Busboys Books & The Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation Celebrate the Life & Legacy of Zora Neale Hurston
Date and Time
Feb 12, 2020 6:00 pm
Location
14th & V
2021 14th St NW, Washington, District of Columbia, 20009
Feb 12, 2020 6:00 pm
14th & V
The Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation is celebrating the life and legacy of Zora Neale Hurston on February12, 2020, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Busboys and Poets 14th & V.
The program will hone in on Hurston’s motivation to write about common folks, exploring why her focus mattered during the age of “The New Negro” and why it matters 100 years later. Featured panelists will be Marita Golden, award-winning author of more than a dozen books and co-founder of the Hurston/Wright Foundation; Renina Jarmon, author, college instructor and doctoral student at the University of Maryland; and Dr. Arlisha Norwood, a visiting professor at Baruch College who earned her PhD in History at Howard University.
The program also will include readings from Hurston’s just-released story collection, Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stickand a just-reissued edition of I Love Myself (When I Am Laughing).
Publisher Amistad/HarperCollins describes Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick as “an outstanding collection of stories about love and migration, gender and class, racism and sexism that proudly reflect African American folk culture. Brought together for the first time in one volume, they include eight of Hurston’s ‘lost’ Harlem stories, which were found in forgotten periodicals and archives. These stories challenge conceptions of Hurston as an author of rural fiction and include gems that flash with her biting, satiric humor, as well as more serious tales reflective of the cultural currents of Hurston’s world. All are timeless classics that enrich our understanding and appreciation of this exceptional writer’s voice and her contributions to America’s literary traditions.”
Publisher The Feminist Press says of I Love Myself (When I Am Laughing):
“During her lifetime, Zora Neale Hurston was praised for her writing but condemned for her independence and audacity. Her work fell into obscurity until the 1970s, when Alice Walker rediscovered Hurston’s unmarked grave and anthologized her writing, establishing her as an intellectual leader for future generations of black writers. A testament to the power and breadth of Hurston’s oeuvre, the newest edition of this enduring text remains as vital as ever for readers today.”
The Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation, founded in 1990, conducts workshops, master classes, public readings, competitions, and an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. Through these programs, the foundation helps writers produce high-quality literature, preserves the voices of Black writers, creates a supportive community for writers, provides financial support to college writers, celebrates artistic excellence, and connects readers throughout the city to local, national and international authors.
