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When the Harlem Writers Guild Came Home to the Schomburg CenterBy By A.J. Muhammad, Librarian III
The Harlem Writers Guild and its members have had a long association with the Schomburg Center. It was those ties that inspired my former colleague Tracy Crawford and I to collaborate with the Guild on a program at the Schomburg Center that put the spotlight on this organization. In November 2019, the Schomburg Center’s Jean Blackwell Huston Research and Reference Division hosted “An Evening with the Harlem Writers Guild.” The sold-out event took place in the Aaron Douglas Reading Room and offered attendees—who ranged in age from middle school students to seasoned Harlemites—a glimpse into the history of the organization and readings by current Guild members. READ MORE > |
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We Affirm Black Life Through Literature Words by Marc W. Polite
In our 70 year history, the Harlem Writers Guild has been about affirming the Black experience. An experience that is often wilfully misunderstood, the African-American experience in this country has left countless cultural, social and political imprints on our society and influenced those in the African Diaspora as well. In this pivotal moment in our nation's history, the Guild will continue to promote the literary work of Black writers. Expressions of Black life and culture have often been the target of erasure. One of our aims is to ensure that our history will not be distorted, devalued, or denigrated.... READ MORE > |
Who We Are
The Harlem Writers Guild was set up as a forum where African-American writers could develop their craft. After funding for an organization active in the late 1940's called The Committee for the Negro in the Arts ended, these writers felt excluded from the mainstream literary culture of New York. The HWG was also part of the Black Arts Movement of the 1960's, and its rationale continues to be to develop and aid in the publication of works by writers of the African diaspora. Other writers who have been associated with the HWG include Lonne Elder III, Douglas Turner Ward, Ossie Davis, Paule Marshall, Audre Lorde, Maya Angelou and Sarah E. Wright.
InitiativeTo create and publish compelling literature of all genres reflective of the African American and African Diaspora experiences of struggle, survival and success, using our art as expressions of protest again racism, social injustice and economic tyranny while embracing, promoting and sustaining black voices, young and old.
The Harlem Writers Guild is dedicated to presenting the experiences of people of the African Diaspora through the written word. 501 (c) (3) Nonprofit. |
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