Why We Wear Our Crowns is a series that highlights social justice advocates from the African American community and throughout the African Diaspora. We hope that by showcasing those who dedicated so much of their lives for us to own ours, you’re inspired to wear your crowns proudly.
JAMES BALDWIN
August 2, 1924- December 1, 1987
Harlem, NY but much of his work was done in Europe
Writer, Poet, Playwright, Novelist, Activist
Hearing the voice of James Baldwin can certainly send a chill down your spine. His raw, eloquent honesty of life as a black gay male in white America is vicariously felt in every word. Baldwin’s message was delivered through the printed page. His career produced poignant interviews, essays, novels, poems and plays. Raised by a strict stepfather and accustomed to the harsh realities of being black and poor, Baldwin set out to make a name for himself as soon as he had the freedom to do so.
Baldwin’s early life was dedicated to seeking a career in the pulpit. However, at 16, he denounced a future as a pastor for what he described as “hypocrisy and racism,” which destroyed his faith in the church. The rhetoric of the bible left a mark in his writing for his later short stories and essays took on a tone with strong influences of his Christian upbringing. After leaving home and becoming friends with Richard Wright, Baldwin secured a writing grant and in 1948 moved to Paris, France. It was while abroad that Baldwin found the mental space to illustrate the American society he was so eager to escape from. In 1953, Go Tell It On the Mountain was published and Baldwin’s autobiographical tale explained the harsh conditions and mentality he built growing up in Harlem. Though not as well received in its inception, it has since been chronicled as an American classic. Throughout the next 10 years, Baldwin’s essays “Notes of a Native Son“ (1955) and “Nobody Knows My Name” (1961) shed an honest light on racial tension and taboo themes of homosexuality and interracial relationships. Baldwin never shied away from telling his truth as it is and was at that time. Lending his words to exhibit his struggles led to great success in America and abroad as his novels went on to become bestsellers.
In the 1960s, Baldwin’s self-exploration abroad brought him closer to the realities happening at home and led him to return to the United States during the Civil Rights Movement. He traveled through the South to begin exploring the black struggle and identity, leading to another bestseller, The Fire Next Time (1963). In it, Baldwin discusses the nature of race relations in American history in the form of a letter written to his 14-year old nephew. It also touches on the influence of race and religion with emphasis on Baldwin’s Christian background and the Islamic ideologies of some people he had come to know.
See: Chris Rock Reads James Baldwin’s Passionate Words During MLK Now
During this time, Baldwin also met with Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Medgar Evers and a host of other politically-active freedom fighters in an effort to bring about social change. His ideology on race and race relations would continue to cover many of the pages of his novels and inspire a large percentage of his essays. After the deaths of King, X, and Evers, Baldwin went on to write If Beale Street Could Talk in 1974 and in it expressed much of the anger he harbored during the Civil Rights Movement and also spoke to the disillusionment of the era.
Baldwin’s legacy spans far beyond his literary works and involvement in the Civil Rights Movement. In his last years, he took his experiences to the classroom where he taught Civil Rights and writing classes at the University of Amherst. He also produced numerous significant literary works in poetry, fiction and nonfiction. He passed away in 1987 after a battle with stomach cancer at the age of 63. He is to be honored for his work, his bravery, and his many efforts to make understanding and respect amongst all people possible. James Baldwin is a testament to Why We Wear Our Crowns.
