are M ::;,;;;;, Spicer , lraylor , .-:ill e sse Hester and Jac kie Hashington . '\Jin Ant 1010 ° lished Wo rks 10 ~ • f b' Nvtb~J1~ are included (I' i zna, 1970~ andjfi!!!!hiRg@eR has pub4,- om.a I") :60~ a t the Universit y of Den v e r for t he year 1974J ,t} ....., 7~ where he whoTook. ) sub stituted fo r ~i:phahlel~ J uitts:;Aa leave o f absence, Kgosi{ile (1938J em1' odies Pan- •.fricani s n in fa.ct and s ynbo l. He was b orn in Johannesbu1;$, IA'~~ sumM•~_.nus:.K,os'i!fb~w•,..t1i 'lilu4hl¥hbe bl " ~~ daetJMiet-ii,Y o,. Dt,.t- f, fo.l,-o.1t1. ~ ~ · f t h Africa , ani1as been ex · led in t h e Unitet ->t.ates articles , poe!'ls and intervi ews h a ve been published ~le has tau gh t at s everal 11i.s · ---- ~ ~l!.it/1,~~~ .~eric an co lleg es and iversities . / Is oaks a lready mentioned, he has publis__h edited The Uonl is H~re: sinc e 1~ In add ition fri l,i (1971) and - Poe tr, f rom .· o<l e rn Africa (1973) . His own\oest etic stated in h is Introdu ction to the anthology : \Poe try , t he -1ord a t its no st e},r r essiv e , can be a praye r , a a npeal, condemna tion , enco ur a s emen t, affirmationl -the list o f endeavors is e nd l e ss . Andi it is aut hentic, t. as a :;thin :--, else expre ssive of a :,co p le ' s sp irit, it is Thi s c o ccpt he enbraces in his m-m p oems, espec ially in Africa l ~ in t he Int rodu ct io n , G~endol vn Broo s wr i t s t h a t h is r t i s l ife wo r ed wi t !:$ . .. ',# t st •One of the inventive an d Rut lin, has not ~t-\1ished wi dely. Ofa.mo.: Chi l clren of' t e s·u 971 w anted o · S3S- dwestern poets, B ee y original style on s: liver L e an J 1 ;;/ �His Afr o - Al"lerican brothe r s i nc o r :1o rate t:ie i\f ri can i s , s e comb ines h is own indi <; (ln i s:ns wi h a mast e r ed H'e a ssays t he who l e o f o u r t un u ltuou s tim e s (in Af r i ca and Ame r i c a ) , in te rmin ~l inz a n ac riu i r e d f lack st ree t lan g ua g e with a d er:1and i n g and strin~ent One Gf the most able cra fts1:1.c 1 , he Wl! ites excellent poems about childrer-,, form . uomen , violence , Mu sic , lra l col::; :: , Lu,.~un ba , Gwendoly - . Bi l ly llo t!idayi (1 oQJ: 1" "The Ni t ty 1,ritt Brooks, ,\fric.:1n J:::.nces, i n wh i ch the once furious songs are now l (, frozen· on ba ttereJ bl~c:'- lip SQ • ._. \ _ , ~ G>u,,t~ t\l't-otks 4-nd DwLey io.Nt•'<., Bl • t.f:tos,fi,t t ,s Wt-11'115 ~~IY ~ 9"rftl-'" - le. Po•1t-vW..~1iia!:' M_ .• • The poe t s of t:1e East , Sout h , J-:idwest and near \'es t are a bit more t,wn a hop , skip and j uJTtp fr om California , but n e ny of t her:i. were inspired by 'tf_ ap p e a r ances , national nagaz ine cove r a ge , a nd cross-country tours of the Watts po e t s . Born , as it were , between the Calif ornia sun and t he rebellion of l '.)65 , the Wa tts ~Jr ite r s ' ~:or :sho Sch u l er'; . was ini tia l y under t 1,e direction of ] udd La t er, as old e r writers lef t a nd n ewer ones c ane in, t 1e suner4, vis ion of t hO wor k shop was assumed b y lla r r y Dolafl and Herber t Simmons . ,s ,hie';# ~1ed of culture and influence included the Hat ts Happ en ing Coffee House , -,,-. h e s . a r t-l iv e d S.1rew magazine , t:1e ::a t t s /.! .ep ertory Tl1ea t e r, the Al qu t arian llo okstore, t he Sons of '.:at t s , the Lla c :" Pa nthe r s , 1:arenga ' s uS organiz.:ition, 1G am\ FreJericl~ ~\~~-r I tl et\:-i.::t t ts ,,1riters ,>rogran . Do u g lass Writ ers Lous s w:1ich .oused 61-MJ- groups were n ilton :'.cFarlant)_ J\nong those a s s ocia t e d wi t h t ~1is anJ o the r t\ wri t ing I ), Tr o u pe ( 1943 ~ Cl yd e !~ys (194 3! r ( cl .. !orel an ~1a y 1a J "i'..i vi J ) , Si nmo n ( 1930~ --~~a::IIIQ.- 0 jenke (Alvin Saxon , 194 7J ) , ...i'.ili ' Jimmy Sh en:1an (1944 .!. N Janes Th oPw. s Jackso n (192 7!.. '-ee se ~·[ooJy (1933~ Po em of Gratitidek l972) i ' ' ) ~ ) , Leu::nas S i rrah (l'JM3~ Cri. c Pries t ly (1%JlN ) / . .-- d y ( 947N1 ), Vall e jo Ry.:in I.enne K. Curti s Cleveland Si ms (1 9lfl;N ) , Fanit a (1943J ) , r!l'.mer:r Evans (1943} Pame la Donegan (19 4 3/ ) , Ro b er t ) , Stanle y Cro u ch (19 45~ ), John i e Sco t t (19481 ,.. ) ) ' ' ) , Er nest ) , Fannie Carol e Br own (19Li 2,6- ) ' ) , Jayne Cor t ez (19J3J Rutlin is~. a st . Louisan. ) ' �.. ~0.l\'\ClU °t• ~'no.m, ~Q. Blo s som Pm;c ( 19291[ ) ~0.M" 1CI.OtaJ - ---• onora :'.cKeller (1S'l l1J ar-- ~ ) , N arley Ni U.t'\C-.l.J;U,,-"""1 ,,ird2l l Chew (1913,7 nthologi e s : {fror.1t he Troup e (196 8 ) , ~ lh i an.a, a n 1 others . Their works a r e in ~ ), '..) t \:o As hes ( l96, ) 1'.· u mlberg~J and Hatts Poets and ~/riter s Other poems are scattered t hrough s uch per iodicals as Lo s . I -- 'fi. O'- pe s an1hol64)' 1 pu be.:~ he'1. by tht Ht>v1e. of- &spe,T, f\e Hec.T~d o.. Angeles Hagazine, Shr eu , Conf r o nt a tion , and \;est. /\ 1' • D.M en9 Wc:iTt.s u., ..·, Tb.SI /IU VL/lli ~ in lr>O(lpe t\.nci I\ dt,1en 0~ $0 0"1he1,,..s )'ot"M i11.9"the1r- owre ~~ovr. Seen as a movement, t he Wa tts group , in quality and quantity , emer;;es /\'\~Jo ... ~hA I<~- "P as one of t he mos t pouerfu l on t he /ew.)flacl:/oetry scene (roughly resembling the mag nificent Howar d gr ou p) . "-- or excellent, ther e i s Acourage For a lthough the poetry is not uniforml y good .,,..-- of wision j, style• an<l t heme• that one ~ 1+it. l ooks hard to find in NJ t her groups . '-' '-' This may be due in part t o the ::ni 0 r ;:i tory pa t terns of Illac s i:t t he Hest - ~most of these poe t s were not f./\ An°eles0 "-1.Land the r acial kale i do scope o f Californi a . h111atevc orn in Los he reas ons , ther e is a p:::- is:na tic ranbe i n the poetry that moves from the earth- won an ;.,.e, musicality o f J ayne Cor t e z , a cross t he allus ~ and often mystical excur sions of Lyle , to t he s i gni fy i ng blue s int erludes of Crouc~ ~10 some darin g and seni nal cri :::ic i sm in Dlack ~-orld and the oe try . Ai n ' t ~Jo A"'lhnlanc e s for has a l so written our nal of Bla ck o :-!i:,guhs To i ght (1972) is t he title of ~ == both h is book ar.cl,. Lp rcco r din 0 whic' . i :tclt des " rap " as well as poetry, wit:1 liner not e s by L:1 1 Q . Crouch uses fo l k forns and t em~ a nd v a rious dr aT11atic tcclmiri ues . ~ Ji4e intertwined wit:1 7 us i c ~ ~!any of the poems are dedic a t ed to/\1:iusicians a r ke r an u Coltrane ; others n tt enpt the conplicated spontaneit_ of live <la• of t he final r io 5 when there Bu t the poem ' s he r o , ~fonkev Junior, phrases and obscu r e informat"on �~ JI./; .whfctr h e c onstr ic t s into f rig ht e nin~ , s urr eal image s and s t a tes . " Sonetimes I Go t o Camari llo & Si t in the Lounge'' J scribes ho~ the roet stares into 0 ai,minr; of s p irit , " v i ewi n f; t h e u o rld as ye llow trur-ip e t s of s t a rvinr; blues h e a r in:; a \' i e tnan ese 1. ot!H:: r ' s " ultr a - hi'.3h- frequen c y screa!'ils . " '.Te are ''~ told t hat " cobal t b u l e t s " snas '.1 tl, e heart of t l:e "lone ranger " in "L1cr L:1as ) ~ 'I \ t h e re i s a need t o Sere.:::., . " Eor., e v er , Lyle ' s T'lost [anous poe;-:1 is " I Can ~;i;~~~:~;i~~i~~;~t:~;,~;J~~:~~::~~~~;~~~ ~ • Oj e n ke has an un liriited r a n:;e of intellectual and social concerns as he ~ sculp ~s h i s poetry fr om the dive rse inzredients that produced the Afro-American . ..., cc t: i r1:; 1is srea t knouleclr;e of Gr. eco- Ror.1an classics , \/ t l1e da r.. sol i tuc e o f a :ladean wo r 11\U"I !Ie ~ vtC1clers i n t o an cien t r: r e ece a n u !:/i '.:;e r ia in t h same poen . In " Ha t ts " there .::: is a co1.ur,o tion f' l.'.,,u.32J b:; i ~h tn i n ~ a nt l [ani ne , assrss i nat i ~~ tin r eo ple and i~o l e i rass-blatles? La t er o ~ ;) i o:3e .. es , _ e r a t es .:iml t '1 / ra c le of Delp.ii e nt e r t he poem. the s e char a cte s (o .I::\.:_? . e t o ta tts j t o fi nd Eu t eople es caoin" into a " toxicant" • 0 s ane t oo-true trutl • . ·· \ Oj 2n.~e aL,o ,1rot2 an l .1trod uct i o n t o Evans ' Eva ns ' r ead i n ~ al i it v , f'j e nka s-,i d : 11 (, oo:,: 'f1,e Lov e Poe t o '":.oo. chc ., " J c picts n ff.:::.nilia ~ s ~ to some : , ove r t y • ... Aoout " f.nnery L, cry · n'.; slyly into you r ear ." t wo roo. ches d ..mce a cros s th e room t o t he tune 0 (1971). t "c �Scott is one of t :1e r.1ore vell known of the Hatts poets . . n "T:1e fis 1 Party ," he s.'.lys : r The fi s h are eathering again toni::;h t@ ..• And f i sh- wat chers , i ;,;norant of the wo rld ' s problems , ge t their char3es from trying t o guess wha t the fish will do. During the conver sation , Sco t t t a l ·s par ~ t he tica lly about war and poverty , but a l l is exclanatorily inter rupted: i 11 \ ..}1)1:,t Hey , loot-? Goldie has "-eaten Jesus up ! a tt s , 1966" is a poem millions heard on natio,1.'.11 t heme of / lack ra ge and white indifference . 1'/ . It has the familiar nut Sc ott closes it on raemorable l ines : The nan named •ear has i nhe ri ted half an a cr e , <if an<l is angr y . 7f6t her Uatts poets dea ,'it love , v i olence, contemplat i on of fr eedom and r:msic. :-Iany l eft .Jatts after t he l a t e sixtie s . edit ~ Troup: \fCn t to Ohio n i v.e rsity ( to .,.....Ue r '-' j fr ontatipu) a nd~publi s1ed Enbr yo (1 973 ~ As h Doors and J uJ u Gui t a rs (1975 1 , and co edited Giant Tal k~ Third World Vo ices (197~), a f ter moving ..._, In t tor ~e11e..-aL V~ Q to New York. Lyl e , who has not published a volu~, 11 - '1' Washingt on _A.,i! University in St. Louis, and recently returned to Los Angeles. Jayne Cortez "'..,-,,.,, .«: since the late sixties. went to New Yor~ where she has lived and, , • Her three books are Pis ~ _a ined St airs and the Monkev . fan's Wares (1969 ), Festivals and Funerals (1971) and Scarifications (1973). C_g_lebrations # and ~oljtnd~ (1974). ➔ Her themes and styles are broad , but ~d mos tly~e~brace music a s a s pect and fo rm. j She has also recorded an Lp , Af ricai .{ as strugg le and s piri ~ is also a dominant theme in her poe try . Pis~a ined is e sp ec ial l y rich in its interweavin8s of mus i c and struzsle. "The Road" is "where another Hank moans" and is - - - -- -- - - - - -------·--- �J S t on e y Lo ne s om • ... , "Lea d " desc r i b e s t he kind o f hard li f e tha t is "cracklin hot a sunrise." f'. Lead , o f cours e, i s LeaaJe 11 11 whom the "nigguhs" d e s p e r a t e l y want to hear s p it t he b lues o ut. tTn Ow-£ T11t.u'l He r stru r,r~ les a r e _.A.simp l e "contriv anc e s" as they chro nicle the hardship s and i oo t ime s o f Di nah, Bird , Ornet t e, Co ltrane , " Fa ts" Nava rro , Clif f o rd Brown a n d o t her s -/4-a veri f iab l e poet i c t a p e stry o f/ dea t h, f rom one who ,,1 0uld(fivn<)~y Lovc lack e x p ression in de f iance o f 11 ) ~ . • • ea t mu d t o t ouch the r o o t o f y o ue .• • l Amon g o t her Sou t hern Calif orn ia p oe ts are Rob e rt Bowen ( 1936J Bo ze ( 194Si ) , Ki n amo Hodari l l9'1<¾ ), Arthur ) , Dee Dee McNeil ,194~ ), A,.,. lao- w IIQJ c.ou,-Tl'p...t"' 1'• f ..... ~ --K""4 ,,...,..a. oF 111&111, """· l...e ..,., , S•v~~a.C. Bill Thomp son~ a nd La nce~ Will iams . ~ '-Ps: , r t f:Lec.,IS-tt\Q 1.1 <1.-ted l fl Turetn ~ d bo.tk'JrO flr'lC$ I I I I I · . I t 1( I · F <1~~ w.. s Northern California } ~a lso b ,T, ... 0 o~~~:a: :::n:::c~~:;~~~c:n1::~:,:::::::1°:o::;~;~~~~:~~:~:)937! ), (m ~ ~~er (938.7 ) (nowat Bl'own) ,,..,c~s (194~ ), ! Reed ~ o un _ Cl _nl Ta " o)"" ), Ol" V'Wli.ndeZ- I ~ Cr u z ( l'.? 4 9,v )1 , "n3elo Le,:is ( 1 950~ -th\.lL(lr)t NK.o.tu·nc;2fatlq;;) ( 19 4 7 ) , . 'i ller, .,.Laure~1ce ~:c , a ; ~/(194 !.. :C), ~ ,, ~ om\!elc~ <:e,1L Brow~ ) , a. El l1uha j i r - -- ~~ • J oy ce ,, ,,,__,..._ __ kr ), LT . 194 4L ) Ma c !~ N ) , Jos eph 1 ), , ~avid Hende r sie,~ n Ec k e l , Glen ::yle s ( 193 1-7 £~n e~"t Go. it'\ s --..-- - Gc o r ~c Barl ow ( 1 9 81 ) • , ·.e r.:1an r own _ _ _ __, (; ruumb ) , Pa t Pa r ker · • • • • · ;:c Nai ' ~ I\ De Leon Ear ri s on (19 4 l ~ N ~ ~'a a An ~e lou ( 1 92 .!.. ) , f , r .:1'.1 We b s t e r Fa b io ( 192 &,~ ~ _, _____..- ) , William And e r s Alli W ~U,kewto Aru,e~.si (~s "•.,.~K/1.J. t't7f)a ~ -{a J ;;; a rea ac tivit y in t he J.r t s ha s been h e i ~h t ened a :1<l e nh ance<.! b_1 the San "rc:mcis c o Af r o-Ame ric an Hi s t o r i c a l a n d Cu l t ural So c i e t y , b ookstor e s s u c h a s 11cr~:ar\l~.: i~1,t.t~ -\~.~~f.:~; I ac tivit i e s of 04v/u Panthersan<l sfoilar ",roup~~~e'RainbowSigncultural center inBerkeley, I �. oA Na irobi Col l ege , and numerou s ot 11er cul t ur al .::i nll l i t er a r y pr ojec ts . o~'"'eie by many~ bard s a r e i ncluded in ::iE er 's Dlces Poems Bl a ck Bones (1 97 0) , :!_urnn~_ of Bla ck Poetry , Yardbir J Reader (a semiannua l edi ted by P-ee<l, Young , 811• Bro~ and Myl es), Umb r a Blackworks (Hende rs on , all i ssu es , espec'ially f 19704 71), and othe r n~tiona ~l y di stributed anthologie s a nd pe r i odicals . tX s,-r-o.n!te. o..nd o~iq1n&L wt-,te.-, q__ Reed)/,:a s publis hed t hree volumes: ""ca tech i sm of l neoane rican hoodoo church (1971), Conjur e : Sel ec t ed Poems, 1963 1 1970 (197 2) , Chat t anoo a (197 3) , FtHJ" ~...., ,,1J'd,Ji.v &NI_.•,.• •t.fll,. a~Jl••,.,.,~.S. zcls novels .I\ Hi s wo r k has drawn a curious mi)t t ure o: aclJec tive s and s c r itics: fr om " bri llia n t," ' cut e , " " j umbles and pu zzl es , " "important," "baci comi c s " and so on . novel s i nto h i s poems . nc:eedJ Ree d wr i tes his poet r y i nto h i s novels and hi s In t his servic e , he empl oys dia lects, Voodoo , t h2 occult, wh i ms i cality , wit , ys tici c, sa tire, whic:1 he o viously enjoys, all reinfor ced by as sorted librar information and s treet i ns tincts . He v iola tes time bar r i e r s , placin;; an anc ien t Gr e e ~~ fi ~ur e in a c o temporary poem, or vic e v er sa . His ve rse f orP1s are ex pe riMent al, roughly reca lling the i ea ts ~'-Lc,U> ~eadinl\ w,lL ~i,01.11 hil\'\ iri t"e:fw,.,t',tidl\ of l>v" bc,.11'/room lr elr1dT0Lson, nt ~ pas t s t y'i i..,t i c irreve renc ies . /\ The r e .:ir e no s a cred cows (3 vt and o t her ~ e f or Ree~ who s ometime s l amb2 s \ s _/l nck na t i ona lists and whi t e lib e r al s i n t he same poem . Gene r a l ly , h is technique s wa r !<. (some a re a stonish i n~) ; but l1e ofte n s pend t oo 1~uch time a t tacki ~~ r ea l or cr eat ed an ta~onists a nd ~av ·ng f un at t he expens e of reade rs. His ti tles alo ne are enough to keep you slappini~ your t ,i gh or scra t c. i n:; yo ur head : " Repor t o f t 1e Reed Comrais s i on , " "I am a cowbo y i n t he boat of Ra , " " Ther e 's a whale i n my t'h i 6 h, " "T e fe r al pioneers," "The Bl a ck Cock, " " Gr i s Gris ," "And the Devil Sent a Ford Pinto, ~ hich She .:1 lso Ro ut e d ." In 1973 Re ed be can e the f irst / l a ck wr ite r :;; to be nominat e d fo r a National Book Award in two catego r i es . be found in a special "Arts & Literature" is su~ of 'the Black Scho a , June,L l97!i. ., ------ - - - - - �Goin alves (Din~ane ), a n occa si on:i l ;-,oe t , i s unin ue in his i nt el l ectua l-:; t ypogra phi cal Cor\Sf;."<.1c6,t 'i 1 Li _r ~ o f ideas (sec B ac k :?ir e), but .1i s servic e to / lack tvb poe try has been nore obviou s i n h i s work a s f ound er-ed it or of/I J our,al o- iJ Poe try. He a l so s erved as poetry ed i t or of B a c ~ Dia l ogue . st e ady , i nfluence on t he/ ew )fla ck oet r y , he ha s wr i tt en some of t he nost in f or med cr i t i ci sm t o come ou t of the pe rio u . , et Day Bookst or e in Sa n Franc i s co , , he re hcadquartereJ . L Cur ren tly he r uns/ope r a te s 1e Jou r nal and it s pres s are Anong poe t s publ i s heJ b y tl-ie (J,l enetra tiQ~, 1071) , a .\ qui et , bu t r e ss a r e ~ ea l anci Hel t on S,:1it: i r tuo s o J oet uhc ,_ras horn an 1 r 2.i sed .i.n San f rancis~0 " ra l colm" ends discussin b t he ~in s of trnc ·s t ea rs n ~e and tcl linz t ~1e r ea der : thrrtin n hea rt t , er e a re na y unmarked graves . There are also wordf gift s in "the danger zone , " "If I cou ld hold You fo r Light," " f or a sorceress" ("you keep chan~ing me into air" ) a nd " Black Mo ther" ("an odd ecs t as movin " )~ the s e 7oin blues, excursions throuCTh cit streets . and thoughts on Af rica . l M.. 1 -:7, { (; o.~both"i~vsi, oest\-teTc,dLt 14vicl Youn ~ and Ha r pe r bo th teach wr i t i n _ a t St anfo r d and Brown,\ Young has 1 published Dancin~ (1969) and The Son~ Turnin~ Back into I ts el as well as novels and arti cles. (1971) . His ~oetry satirizes militants , salutes ~ h4v11Til white and Third Wo rld poets, and incor~orates legends into a broad~~ase • ...,. There is a consistency of interes s a s seen in the titles o f his books. In "Eroson" he finds himself dancin" "naked" tho u1h All mv shores had been ulled uy, t;;, · .• "Yes , the Secret Hind Whis? ers , " dedicated to Kauf ma n , calls poetry a "tree" forever a t your door , S'1yl,ITt,at.t.y. �ounr, ranges over the whole of the lif e experience , writin~ about s quirrels , ,., c#'H owe11e J i,.,, $tyflsfibt.t.ly j azz musicians, Spain , Stockholm, ni ght..., time and sorrow. _)fis poetry is diff erent f rom that of Harpe; who le f t California in 1970. Harper 's volumes are Dear J ohn, Dear Coltrane (1S7~ ) , History is Your Own Heartbea t (1~71,, Photographs : __, Negatives: V Historv as App le Tree (1972), Song: Want a Witness (1973 ) , Debridement 0. 9 73) (1974). I and ?U~htmare Begins Res onsibility Praise f or his poetry has come from a wide spectrum of e . inent critics a nd poets , primarily a cademicians , i ncluding Gwendolyn Brooks and Ha den. Cri t ic N• . Rosenthal recently singled out Harper and Baraka as iJD& t exampl e s of _/ l ack poet s contribut i ng t o the new American poet r y scene ~ Time s Ma gazine, November 2 , 1974 ). (~ Laurence Lieberman has also . raised Ha r t e i; who received nominations f or the National Book Award as well as the Black Academy o f Arts and Letters First Annual Po etry Award. ~ t, has ke pt a consistency of tone wltt-eh critics pa rticularl his poetr sometimes lacks metaphorical tension Harper ..J' a olft l"'J ea · r,end though funk ? ) to i gnite t he imt ortant stat ements he makes about / lack music , there is a f irm inte lligence at wo r k . Hi s themes a re illusion , pained c reativi t y, war , r a c ism, jazz, nature, history, death , and the my thological evolution of mankind. Much of his poetry is personal , confessional , and he intenveaves a medical vocabu+ lary into some of it. and musicians. He often includes chants , hums, and names o f songs His musico- poetic concerns can be seen in these l i nes f rom "Dear J ohn, Dear Coltrane": ~ Why you so bla ck? cause I am Why you so funky ? cause I am �Why you so black? ca use I am Why you so sweet? cause I am Why you so black? cause I am and adamantly)ilack : _,Fly to w2wana5 Ml l1an '~ C ..u~, 5 Allah (1 969), Bla ck Man List!W; (19(,9), i;-vend (19 73,., ) i£i!SIII. ~ 3 ch book sa lutes Allah and contains some occasionally we ll-turned poet r y intermingl ed with prove r b s , parab les and s ongs . He pra i ses El i j ah !·luhammad Tommy .S mith. and announces ) Thomas Lives !" J;ha,t ---- " Bigger In " The Origins of Blackne s s " he s a ys1 Bl ack is not a c l or but ~ All c o lors c om e f r om B~a C~ B··· '1yles a nd Ee -: el s arc al s o at di ff eren t ends of the poe t ic s pectru~ whi l e !kNair is i n t he n i <l l e. ify les pub l ishe d Down o f h i s drawin ~s anci poems. " Bebop and & Co ntry in 97 4 D.3 a co l l a ge He survey s con t enpora ry l if e , hi s upbringing on l ues in Phoen ix , " an<l h is exper ienc es as an ar t i st and a rt s t uJent. f E~c k e 1 s l1as r.iove d ~r01:1 lflr \'!f:, • II poetry i)Oet r:1 o [ anz er- an d protest t o ..,_, a hu.:1an bein?, for hu:-.1an be in~s . " i;r i• t t en uy t li s books i nclude .,lacl- Dawn, This Time Tomo rrow , Rla ck Ri. ';ht On, !I01:1e i s Whe r e the Soul Is (196 9), Ou r Business ' '- . the Streets ( 19 70), and Fir e Sign ( 1973), wh ich gives its name to his ~in .., pres s. In his e a rlv phas e ~ckel s wro t e about " Bla ck Is," " He ll, Ma r y ," J ., �" In Her::or · of f'.arc s, " "A s.espo n s i b l e :·1ee ~row Lca<le r, " a nd o t h er poems.) a lso c o i ning a n int ercs t in;; ter. : Hes t ern S •phil i zation '0· .. Fire Si g n " f o r t he fr e e ;;.nd will b e ," s hows a t . e m.:it i c and cultu r al breadth 7 a s h e writ e s love po e r.1s and sa lu t es fr e edom in g ene r al . NcNair, a cosmic poet u ho br id ges Af rican s p i r it ua l it y a nd his m-m psych ic revelations , h as p ublishe d Earthbook (19 72) and Ju a Gir l (1973 ). Ce rt a i nly the world will h ear ~o r e fron t hi s g ifted young wr iter . 'tt,e mvLt,'.'fo.lRtil,J AMo ns .;;io rt ½e -n Ca lifornia women po e t s, f1!.1aya Angelou is prim;, r ily a p rose and s c r i p t ~Jr i t er , but has pub lishe d~~ ook. o f p oems : Just Gi v e ' 1e Coo l ,, • ~ . . ~ Qh &:iAy 1W Wthg.s dtte O l? O. €1:t.M.§. Well/R :,fo ie.;1 }2\~ ( 1971 )Nht~was 1;omfn~ t e d for t h e Pul itzer/ rize}J\ rink o f Wa t e ~ 7 tn '""O"'s ,tr MU.Sico...L O-.l'Hi, Pol~Low.1T,, tT"lt'Luences. Pa t Pa rk ers p oetrv c a n be f a u n i n a n~ ce ent lit tle vo lume c a lled Child He.t- Poe~ of i; s e f (1972 ) a ~d Dice\'f1/i)Sh e "ses her own woman- f e e lings t o assess p ls the SI lg; c u rren t u pheava l. "Bro ther " rev eals c ont radictions in a v e -but - hurt app ro a c h s one . /l ack nen t ake t owa rd,! their wonen . The "sy st em" s he has just bee n st r c k u it h, s he s a , s, r o~ her Ot .1cr/\ n o n s a f ist. eal P ith h mar a n J t r.:t '.:; e dy in h usb.:md- wi f e rela tions. In "A fomen t Le f t _g ehind" she a s k sJ j " ron Have you ever tried t o c atch a tea r ? e e p Wit .d n " s ays t he ~;ay f a wona n is t urbulen t wi th ma n y fo rc e s a nd c olo r s o f fe e l i ng s , bu t f A imma n ' s .od ,. us t be tau:=.;ht t o spca <gl, · · · Pat Pa r k er 's wo rk s e a rc h es b ehind t he c o s me t ics and the v ocue to -l'II ,I 17 •- di" stu r l.,anc r.-~,\~ so , "1 00s t •.:e t1o r .-:: o f ,Jo y c e Ca r o 1 r~11oma s, t he ~~~~ wh ose t wo b oo k s I �CD l 13:J..tte r swee t (1973) and Cr •st.--1 1 Dreezes / (19 74) . we re pub lished by Fir e Si gn ~----&.:.tA \3Le~s,~(itfl5}~ JOC.f.l 8 p,Uw4 • . -------..----,r-.-....,._A'U..ruieA Pre s1J\ ""Iler po;;;? are about worn e, s and love. ~ --- o ds, chur ch,/J-a c1~ nu si c, child r en • There i s a nodern feel a nd tex t ure in he r line~ which economize without displaying a br up t nes s or undccipheraLle code . Yet he r s t ren gth is unmi stakabl ~ a s in "I Know a La dy" : f, I know a l ady A caref ul queen ·She bows t o no one Her wi l l is a Fine t hr ead o · s t ee I n t 1es e poems, and t he works of P~t Par -:er and Leona Hel c1, one sees a st r ong heal t h a nd f u t ur e · n Ba: a r ea ,mraen poets . ,-~elch ' s f i r s t book, wa s pub lished i n 19 71. Black Gibral t ar, Leona He r e a nd t h ere, one fi nds subt dued rage and i mpa t ience bef ore r a cism and i gnorance ; bu t her poe t r y a l so exa lts t ~e/ l a ck woma n nnd s r e nks in l ow t ones t o men. f r om ·olk ex re s sions t o forria l e xami nat i ons of s t ud, f a Bl a ck with " c l as s " anc.l c i ~ni t l 1' C.o t ove. Her l angua e range s "St a tus Ouo" i s t he : n y ,1hite r ood l e b y t he lea sh . M" j}.. 1 2 sable than the ot her wo~en , hor po e t r y s alutes a :u~ber of heroines includ i nr; r, T omen i n :1er fam i l :• a:-i d ~a1-:ki Giova nniJ. Finally t he r e is t he much-t rave led Sarah Fabio, instrumental in / l ack= s t ud i es developmen t in ~or t .. e r n Ca l · f ornial but ~ o now live pub i s hed two vo uii1es, A : 'i ror : in Io va. She A Soul (1969) and Blac!t Is a Panthe r Ca ;>:ed (1972 ) , and the~ without not i ce , br ou ~h t out s even voluraes (!) all in 1973: Soul Is: ~Soul Ain't , , Boss Soul (also the name of her Lp~, Black Back: Back Black , Ju jus & Jubilees, My Own Thing, Juius/Alchemy of the Blues, �and ~ogethe /; to the Tune of Coltraneis Equino!i® Her earlier poetry is ii \ more formal, reflecting her vast reading-thinking range; but the later work shows that she has joined the new poetry movement completely@ Her most memorable poem is "Evil is fio Black Thing " in which she converts all e := I dark things traditionally associated with evil into li~ter colors or NV' she allows them to be revealed in a broader contex~.w.r.1:~~ they invariat Her recent voluminous efforts deal with experimental bly become goo blues poems, rap f styles, folk narratives, and attempts to reconstruct ~ ack oral histor~ These things she does quite well on her albums and in live readings; but much of the work in the new books is excessfvely QN bUNNl\ff conversati ona ~lu•dsd with co~trived ' hipnes$. Erzulie and Thin g~(l975) is co authored by poets Nto zake Shange and Thulani Nkabind. And Ms. Thulani 1 s work also appears in Jambalaya: Four Poets along with the po ems of Lorenzo Thomas, Ibn Mukhtarr Mustapha\(Sierra Leone) anfyn duction by Zarco. Cru~ Jrunbalaya is edited by Steve Cannon.mth an intr~ Cruz writes poetry marked by brevity(i) Sna s(l969) and Mainland(l973) show_ him relying on his Puerto Rican heritage, his rei, lationships with other poetsl( often j lack), New York Gi ty and other urban areas, and Spanish mythology<!) Now living in the ~ ay area, Cruz often ini ' terpolates bi p ingual phrases into his poems Barlow (Gabriel, 1974) has done impressive and promising work in the area of urban language and Afro-American histo!"Yt,) B. Rap published Revolution I ~( 1969) and Metamorphosis .of Superniggeq (l973). Meanwhile, a young inmate at Vacaville Medical Facility, Herman Brownj(Muumba 1 published Some Poems and Things\( 1971) Young Sacramento poet Clarence McKie Wigfall has shown strengths in The Other Side(l970 ~ and anot~et' Sacramentan, Wes Young_, brought out Life Toda~ (l970) and Rambling and 'l;.,~g~ l 19 7 2) • Young }hack poets were~~,;i;'li shed in Gran~ High SchoolJ a 011mibus© Redmond, who has taught at C liforni~ versity, Sacram ; to, since 1970, conducts writing wo rkshops on campus and/\communi ty sites ~ the Oak Severa oets are working and studying at Black Arts West in Seattle· and Park School of Afro-American Thou~i-.t ' \.,/ />'+J. e t 0 t+ ~~ lmu..s .s-r.Sohri ~ 0-.c..he.s a.-+ Wo.,s htf\ ~~;~le Urv111er-s,ty . p I �(JJ 5~ G/Y C---/ e r ns ~ "Arma g;edd on," "chariots of fire," "smokinP, sixties," " get <lown on Ehitey" and "wa rrior pr iests" a r e oft en u s ed by critics attempting to describe and define t he Jtew..Jrlack poe ts. "1obe su1--e; I ] iJ ~h bvt there was~verhal fire and brimstone•,,/\few of the noets had time to stav "mount e d in a chariot of fire," as Blyden Jackson +t&s./41-1d S,(e>_re.. - 0 ne n C1Tes em. Ind e ed, when t he ~ /\is viewed in its wholeness, C\t<lll that s ome who mount ed "chario t s " often we r e 1o t poet 1t Even the most verbal and .t ' popula r of the n ew poetsi L7 r VY ' rikki Giovanni, Ba raka, Sonia Sanchez, !'-adhubuti~ denounced poetry as a luxury t hat could be illf afforded during a ',?(evolution," admitting in t he meantime, perhaps , t ha t thei rs was a particular brand of oratory not striving f or poet ry in a traditional sense . At the same time , the / l a ck poetry tradition has t h e se men and women, and others, to thank for snatching it from the yink,t of obscurity and giv ing i t a prominence ~ it had never before enioyed . This chore alone has earn ed t hem an i mno r tant " place" in the poetic scheme of ' Th·/ s M11° _j_ /If.albei t a " nl a c e ' ye t to be des i gna ted; ~er\\lV\C.l"lro n ofCl.1.l~• I ~eu the r{'Oets. ~i<cL4ivcl.y l be c.dte--ed h11 /3(,1.,-, /(a~• t> c• n1 , • f 11 • f'o.r.- ~h,~l\\ ";i1"" po~ ,T;bt'l ~l'\d h,s eml!Wlc«ris o~~t-"•lr!$p1red sc,en1H'ic. Soc1al1~ pl'!c..e m<ly ct So Jyat'he re are myriad problems and conflicts in the writings and lives ofr,,~/r So!!le, s u ffe ring f r om the " d isfigu r ement of perception)" <l::E L HI hiiUl, do not always nortrav a corre ct socio l o~ ical picture of Bla cks, let alone a correct poetic one. Anx ious to " s atura t e " t J,enselves in the new /,'l ackness, they disguise their own c on f usion in half-baked theories about Afro- American lif e; this results 0... 4-h t ,·~ in ~ ~oe t ry ~ ften ~ r i ,Herl wi t'.1 conf usions, inaccuracies and oversinn lii f ications of t11e )(lacl/ ,--<peri e ce . A fu rt . er res ult, and th is star-makers v · ew the noet r v throui:;h a receiv es a f inal s t 2r,11 of a:,ryroval 1 s ~,;hast 'J, is thnt inverted l ens; so t hat a pop ilar "la tex b rand '' '1i e t:, e cle ener , searc in:" aml n or~ :) r found poetrv (numas , ~att er s on, Cornish, Corte z. Jordan, Larde, Rivers) is o,n. laved. Such a n i:wersion y,rovirley ia c': ar.d \·Jhite readers witli. an exte!1ded " isfi?urement," �mud<lvi.ng t he a lreadv clonliled vision r a t hc> r t an cJ ea rin ;:r · t unJ as ;;cal 11ad r r ed i ct 0d . Adding t o t i s confusion a cad. r e o f ...Jiack critics whr )arade ess entiall y po l iti l cal , parochial and ideologi cnl defenses under the banne r o f a / lack / est he t i ce Bo t h 1-fcKay a nd 'Rivers sai') "~o w'lite man can write my stor y, " bu~ <lurinr t h e cont emporarv 9eriod , some bep ea~ue red ._40-4,'4. la ck readers and teachers ~ ,~ as l r "Uher e is t he Black writ er who will write it? 0 ~ v ~ej:~ ed Contrary to r,o . ular be lie f, i t ta k es(llLi 1'•••--•----• ■ 11111•1~8M~~8~ un d erst an d t h c comp 1 ex to And t hose f ew young ,;..r rit er s (and s oo ·esmen) • \SPffl tre4;t-$ In . ~ who seemed to have master ed as pe cts of it often I •--• ■ "-nr1.s on (: 1al co lm. ~ enomenon calle d the j 1ack/ xperi.ence . Knigh t, Harold Carrington) which allowe ...., and exnerirnente::il:la . To ther1 time ~ ~ r eflec t .._ , ~ ~ deve o ~ \ Even r,wendolvn Brooks had "tb1e" to war < out t icklish '--' questio sin the are~ of art, politics and poe try . 3'..i female poe t s, she did no t 1t dur i ng her early vears . ;; ~ " ➔ Unlike rrances Harne r{ and ot he r teach or go on a temperance~leapue lecture cir cu it That she cultivated and rotected he 11 distanc e' 1is ev i dent in t e superior qualitv of her worl<';I which does not shun the salient t hemes of the / e~ etry: / 1aclz pride, Africa/ l a c .· music, self-love,,?1-ack heter osexuality, violence, mistrust o f whites, destruct ion of the t estern world and self-de t er mi na t ion . Yet those opnosing the ,t'iack/e stheti c do no t always have a clean slat e , sinc e they are often "shored up" by pers onal exper ienc es with whites . AmonP; the oryryonents of the "separat e " aesthetic for Blac ks, Hayden and Redding are most vocal , However , both have maintained close associations with academy-trained/oriented white critics and writ e r s . ~ 8 Hayden nust a s k himself why / lack poets should not subscribe to a ack/ esthe tic if he subscribes to t he aesthetic of the Baha 'i / aithi "t he has said, "to which I willinP,ly submit," 2] possesses the possibilities and potentialities for a new ~e r ep l ace or r.1odify~hristia I - ) I . 1'UI • I 1 '.J! tr 1c onlv one," £j!8h Bl a ck culture _ aneih~ eligioo//r • ~oul d ev en force (mys tique) behind / lack �, -f~ t51$ striving s and aspir ations: Aa p ros pect , s hould n ot he too li ~!1 tly dismiss ed . d. o d d ?~I d 10L.03 1ta.L That some n ew poe ts _..,./\wade into the intense intellec t ua\\ rea m of / ,lac k n ~ss, however, is seen in ~ f)eem tl!ss;" Jayne Cortez s\"Fe stiva~ & Funerals . " ~usical , daring , ambivalen t, complex and technically dex terous,fft • pa@m summarizes t h~ ~ .~re ' uncertain world of/ __ a c ~ . Like Hayden s II l" . Zeus " and C::wendolyn Rroo lcs .I'.S" Riot II r•J J :tt, E fJ..J U it fluently captures the susnense and hyperactivity of~ontempo rary~ . 1 The polarities / - festivals and funerals-~ are a rel e typal and m tholo gica ~ since t e y a t once tap the unexplored and state whnt is known. ;f,.;l'J\ff~ of t he 19 6()s . ~ The poem is also an emotioI}a l heal t hv ambivalenc e, couched i n t he " invisib l e " world an d " cy clical n i ghtma re " o f the / 1a ck / xp e r ience , become s a ll e~orical as t h e po et c ele r ates hero e s, sun ;,; ad u nsunrr, a l r of ham a r e d ead i n one wa7 o r a not her . Th e y w.:_n~e ri his s o ' ri t .-, tound ed his t on°u e b ut ea t ~ T e " s o T" . .atli. ass _c c o~i "0 s both t l-\e a70 v ;i.nd t',e ecstas , a s i t ) etween t ,e clone nee d e ( '' s v r-i ns o er e, n es tl e <l s o,,.,ev}ie r e .., neec e ") a -~ " cnlt u a ..,. L s" 1-\a " rus~er1 " tli.rou ~li. s tr eets u r ,,.in r- .:1e 'T'he t d ie f or s , an 't:J et h s " o st a '<Oo<l f ri p--,_ r- " , :t~o . she loven: b ut he '' c.o.D.'' to her/ ,, A. w~ h " t 1-ior ns o n I '-" I I l-)is as been s hiDDed 1--ack ca s ket,-"• .!- • colle ct on deat h co1lect on d 0 ntl-i c oll e ct on d e a t heJ h is "friend' ' soon ecome s the many cleay -lack snokesmen whose blood has heen "consumed by vultures" : T-Jho k . lled Lununha �The• Qk)o'fe. ~lines ioin ot11er nnan c es of a fri"hte a l l f rienc s: dcat1i a .c1 done and r; frai j _n_ <T wl-ii c h lanen ts t h iolence a nd consumpti.on have 1~ ;s of evour Pd th Ther e are no tears •e have no f r iends P. WP. is the ~-,ord a r e a l onee The worl d of " cad llacs a n d cocai ne" is !'OTm a ted by +e st ; vnls anc f une ra l s . poets t hat sc r eal" ''ki ll r un • I ~lac's know ever- ho erin(T de at, is as close as the j t k e 1oi tor a n c " t e 1'lues." t he ch~rch. , 11. ikl 22 IILb even ~-Jhe 1 ce, h e cl rivin(T nace ui lone, false idol:? • ( we a ,•e a. Le n e 11) 1 bov, alon/ \wi t hout 11 ~o.~ Block girl, J'lack t . livin° i one o dra aticall e d by fo r ei~,er s . s ·~ a r: who "d l le uJA4t'<. · 1 It i s a · ,1 a d t e nrhan n.:ize of ecs t a t ic ope r a tion rr•-',l• il , '' " .:ish ' 1ds in t 11e wi d , '' " the flesh o f Patric e " In Africa o r l n e r+ r . oli t ical onnn'ssio,., ......... frie,ds in a ho st i le countrv o ~ merica tli.e fa t e s of Rla c·s are Lumu .. f'9, e d ~~alcol::10 r e s s ur e \ c ooker wi thout a haclt 001; or va l ve t o let off stean . t he poem' s l angua ~e co~ lenent s t he "rush " o f/ ()ff . T~e rush of lac k l if e ) whi ch is ne ce s s i t a t ed bv on r ession hut .wh i ch , i n t urn , r e s u l ts inl\eno rmouslv "UMhfll,.0~ i g1}\~ e arl y deat h s . rµII peritd; bat re d!fCJl!tiy fake§ Iii u .., zcc.t dcai 1F tLc nJaclc E1.pC1.is cc: c~a ;1 . &.J 'ii!! ; H11. ~vt.f.2_f'l.setv L 1.atr.., aan@ JlidAle.;Qi pa@.il§. ii§ ih!M'-iery il!dtk it as Jaz ~., n a d siR;nifiaaot arnor Rs It is a 1\llu 1 JIit ia ot5lc; th21.1c &iid astjsnflt hut it , �a]J1i,1 ?!8titd!/~--LS$8 .~ E of i! cilbt li(O jS ULLioas. c&P( :fSE 1metrr l in s11 is t 1c tltc 1 olacc 1f822 !l6212 .t of t 1t c '.!uprooted perf ectjou " 1 '.iiC!itl 1 lc _aco Cflra:s it Liilhtt..ES t.te e i r1rul \., GEL I S Lu1LU[Jl hase !Sa bttorl in the atatcd jJ GCJ U . C,Q[ of all Ehl§ d§ the Blues. erotic Alid 1.1 Ed!§ c6ih€§ [tit? i!hpt0Vi saf 1on § @if § @, II® ';- the poet ltd§ iidOl,~atL-tl t~ sto umy aad always 111 1 £!.talc pa ssa ge of 21..e r t cl! a@§t!tt!LIC thfilE 1l h@t erarli t it1u pra dr:aad Fron among t he T!lany good ooets of t his era will eme r ge a few r; reat ones , though ~ ~ ;ec:; has ~ ......J.~1" . . 11 hren ~retarded hy the popula r renunciation of "art" and ideas . " (JJ\J/ But i t c annot be r est r a ined t oo lonr~ h eca u se t '.,ere 'i..S bo t h urgency a nd breadth in much of the new thou p;ht and noetrv . It is paradoxical to send / lack st .dents to ~d.jfic.h"o~o9y Western schools4 to be trained on " heavy " philo soph,,._ 7\1\and then ask them to reduce cu,d;r"NMritj Fo_..,~ u"'eLyJ /tff f laclr. thought '" all their knowled g el\t o compla ints and f ocusless ra~t in1-!S . and z l it erature ca rGot he called on to function in the~ raditional caoaciti!¼,z . . . ._ to train, develop a nd stimulate th e f aculties - l then th e "bat tle for the minds /VI f\,'\ • of i.t\' 1 ... ack ho.': loeeh T'leople" ~ alreadyA.wo-:i hy t~P other side. .!_J t t,ttt t. T inally, ~ !3.rn c ks as a peoole are µ r ofoundly t r a~ic, co~ic or h er~c, then their idea s and their ~ INlenci6,,,.,,,.,,.,,,4N~ f f l ~~ t,,. WC have no t a l ways roamed Cr."Dav,-,,._,,); the "s treet s and alleys of other T!len ' s minds':Aand a true and honestf ~1b st and not b e afraid to be " ~reat" ~ poetry J~outd ack poetry will . alon .s ide wha t eve r else of, gr eatness ther e is in t h i s wo rl d . • � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene B. Redmond Digital Collection Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context EBRWritings_09_13to15 Title A name given to the resource Editors proof, Drumvoices: The Mission of Afro-American Poetry: A Critical History, Chapter VI. Festivals & Funerals: Black Poetry of the 1960s & 1970s, typed with handwritten edits, p. 406-552 Relation A related resource Eugene B. Redmond Digital Collection Language A language of the resource English Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource For digital rights and permissions, see <a href="https://www.siue.edu/lovejoy-library/about/policies.shtml">https://www.siue.edu/lovejoy-library/about/policies.shtml</a> or contact <a href="mailto:library@siue.edu">library@siue.edu</a> for direct inquiries. In copyright. <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Redmond, Eugene B.