Literature has become my life ever since I made the decision to get my Bachelor's in English. I’ve always been an avid reader, but the wealth of literature that I’m exposed to now is beyond measure. I not only read for enjoyment now, but I’m able to read critically and analytically. As an English student, my classes range from Caribbean Lit, to Asian American Lit, African Lit, and British Lit. Being from the Caribbean Island of Trinidad and Tobago, nothing brought me more joy than reading Merle Hodge's Crick Crack Monkey entirely in my Trini dialect in a classroom. Since my decision, I have earnestly searched for literary events that I could attend. One major source that has been helpful to me is the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College. The Center for Black Literature was founded in 2003, and “builds on the tradition and legacy of the National Black Writers Conference that began in 1986”. According to their website, the center serves to heighten the public’s appreciation, awareness, and knowledge of Black literature, through conferences, symposia, workshops, publications and readings”. The center serves as a resource for Black writers and also as a platform to study the literature produced by people of the African Diaspora. The Center for Black Literature is host to the National Black Writers Conference (NBWC), where notable Black writers are celebrated. It was at one of these very conference, with the help of Odyssey, I was able to meet and conduct an interview with Edwidge Danticat. The center is also the only one of its kind in the country. During the fall and early 2017, the center will be hosting a list of events, and I encourage you to grab your family and friends to go check them out.
1. Thursday Sept 15, 2016 at 6:30pm - African Synergy a Literary Salon
This event will host Okey Ndibe, author of Foreign Gods, Inc, and the forthcoming Never Look an American in the Eye, and Imbolo Mbue, author of Behold the Dreamers. There will be roundtable discussion with Ndibe and Mbueon their works, and the way "African narratives fit with African-American narratives."
Location: The Center for Arts & Culture at Bedford Styvesant Restoration Corporation/ Skylight Gallery- 1368 Fulton St, Brooklyn NY 11216
2. Thurs Oct 13, 2016 at 6:30pm - John Oliver Killens Reading Series: An Evening with Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson is the author of Another Brooklyn. She also won the 2014 National Book award for her book Brown Girl Dreaming
Location: Medgar Evers College/Edison O. Jackson Auditorium - 1638 Bedford Ave Brooklyn, NY 11225
3. Wed Oct 19, 2016 at 6:30pm - Imagination Unlimited: Speculative Fiction and Black Literature
This event will be panel discussion on "speculative fiction within the Black Literary Arts"
Location: Medgar Evers College/ Edison O Jackson Auditorium - 1638 Bedford Ave Brooklyn, NY 11225
4. Thurs Nov 10, 2016 at 6:30pm - John Oliver Killens Reading Series: An Evening withKalisha Buckhanon
Kalisha Buckhanon is the author of Solemn and the titles Upstate and Conception
Location: Medgar Evers College/ Edison O Jackson Auditorium- 1638 Bedford Ave Brooklyn, NY 11225
5. Sat Mar 25, 2017 at 10:30 am - 6 pm - 2017 National Black Writers Conference Biennial Symposium Our Miss Brooks: A Centennial Celebration
This conference will celebrate Qwedolyn Brooks, who wrote on Black life in America and Black experiences in America. she is the author of the novel Maud Martha, and of the poetry collections Annie Allen and The Bean Eaters.
Location: Medgar Evers College/ Founders Auditorium - 1650 Bedford Ave Brooklyn, NY 11225
6. Thurs Apr 20, 2017 at 6:30pm - National Poetry Month Celebrating June Jordan
This event will celebrate the life and works of the poet, playwright and essayist June Jordan
Location: Brooklyn Public Library- 10 Grand Army Plaza Brooklyn NY 11238
For further information on the Center for Black Literature click here
