Category Archives: Black Writers
Rev. John L. Tilley: The Fountain of Time
Because he had to work to help support his family and could not attend school regularly, John Lee Tilley (1898-1971) did not graduate high school until he was 23. He went to Shaw University for a B.A., and then—as important … Continue reading
Black Writers Picture Themselves – Part 2
Burt Britton’s 1976 book Self-Portrait: Book People Picture Themselves contains nearly 750 self-portraits of writers and actors, from Edward Abbey (A) to Paul Zweig (Z). It all started when Britton, then tending bar in New York, tried to get a … Continue reading
James Alan McPherson: Junior and John Doe
James Alan McPherson wrote “Junior and John Doe” for Gerald Early’s 1993 essay collection Lure and Loathing: Essays on Race, Identity, and the Ambivalence of Assimilation. It’s a great essay in a great and important collection. Twenty writers—on a spectrum … Continue reading