Category: james baldwin

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Interview with Vern Smith on His New Novel “Ghost Skins”

A few years back, I reviewed the reissue of journalist and novelist Vern E. Smith’s 1974 novel The Jones Men for American Book Review. Smith worked for various news outlets including Newsweek. Recently, he published his new novel Ghost Skins, which won an Outstanding Book Award at this year’s National Association of Black Journalists Convention Authors Showcase. I was able to read Ghost Skins a few weeks ago, and I … Read More Interview with Vern Smith on His New Novel “Ghost Skins”

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Communing With James Baldwin in France

Over the past two posts, I’ve been sharing my journal entries from the study travel trip I led to France a couple of weeks ago. Today, I want to finish up this series by sharing a short post from the beach overlooking the Mediterranean in Nice and a post about my journey to St. Paul de Vence to walk through the village that James … Read More Communing With James Baldwin in France

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Marseille and Humanity

Last post, I shared the first journal entry for my “Black Expatriate Writers in France” class. Today, I’m going to share the second and third entries from May 12, 2023 and May 16, 2023. I wrote the first entry after we moved from Avignon to Marseille and the second on the train from Marseille to Nice. If you would like more information about Marseille and some … Read More Marseille and Humanity

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Why Did I Want to Teach a Black Expatriate Writers Study Travel Course in France?

I’m not sure when I started thinking about leading a study travel trip to France; I only know that I really started thinking about when I was on the job market following my graduation in 2014. In some of my cover letters, if I discussed study travel trips, I would always mention my desire construct a course on African American expatriate writers in France. … Read More Why Did I Want to Teach a Black Expatriate Writers Study Travel Course in France?

Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Illusion of History

The illusion of history does not serve to move us towards progress; rather, the myths that the illusions construct hinder any forward movement and in many ways serve to repel and repeal any progress towards equity and equality. The James Baldwin documentary I Heard It Through the Grapevine (1982) makes this abundantly clear. Dick Fontaine and Pat Hartley follow Baldwin as he returns to … Read More Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Illusion of History