By: Dominick Shettiny (’26), Staff Writer
How do you remember the history of your culture? Is it as simple as calling your grandparents on the phone and asking them about your ancestors? Do you have photos, stories, or records? Not all of us are blessed with history books written about our past that are passed down for generations. But the story of Black history needs to be remembered. This book tells the story of African Americans distinctly and understandably.
African American Poetry 250 Years of Struggle and Song is an anthological book that tells the history of African Americans through unique literary means. Kevin Young compiles hundreds of poets and poems into one book to express the journey of African Americans from bondage to “freedom” to “equality,” starting from 1770 to 2020.
The book is split into 8 (technically 9 sections, including the introduction), each section covering a different key moment of Black development. While the title is “struggle and song,” it is more than that. The book is about African Americans’ emotions, voices, passions, and everyday life.
“Bury me in the free land”, focuses on the enslavement struggle of African Americans starting with Phillis Wheatley, the first published Black poet, George Moses Horton, “the Black Bard of North Carolina,” whose grave is at UNC Chapel Hill, and Lucy Terry. She is attributed with the first piece of African American poetry ever written. The period for section 1 is 1770-1899, starting from early colonization and the African enslavement across the Americas to slavery being an immediate memory and fear that was still present. The pieces within this section are a bit harder to understand than the others due to the Shakespearean writing style and changes within the English lexicon in the past 200 years. Regardless, I feel that the raw emotions displayed by some of the earliest influential Black poets are enough to hook readers.
The time frame for Section 2, “Lift Every Voice,” is significantly shorter, between 1900-1918. It features pieces that convey the generational hatred bred within Black Americans after more than a century of suffering. Slavery was “abolished” in 1865 but didn’t end overnight. Those feelings can be felt within the works of the poets, who write with conviction and power like Carrie Williams Clifford, W.E.B Du Bois, James Weldon Johnson, and many others. Their voices display the path Black Americans were forced to walk in shackles to get to where we are now in America.
The title of this section leads into the time frame analyzed. Section 3, “The Dark Tower,” is dated from 1919 to 1936. This section looks at poetic works created during the Harlem Renaissance, as the section title is a nod to the era. The Harlem Renaissance was the rebirth of Black culture in a highly significant manner. Sections one and two lay the groundwork for the Harlem Renaissances’ growth with the remembrance of Phillis Wheatley. This cultural development came with changes in music like jazz and blues. Poetry began to flow in tandem with music like birds dancing in the wind. In this section, you can see the growth within Black minds. The pieces from section one were akin to playwright and dramatist writing style, but within this section, they give off the impression of slam poetry as we began to develop a unique style and branch off into this era of the renaissance. The pieces in the section balance between displaying a faint remembrance of our past before being brought to America, early struggles within America, and the newer struggles faced with America.
While on the renaissance topic, section four, “Ballads of Remembrance” focuses on the Chicago Black Renaissance, 1936-1959. The Chicago Renaissance was similar to the Harlem Renaissance, sparked by a large growth within the Black communities on the south side of Chicago leading to a large amount of creative development. The cultural evolution of Black poets led to recognition and success, like Gwendolyn Brooks, the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize, and the thriving Black culture on the rise, which is my favorite topic. The beginning of Afro-Latino culture rising with the Black success in this era of rapid cultural growth resonates with me. The pieces (as the section title implies) are more musical than the previous sections, which I find eye-opening as it provides more perspectives on the idea of what poetry can be. The authors add a beat and rhythm to the pain felt and the growth like the accelerando of a song.
My favorite section of this anthology is section 5, “Ideas of Ancestry,” which shows Black voices making sure they are being heard. I started this article by asking you a question; this section answers the question for Black Americans. The previous sections were making history, this section takes some time to remember while creating its own. The works in this section are some of my favorites, featuring poems from Maya Angelou, Amiri Baraka, Lucille Clifton, and many more. The poems in this piece are from my favorite poets as their writing style is something that I connect to the most; I often find myself relating to the pieces because of the phenomenal Black people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in my life. Each article is written with love and passion; it grips your heart and soul and refuses to let go. It’s an ensemble of music and poems displaying a new height of Black culture in my eyes. The pieces in this section show off some of the most detailed imagery, storytelling, pain and understanding, written by some of the most talented poets.
One of my favorite things about this book is how each section gives you an image of the times. Not through a picture or painting, but through the words on the page. Section six, “Blue Light Sutras,” begins significantly slower than some of the other sections. Earlier sections lead with power and passion because the times were of Black growth and Black suffering through enslavement and fighting for freedom. While Black Americans are always fighting for their right to stand and live in America, no matter the time, this section shows a “slow down” in Black culture development, contrasting with the booming communities seen in the earlier sections. The section starts with long and thoughtful pieces like “I Can’t Get Started” and “Two Brothers.” They set the tone throughout this section to be somber and reflective.
Section 7 leads into recent history, times that I have some memories of, like the inauguration of President Barack Obama. “Praise Songs for the Day” shifts to a more hopeful and blessed feeling within recent history, taking pieces from 1990 to 2008. The focus recognizes Black poets, performances at Obama’s inauguration, and the success of Black individuals beyond literary growth. This section evolves from the tone set in Section 6 as one of somber struggles, still fighting for respect and fair treatment in this land. Though mixed within this section are pieces tying into Black roots and everyday life, my favorite is “nap I ness” by Kyle Dargan. The pieces detail a river that flows to the present day that weaves interconnectedly with past and present struggles and successes. A foundation built by early African poets that Black Americans constructed a museum on top of.
Finally, section 8 “After the Hurricane,” from 2009-2020, with pieces from Black poets who grew up seeing the boom and growth of Black culture in the form of music, slam poetry, performance, and success in a multitude of forms. While still managing to connect with current-day struggles. One of the pieces in this section is by Clint Smith called Your National Anthem about the Colin Kaepernick situation. Despite its short length, it’s one of my favorite pieces within section 8. The pieces in this section contrast heavily in my eyes because of the shift in memories. The pieces are no longer about history I’ve heard about; it’s about history I witnessed.
That’s what makes this book so enthralling and significant in my eyes. It’s a timeline of African American history, but rather than historical events being the markers, it’s poems and music that tell the emotions of Black people at almost every major historical event. This book is over 1 thousand pages long, but you can open up to any page and feel connected to the words in front of you. Within the book’s introduction, Kevin Young cites a quote from James Wheldon Johnsons. “The final measurement of the greatness of all peoples is the amount of literature and art they have produced.” History is told by the victors, but even when on our knees and facing oppression, Black excellence and struggle is still said in detail within this book. If the final measurement of Black greatness is the total literature and art we’ve made, then our excellence will stand out for all time.
Book Citation: Young, Kevin, ed “African American Poetry 250 Years of Struggle & Song”, The Library of America, 2020
