This 13-line free-verse poem starts with gratitude, “I thank you, my God, / for having created me black,” and establishes a mood of celebration. The next line, a continuation of the initial thought, creates a startling counterpoint: “for making me… Read More ›
The early post–Civil War promise of equal protection and increased civil rights for African Americans was eviscerated by decades of Jim Crow laws, culminating in the 1896 Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson that sanctioned legalized racial segregation. This… Read More ›