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From NPR: Black Women Shine in This Year's Poetry Prizes

Black Women Shine in This Year's Poetry Prizes

From All Things Considered, Nov. 18:

"Four of the most prestigious poetry prizes went to African American women this year. Some say the accolades are well overdue. Fueling this trend are a growing number of literary organizations that nurture the work specifically of black writers."

Much deserved praise to Lucille Clifton, Natasha Trethewey, Tracy K. Smith, and Elizabeth Alexander—and to Cave Canem! It's nice to see the larger awards reflect what's going on in poetry—that poetry is thriving. And the voices once thought as underrepresented are now receiving the attention they so richly deserve. It gives me hope for the next generation of writers to find venues and audiences for their works.

Woo hoo!
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Left-handed Trees... said…
Glad to see it...
Love,
D.
*by the way, I am glad that I sparked you to submit to LM...they (well, I guess I can say "we" now)were lucky to publish your work!*
2:13 PM
Kay Cooke said…
Good news. You'll be there one day too!
2:39 AM
Catherine said…
That is good news - but I have to admit, mostly when I read American poetry I have no idea whether the poet is black, native American, or any other ethnicity - only whether I like the work. There are a few poets, of course, whose ethnicity shows in their writing, but not all. I've read poems by Natasha Trethewey, and it wasn't until recently that I found out she was a black woman.
5:00 AM
January said…
Catherine, that's so interesting to me. I think it just goes to show that we all have a range of topics that are universal in natute.
3:21 PM
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