Image: Collage of Black poets. Public Domain/ Wikimedia Commons.
Throughout history, poetry has continued to be a powerful tool in shaping society and influencing public opinion. Many poets, through their works, have inspired changes in government policies, addressed societal ills, propagated cultural values, and inspired many to rise beyond their limitations.
As quoted by the American novelist Alice Walker, “Poetry is the lifeblood of rebellion, revolution, and the raising of consciousness.”
Amongst many poets of the past and present, Black poets have also made substantial and influential contributions to the literary world. Through stirring verses and captivating words, Black poets have used their voices to shed light on social inequality, racial segregation, and the difficulties of the Black man/women experience, creating a space for discussion, and societal change.
Here are 10 Black Poets to know;
1. Maya Angelou (1928–2014)
Image: Maya Angelou in 1974. Public Domain
Popularly known for her 1969 memoir “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, Maya Angelou, born on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri is an American author, actress, screenwriter, dancer, poet, and civil rights activist.
She made literary history as the first non-fiction bestseller by an African-American woman. As a black woman, racial prejudice and discrimination were something that Maya Angelou personally encountered and in return, she spent a number of her years as a member civil rights movement in their fight for racial equality.
Throughout her career, Angelou has won numerous awards, including two NAACP Image Awards in 2005 and 2009 for outstanding literary achievement (nonfiction).
Some of her notable works are; Oh Pray My Wings Are Gonna Fit Me Well (1975), And Still I Rise (1978), I Shall Not Be Moved (1990), and Mother: A Cradle to Hold Me (2006).
2. Langston Hughes (1901 – 1967)
Image: Portrait of Langston Hughes. Public Domain
Born James Mercer Langston Hughes, he was an African-American poet, columnist, playwright, novelist, and social activist from Joplin, Missouri.
Recognized for his contributions to jazz poetry, Hughes was also a key figure in the Harlem Renaissance, an influential movement in African-American literary history, and was in some ways, part of the contributors to the civil rights movement.
The movement aimed to redefine “the Negro” and change how Black people felt about their history and one another through the use of literature, music, theater, and the visual arts.
Some of his notable works are; Harlem (1951), The Negro Speaks of Rivers (1921), Let America be America Again (1936).
3. Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 – 2000)
Image: Gwendolyn Brooks. Source: Wikimedia Commons
The first Black poet to win the Pulitzer, Gwendolyn Brooks was an African-American Poet and Writer and the author of more than twenty books. She was also the first Black woman to become a consultant in poetry to the Library of Congress.
She strongly advocated for racial equality and was instrumental in bridging the gap between the academic poets and the young lack militant writers.
Working with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Brooks honed her craft in poetry which led to the completion of her first collection of poetry, A Street in Bronzeville (1945).
Her other poetic works include; Riot (1969), Family Pictures (1970), Aloneness (1971), Aurora (1972), and Beckonings (1975) and volume one of her autobiography, Report from Part One (1972).
4. Okot p’Bitek (1931 – 1982)
Image: Okot p’Bitek. Source: looknorth.co.ug; Copyright and credit belongs to original photographer.
Born in Uganda, Okot p’Bitek was a poet, anthropologist, and critic. His satirical soliloquies dealt with the clashes between the cultures of Africa and Europe. His notable work “The Song of Lawino” which was composed in his dialectical tongue Acholi, which is the language of a group of people located in Northern Uganda before later being translated by the author in 1966.
The poem highlights the struggle and sufferings of an African wife whose husband was enthralled by life in the city and wished everything to be western.
Some of his notable works are; Song of a Prisoner (1971), White Teeth (1958), The Horn of my Love (1974).
5. John Pepper Clark (1935 – 2020)
Image: John Pepper Clark. Source: Fair Use
Born in Kiagbodo, Delta State, J.P. Clark as he is fondly referred to was regarded as one of the most lyrical poets in Nigeria. He was also a journalist, playwright, and social critic.
His poetry was a celebration of the beauty of Africa, its folklore, and research into the ancient IJO (a socially and culturally diverse people, living in the coastal region of southern Nigeria).
J.P. Clark was a seasoned writer who exhibited a capacity for using imagination to portray his work. Amongst his most notable poetry was “Ibadan” which captured the beautiful landscapes and culture of the ancient Yoruba city.
Before his death, J.P. Clarke received the Nigerian National Order of Merit Award.
Some of his works include; Song of a Goat (1961), The Wives Revolt (1991), All for Oil (2000).
6. Christopher Okigbo (1932–1967)
Image: Christopher Okigbo. Source: Public Domain
Born Christopher Nixton Ifekandu Okigbo, he was a member of an illustrious community of writers in Nigeria which had the likes of Chinua Achebe, and Wole Soyinka.
He founded the African Authors Association and also belonged to the Artists Club in Ibadan which was an organization for writers, and visual and theater artists.
As the son of a teacher, his inspiration came from a wide range of sources, including Modernist English poetry, the classics, mythology, and his African background.
At the Black African Arts Festival in Dakar, Senegal (1996), the Langston Hughes award for African Poetry was rejected by Christopher Okigbo on the grounds that poetry should not be judged by race.
Some of his works include; Heavensgate (1962), Labyrinths with Path of Thunder (1971), and Collected Poems (1986).
7. Keorapetse Kgositsile (1938 – 2018)
Image: Korapetse Kgositsile. Fair Use
Keorapetse Kgositsile also popularly known as Bra Willie was a poet and essayist from South Africa. Using a writing style that was uniquely indigenous with a mix of Black American stylistic traditions, his focus delved into Pan-African liberation, finding roots in heroism and empathetic humanism.
A member of the African National Congress (ANC), he used the New Age Newspaper, a radical anti-apartheid media outfit where he was employed, to address issues of apartheid in South Africa. One of his famous quotes during an interview was; “In a situation of oppression, there are no choices beyond didactic writing: either you are a tool of oppression or an instrument of liberation.”.
His first collection of poems, Spirits Unchained (1969) won the Harlem Cultural Council Poetry and the National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Awards
Some of his other works include; To the Bitter End (1995), The Present is a dangerous (1974), If I Could Sing (2002), and The way I Salute You (2004).
8. Linton Kwesi Johnson
Image: Linton Kwesi Johnson. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Born August 24, 1952 in Clarendon, Jamaica, Linton was a member of the British Black Panther while studying sociology at Goldsmith’s College, University of London.
Linton’s poetry delved into the political realm. Focusing principally on the experiences of African Caribbean in Britain. In one of his interviews in 2008 he said “Writing was a political act and poetry was a cultural weapon”.
He also addressed issues regarding the British foreign policy, expressing deep outrage with Margaret Thatcher’s conservative government.
His poems ‘Sonny’s Lettah’ and ‘Di Great Insohreckshan’ addressed issues of police brutality on young Black men and reflected their efforts to overcome these prejudices through rioting and imprisonment.
Some of his other works are; Voices of the Living and the Dead (1974), Dread Beat An’ Blood (1975).
9. Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825–1911)
Image: Francis Ellen Watkins Harper. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Popularly touted as the Mother of African-American Journalism, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, poet, activist, journalist, and writer was the only child of African-American parents who were not born into slavery.
Frances wrote regularly against anti-slavery and was a regular abolitionist speaker. She was actively involved in the emancipation of slaves and worked through the Underground Railroad in helping slaves escape to freedom.
She was Vice President and Co-Founder of the National Association of Colored Women as well as a member of the American Women’s Suffrage Association and other notable groups.
Some of her works include; Autumn Leaves (1845), Poems on Miscellaneous Subjects (1854), Sketches of Southern Life (1872), The Martyr of Alabama and Other Poems (1892); The Sparrow’s Fall and Other Poems (1894); and Atlanta Offering (1895).
10. Lucille Clifton (1936–2010)
Image: Lucille Clifton. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Born in DePew, New York, Lucille Clifton was discovered by Langston Hughes (a fellow poet) through one of his friends who had shared one of her poems.
Lucille’s poetic work focused on the African-American family’s lives and experiences, drawing attention to the importance of endurance and strength through adversity.
Her poetry had a way of addressing the challenges of humanity and it became so obvious that during the award of the Ruth Lily Poetry Prize, the judges observed that “One always feels the looming humaneness around Lucille Clifton’s poems—it is a moral quality that some poets have and some don’t.”
Lucille was also the first author to have two books selected in the finals for the Pulitzer Prize which were; Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir, 1969-1980 (1987) and Next: New Poems (1987).
Her poem; Two-Headed Woman (1980) also received a nomination for the Pulitzer and won the Juniper Prize from the University of Massachusetts.
Her other works include; Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems (1988-2000), The Book of Light (1993), How to Carry Water: Selected Poems by Lucille Clifton (2020).
Okechukwu Nzeribe works with the Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, in Anambra State, Nigeria, and loves unveiling the richness of African cultures.
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