Dr. Donda West, "Raising Kanye"

October 19, 2007 (WLS) -- Dr. Donda West, Sonia Sanchez and Martín Espada will be joined by other prolific writers and poets of the African Diaspora at Chicago State University's 17th Annual Gwendolyn Brooks Writers' Conference.

This four-day event will take place on Wednesday, October 17 - Saturday, October 20, 2007 at Chicago State University, 9501 S. King Drive, Chicago. Activities will begin each day at 9:30 a.m. and continue throughout the day.

This year's theme, Fine Fury: Celebrating Gwendolyn Brooks at 90, underscores the conference focus on literary artists who, like Ms. Brooks, use their pen as a tool of activism. Ms. Brooks, poet laureate of Illinois, would have celebrated her 90th birthday on June 7, 2007.

Dr. Donda West, author, mother and manager to Grammy award-winning artist Kanye West, is one of the conference's headliners. She will discuss the power of Ms. Brooks' writings and their impact in today's hip hop movement as part of her keynote address and as a participant in a panel discussion entitled "Hip-Hop and Social Justice."

In addition, poetry icon Sonia Sanchez will be highlighted as the honoree on Giant's Day, the conference's culminating event. Each year, this day's activities engage attendees in an examination and celebration of the works of "literary giants."

For conference organizer, Professor Quraysh Ali Lansana, celebrating Ms. Sanchez on Giant's Day is appropriate and a privilege considering she is one of the most influential poets of our time. "Sonia Sanchez is one of the most well known women poets in the Black Arts movement. She, Amiri Baraka and other members of the Black Arts movement helped birth the spoken word movement," said Lansana. Professor Lansana serves as Director of the Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing at Chicago State University (CSU).

Other invited guests include Pulitzer Prize for Poetry finalist Martín Espada, critically-acclaimed novelist Tayari Jones and scholar Dr. Julius E. Thompson. They will participate in a series of workshops, panel discussions, and performances.

Additional conference highlights include:

· "Verbs & Vibes Performance"

Critically-acclaimed jazz flautist Nicole Mitchell joins Haki Madhubuti, Third World Press founder, in a performance of poetry and music.

Thursday, October 18, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.

Cordell Reed Student Union - Rotunda

· "Hip Hop & Social Justice"

A panel discussion on the powerful relationship between social justice and the hip hop movement.

Friday, October 19, 2007 at 10:00 a.m.

Cordell Reed Student Union - Rotunda

· Conversation with Sonia Sanchez and Haki Madhubuti

Saturday, October 20, 2007 at 4:00 p.m.

Cordell Reed Student Union - Rotunda

As the largest and longest-running African-American conference of its kind, the Gwendolyn Brooks Writers' Conference has become a destination for the most renowned writers in the country. Luminaries such as Toni Morrison, August Wilson, Nikki Giovanni, and Cornel West were featured guests at past conferences.

The Gwendolyn Brooks Writers' Conference is sponsored The Gwendolyn Brooks Center for Black Literature and Creative Writing at Chicago State University. The Brooks Center was founded in 1990 and is inspired by the life and works of former CSU professor, Gwendolyn Brooks, the first African American to win the Pulitzer Prize. The goal of the Center is to promote the study of Black writers and strengthen the humanities, especially literature.

For more information on programming, dates, and locales please refer to www.csu.edu/gwendolynbrooks .

Meet Dr. Donda West
The Gwendolyn Brooks Writers' Conference
"Hip Hop & Social Justice"
Today, 10am
Chicago State University
Cordell Reed Student Union - Rotunda
9501 S. King Drive
www.csu.edu/gwendolynbrooks

Get more News »

• Email
• Print
• Report a typo
•