As part of a citywide celebration of Gwendolyn Brooks marking the one-hundredth anniversary of her birth, the Newberry will gather poets, scholars, historians, and archivists to discuss the historical context of Brooks' groundbreaking first book of poems, A Street in Bronzeville. Published in in August 1945—the same month that World War II ended—the collection expresses the rich complexities of life on Chicago's South Side within the larger fight for democracy both at home and abroad.
When Richard Wright read the book in manuscript draft, he realized, "America needs a voice like hers."
Watch CAN TV's video recording of most of this program. Explore a Quick Guide to related materials in the Newberry collection.
Presenters
- Anna Chen, Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library
- Camille T. Dungy, Poet
- Liesl Olson, Director of Chicago Studies, Newberry Library
- Quraysh Ali Lansana, Poet
- Tim Samuelson, Cultural Historian, City of Chicago
- Rebirth Poetry Ensemble
Download a PDF flyer for this program to post and distribute.
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