Highlighting Black Writers: James Baldwin

"Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced."- James Baldwin


    Today, I'm going to be discussing an intelligent writer from Harlem, New York. James Baldwin was raised in a family with financial hardship, but this didn't get in the way of him becoming a prominent author, playwriter, poet, etc. At the age of 16, Baldwin was a preacher and wrote his first autobiography, Go Tell It on the Mountain. After high school he worked different jobs to try to get by but eventually moved away to Paris. In Paris, he continued his writing journey  and explored taboo topics at the time about being in love with a man and a woman at the same time. His writing also discussed racial tensions and sexual exploration. One of his essays was featured in the New Yorker Magazine about the Muslim separatist movement and gained extreme notoriety. Baldwin turned the article into a book and it became a best seller. In addition to his success as an author, he had one of his plays Blues for Mister Charlie make it to Broadway. It did get mixed reviews, which was to be expected during that time frame. His later works were overlooked compared to the success of his early work, but it didn't stop Baldwin from continuing to write and educate people on the different life issues Black Americans found themselves facing in those tumultuous times.


Source: www.britannica.com

 

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