Freedom in this Village: Twenty-five Years of Black Gay Men's Writing

edited by E. Lynn Harris

 

Freedom in this Village: Twenty-five Years of Black Gay Men’s Writing

Edited by E. Lynn Harris

Carroll & Graf Publishers

 

“For the first time ever, Freedom in This Village: Twenty-five Years of Black Gay Men’s Writing chronicles the vital but all-too-often overlooked course of black gay literature from roughly the emergence of AIDS up through the present day,” wrote the anthology’s editor, E. Lynn Harris, acclaimed writer of eight novels and his memoir, What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted, in the Introduction to the book.

“One of the secondary tragedies of AIDS has been the figurative death of works by Black gay men who have died. With the exception of re-issued editions of books by Essex Hemphill and Melvin Dixon, most contemporary Black gay writing has disappeared from public view with each new death. ... Thus, Freedom in This Village highlights our neglected past, while

showcasing exciting new work by today’s writers,” he added.

Forty-seven authors are represented in this anthology, including James Baldwin, Samuel R. Delany, Marvin K. White, Marlon Riggs, G. Winston James, James Earl Hardy, TimÕm West, Keith Boykin, Thomas Glave, Randy Boyd and Bruce Morrow.

For more on What Becomes of the Brokenhearted, see the "Archives-Interviews" page and click on "E. Lynn Harris."

(as published in Family & Friends Magazine, February 2006)