African American history

Community Book Forum: The North Carolina Roots of African American Literature

The Carrboro Cybrary and Carrboro Recreation and Parks invite the community to celebrate Black History Month with a discussion of The North Carolina Roots of African American Literature led by the editor, UNC-Chapel Hill Distinguished Professor of English, William L. Andrews.  Copies of the anthology can be borrowed from the Carrboro Cybrary.

"The first African American to publish a book in the South, the author of the first female slave narrative in the United States, the father of black nationalism in America--these and other founders of African American literature have a surprising connection to one another: they all hailed from the state of North Carolina.

This collection of poetry, fiction, autobiography, and essays showcases some of the best work of eight influential African American writers from North Carolina during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In his introduction, William L. Andrews explores the reasons why black North Carolinians made such a disproportionate contribution (in quantity and lasting quality) to African American literature as compared to that of other southern states with larger African American populations. The authors in this anthology parlayed both the advantages and disadvantages of their North Carolina beginnings into sophisticated perspectives on the best and the worst of which humanity, in both the South and the North, was capable. They created an African American literary tradition unrivaled by that of any other state in the South.

Writers included here are Charles W. Chesnutt, Anna Julia Cooper, David Bryant Fulton, George Moses Horton, Harriet Jacobs, Lunsford Lane, Moses Roper, and David Walker."  ~ Book Description from UNC Press

"This important anthology shows that North Carolina produced a remarkable, indeed unmatched record of black authorship throughout the nineteenth century. . . . Even if these eight writers were not North Carolinians, a collection of their writings makes for a compelling display of diverse African American literary expression during the first decades after slavery. The fact that these writers were all North Carolinians makes the volume even more impressive, as it points to the fact that they were all shaped by the cultural forces of this particular state during a time of tremendous political and social upheaval."  ~ Lucinda H. MacKethan, North Carolina State University

Date: 

Friday, February 20, 2009 - 1:30pm to 2:30pm

Location: 

Carrboro Century Center, 100 N. Greensboro St.

Juneteenth celebration

From the Chapel Hill Herald:

Juneteenth event set for June 21

CHAPEL HILL -- The second annual Juneteenth Celebration -- commemorating the end of slavery -- will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on June 21 at the Pine Knolls Community Center and Lincoln Center.

There will be free basketball, a moonwalk, entertainment, food and health screenings as well as volunteer assistance.

For more information or to volunteer, contact Ted Parrish at 929-8000 or tparrish@nccu.edu. 

Date: 

Saturday, June 21, 2008 - 6:00am to 2:00pm

Location: 

Pine Knolls Community Center and Lincoln Center
 

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