By Writing Barn Intern Katarina Rodriguez
While the celebration of black excellence continues this Black History Month, we’d love to shine a light on these writers whose works shaped the world we know today. They transformed genres and challenged the social norms of their time. Let’s recognize and celebrate these black writers who broke boundaries.
Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley was the first African American woman to publish a collection of poems. She was born in 1753 and stolen from her home in West Africa when she was a child to be enslaved in Boston. Wheatley’s work and significant intelligence proved to many that there was no such thing as a superior race. Though Wheatley has a number of poems such as On Virtue, A Hymn to the Evening, To S.M., a Young African Painter, on Seeing His Works, and more; she’s most known for On Being Brought from Africa to America. Phillis Wheatley broke down the initial wall for many.
W.E.B. DuBois
DuBois, born in 1898, is considered one of the most intelligent minds of his time. He rebuked the idea that white people were biologically superior when many believed so. DuBois is most known for The Souls of Black Folk, Black Reconstruction, and he edited The Crisis Magazine. He dedicated his entire career to fighting racial injustice and made it his goal to have equal rights for all humans.
Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass, an orator and author, was born into slavery in 1818. After an initial incidental reading lesson with his slaveholder’s wife, his passion and thirst for knowledge sparked. This spark led Douglass to find many unconventional ways to teach himself how to read and write. He escaped slavery, then began writing speeches and touring the country in the fight to abolish slavery. When people questioned whether it was actually him writing these speeches, he wrote and published his first autobiography to prove that he was exactly who he claimed to be. This autobiography was called Narrative of the Life of Federick Douglass and shed a light on his life as a slave. To view all of Douglass’ work, click here.
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou was a multi-award-winning poet, author, essayist, and civil rights activist. She was born on April 4th, 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri and was the recipient of nearly 50 honorary doctorate degrees. She pioneered an autobiographical writing style, using her work to give a voice to and uplift the African American community. Some of her most famous works include I know Why the Caged Bird Sings, And Still I Rise, The Heart of a Woman, All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes, and many many more. See a list of her entire catalog here.
Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka was a poet, educator, playwright, and activist who is considered by many to be the father of the Black Arts Movement. He once described that the movement’s goal was to “create an art, a literature that would fight for black people’s liberation with as much intensity as Malcolm X our ‘Fire Prophet’ and the rest of the enraged masses who took to the streets.” His work was thought-provoking, controversial, and deeply saturated in black liberation. Some of his poems include Incident, Snake Eyes, The Liar, and many others. Feel free to check out some of Baraka’s books as well on his website.
Octavia E. Butler
Octavia Butler, born in 1947, was a multi-award-winning author, brilliant mind, and creative pioneer whose work reshaped science fiction. She presented the world with naturalistic stories that presented main characters who didn’t fall into the typical trope of Eurocentric qualities, and instead, were more like her. She created the representation in science fiction she wished she would’ve seen as an impressionable child. Some of her works include Kindred, Parable of the Sower, and Wild Seed: Book 1 in “The Patternist” Series. Check out her short story collection, Bloodchild and Other Stories.
Alice Walker
Alice Walker is an American author, poet, short story writer, and social activist. She was the first African American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for The Color Purple. Her work has often focused on women and offered the world an insight into African American life and culture, exploring themes of racism, misogyny, and economic hardship. Her works include In Search of Our Mothers’ Garden, A Poem Traveled Down My Arm, and We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting for: Inner Light in a Time of Darkness, among others.
Spike Lee
Spike Lee is an American writer, author, filmmaker, director, and screenwriter. His work has been nominated for and won numerous awards. Lee’s work challenges stereotypes, explores controversial topics, and has revolutionized the cinematic world with stories that center around black characters and portray black experiences in America. His work includes Do the Right Thing, BlacKkKlansman, Malcolm X, Da Five Bloods, and many more.
Amanda Gorman
Amanda Gorman, born in 1998, is an American poet and activist. She was the first person to be named National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States, and was the youngest inaugural poet, reading her work The Hill We Climb. Gorman’s work tackles issues of climate change, black identity, feminism and marginalization. She’s also the founder and executive director of One Pen, One Page which is an organization that provides underserved youth with free creative writing programs. Learn more about Amanda and her incredible work at her website.
About the Writer
Katarina Rodriguez is a senior at St. Edward’s University, studying to receive her BA in Writing and Rhetoric. She’s originally from Galveston, Texas and is a board member for The Ricky Roa Memorial Scholarship fund. Her love for writing began at a young age, and she mostly enjoys writing poetry and short fiction. Some of her favorite genres include mystery, romance, thriller and science fiction. Outside of writing, Katarina loves to read, cook, sing, play her ukulele, watch softball and annoy her three cats.