Poem for Edward Baugh

Warner Woman: Version

(For Edward Baugh)

She came, they say, wearing a dress as red

as the dirt of the countryside, and stood

at the crossroads of Matilda’s Corner

shaking her fists at the mansions

on the hills. “The Spirit descended on me

to speak these words to the nation,

for they have wandered in paths

that I have not taught them.

For I have heard the cries of widows

and orphans in the streets, but the wicked

who fear neither flood nor famine,

and have built their fortresses, their walled

communities and garrisons have said,

‘Who is there like us to judge us?’

But thus sayeth the Lord of Hosts,

‘Kingston, O Kingston, how I would have loved

to have gathered you to my bosom

the way the sea caresses the shore.

But you have preferred storm and hurricane.

So I say, woe to you for you have slaughtered

my children, the old, and the crippled.

Woe to you for you have stoned and exiled

my prophets. Woe to you for your have defrauded

the homeless and the poor.” Then she ripped

her dress in two, spat on the asphalt three times,

and then, ran like a horse without its rider,

back up to Long Mountain, up into the darkness

gathering around the tops of the trees

with the smell of rain around their roots.

***

Poéfrika Picture Meme

The rules of this meme are simple. Look at the snap, what does it inspire you to say? Well, write it then, but only in the form of a poetry verse, and only one line that fits in with the preceding line.

That's it. One line of verse that carries over from the line before, and that is in relation with the picture. Present the poem on your blog as you wish (I've used "font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-size:130%" on mine)

The picture is a hut from southern Africa, probably Lesotho, judging by the style.

Please tag only one person who you think will play along. Clearly say/show whom you've tagged so we may easily follow the poem as it builds up. The poem is done when a "tagee" fails to deliver, or when it reaches twenty-five lines. Whichever comes first. It will then be time to vote on a final and last line (twenty-sixth). I'll ask all "tagees" to offer a last line, and I'll put up a poll on Poéfrika so people can vote for the last line.

Once it's done, it will appear here (with credits). And, "tagee," if you don't want to play along, or simply can't, please tell your tagger so that he or she may tag someone else. So here is a line, to which you should add yours, and so on. Don't forget to link to your blog (with the first word of your verse). Visitors are welcome to play along in the comments section. Let us play.


The world waited outside for us. Waited
with moist grass beneath our feet


I'm tagging Stephen

The Artist and the Tragic Muse

Don Drummond was a musical genius. A founding member of the Skatalites, Drummond was an accomplished composer/arranger and jazz trombonist. Unfortunately, his life became a tragic cliché--the solitary artist falling in love with an unavailable woman. In this case, the unavailable woman was an exotic dancer and singer named Anita "Margarita" Mahfood. Drummond suspected that she was cheating on him and he killed her. At his trial, he was declared mentally unfit and was interned at the Belle Vue Asylum where, as the story goes, he was not allowed to play his trombone and this led to his suicide. Such is the life of legends and many Jamaican writers have fallen for the lure of the Don Drummond's story.

One of the first poets to memorialize Don Drummond was Mervyn Morris and in his poem, "Valley Prince," the speaker in the poem laments about the relationship of the artist, his vocation and audience. The sound, music, and trombone become metaphors of the poet's craft and the woman becomes a symbol--a representative of a community that despite it's brutal history, prefers existence on a prosaic level. The betrayal is physical and spiritual. It propels the artist towards murder, mayhem, and mania.

Morris and Drummond know the betrayal of a community that refuses complexity. They know, "But straight is not the way; my world/ don' go so, that is lie," and as seekers they take the path of integrity and speak their truth: "Oonu giimme back me trombone, man: / is time to blow me mind."

Podcast of Geoffrey Philp reading "Valley Prince" by Mervyn Morris.

Valley Prince

(for Don D.)

Me one, way out in the crowd,

I blow the sounds, the pain,

but not a soul

would come inside my world

or tell me how it true.

I love a melancholy baby

sweet, with fire in her belly;

and like a spite

the woman turn a whore.

Cool and smooth around the beat

she wake the note inside me

and I blow me mind.

Inside here, me one

in the crowd again,

and plenty people

want we blow it straight.

But straight is not the way: my world

don' go so: that is lie.

Oonu gimme back me trombone, man:

is time to blow me mind.

From The Pond

***

Which Caribbean?

Many people use the terms “West Indian” and “Caribbean” interchangeably. Yet the question still remains, is there a distinction between the terms “West Indian” and “Caribbean”? Living Guyana thinks it’s “mere semantics”, while Wade uses the terms interchangeably: “Logically I know that Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, and Martinique are Caribbean,” he says. “Caribbean primarily means English-speaking, Caribbean Basin country, but I include Bahamas and Belize in there although they are not really a part of the Caribbean Basin.”

Philp, on the other hand, has a clear distinction about the terms:

“West Indies refers to the former colonies of England – mostly English speaking. ‘Caribbean’ refers to the whole gumbo: English, French, Spanish, patwa, what-have-you speaking archipelago of islands, and the coastal regions of South and Central Americas. You could even extend the definition to places in North America such as the recently colonized Miami and the older cities in Louisiana and the Carolinas or Plantation America.”

Check out the rest of the discussion between Guyana Media Critic, Francis Wade, and Geoffrey Philp over at Global Voices

***

Tribute to Miss Lou

Miss Lou in her life and poetry had many things to teach us. And she taught in a way that only the best teachers can—without us knowing.

She has been called the “original dubber” and certainly Miss Lou was an advocate of what the poet, Kamau Brathwaite calls “nation language” or patwa. But what is often overlooked is that Miss Lou was also about choice and dignity. She could speak the Queen’s English and she could speak patwa. However, in either setting, one thing is clear: she has a firm sense of who she is, what she is doing, and why she is practicing her vocation. How many of us can say that about ourselves?

Miss Lou also had the uncanny ability to put herself in the place of other, a great empathy for the underdog, the neglected in our societies, but in the speakers in her poems are never victims. Despite the humiliation that the speaker in the poem may be facing, Miss Lou as a revolutionary practitioner of that last weapon that Africans in the New World had—humor—practiced her craft with deadly accuracy and care.

In the poem “Bans A’Killin’,” examine how Miss Lou uses her knowledge of the history of the English language and literature to undermine the position of the person, Mass Charlie, who sought to denigrate her “nation language” by reminding Mass Charlie that English was once a patwa. She defends herself by coming from a position of knowledge and power and shows up Mass Charlie’s ignorance or her, her history, himself, or his history. Watch how she slices and dices Mass Charlie’s argument until he is reduced to the object of humor. Or as Bob Marley and Peter Tosh would have said, “Slave driver, the tables are turned.” Instead of calling Miss Lou the “original dubber,” she should have been called the original “Stepping Razor.”

Bans a Killin
by Miss Lou (from Aunty Roachy Seh)

So yuh a de man me hear bout!
Ah yuh dem seh dah teck
Whole heap a English oat seh dat
yuh gwine kill dialec!

Meck me get it straight, mas Charlie,
For me no quite understan
Yuh gwine kill all English dialec
Or jus Jamaica one?

Ef yuh dah equal up wid English
Language, den wha meck
Yuh gwine go feel inferior when
It come to dialec?

Ef yuh cyaan sing 'Linstead Market'
An 'Water come a me yeye’
Yuh wi haffi tap sing 'Auld lang syne’
An ‘Comin through de rye'.

Dah language weh yuh proud a,
Weh yuh honour an respec –
Po Mas Charlie, yuh no know se
Dat it spring from dialec!

Dat dem start fi try tun language
From de fourteen century -
Five hundred years gawn an dem got
More dialec dan we!

Yuh wi haffi kill de Lancashire,
De Yorkshire, de Cockney,
De broad Scotch and de Irish brogue
Before yuh start kill me!

Yuh wi haffi get de Oxford Book
A English Verse, an tear
Out Chaucer, Burns, Lady Grizelle
An plenty a Shakespeare!

When yuh done kill 'wit' an 'humour',
When yuh kill 'variety',
Yuh wi haffi fine a way fi kill
Originality!

An mine how yuh dah read dem English
Book deh pon yuh shelf,
For ef yuh drop a 'h' yuh mighta
Haffi kill yuhself!

The tribute poem“bob marley in the daycare center,” may seem an odd choice because the poem is not written in patwa and it’s not about Miss Lou. But Bob Marley like Miss Lou always defended his right to be himself and be free as he sang in ‘Three o’clock, Roadblock”: “Oh why can’t we be what we want to be? / We want to be free.” For the ultimate lesson that Bob and Miss Lou have to teach us is to have the courage to be who we are, and to speak how we must speak, in our own voice.

In “bob marley in the daycare center” (I got the idea from Allen Ginsberg’s “ A Supermarket in California) I am imagining the kind of work that Bob would take if he reincarnated back on this plane where we are now. And I imagined, given his love for children, he would probably come back to work in a daycare center.

bob marley in the daycare center

when i first glimpsed him, the smile,

as he played peek-a-boo in the communal playpen,

inside the young president's club, mt. sinai,

after circle time with the toddlers, reading

real-life stories of heroes whose only weapons

were words aimed at the dragon's heart,

they stared, transfixed, at the sound

uncoiling from his mouth like smoke;

he placed them gently on their blue cots

while the older kids built castles with blocks,

unsteady as jericho's wall to the rastaman's song,

then retreated to the infants' area to sponge bathe

the early risers--he'd burned through life so fast,

he'd never really grown accustomed to this

human softness--no longer the hard, bitter seed

filled with a desperation that couldn't wait to shatter

its shell, like the eucalyptus pods that fell

on the playground where he'd decided

almost a lifetime ago, this time, he'd take it slow.

***

Guess Who's on Simphani?

David McQueen has done a mini-feature about me over at his blog. Why not go over there and check it out?

Simphani is great little site:

http://simphani.wordpress.com/2007/05/29/blogwatch-geoffrey-philp/

Thank you, David.

***

There's Still Time to Make it to Calabash!

This gorgeous picture from Jake's, home of the Calabash Literary Festival is brought to you via Georgia Popplewell and Caribbean Free Radio.

For those of you, like me, who can't make it this year, we can enjoy the festival vicariously through Georgia's lens.

Enjoy the weekend, everyone!


***

Jamaican writers Literature Writing Books Writing Book Fair
Calabash Literary Festival writers Books Writing Jamaica Caribbean writers

Five Questions With Xavier Murphy

Xavier Murphy is the owner and webmaster of what is undoubtedly one of Jamaica's oldest and most popular online destinations - Jamaicans.Com. With a good mix of hard work, democracy, and entrepreneurship, Xavier has managed to keep Jamaicans.com on the forefront of Jamaica and the Caribbean's Internet landscape for almost a decade.

1. Why did you start Jamaicans.com?

The site went live in 1995 when the World Wide Web started to take off. In 1994 I had been working for a company that did electronic marketing and had "placements" on CompuServe, Prodigy, and AOL. These were the original "electronic" communities where everything was in one place. Back then the Internet was basically divided into 3 parts: E-mail, the graphical portion (now known as the World Wide Web) and Newsgroups. I remember searching many of the search directories (including Yahoo which started in 1995) for Jamaican web sites on the "World Wide Web" on the using the CompuServe Mosaic Browser. I found 3 sites: an Arlene Laing site with an overview of Jamaica, JaAlumni Yard Page, and the unofficial web site for my high school, Jamaica College. I was always very passionate about my homeland, and I was proud to find these sites online. I used to have my own magazine/newsletter years ago and I had some content, so I figured, why not start a website with some of the stuff I already had?

2. How has the Internet changed since you began publishing?

Wow...where do I start? It has grown tremendously. I used to use Notepad to edit the pages on my website. Now I have Dreamweaver and so many other great tools. Open Source software applications has also leveled the playing field. It was very cost prohibitive to create complex applications, with Open Source you can find any application you need for your website.

3. What was your greatest challenge in maintaining Jamaicans.com?

The biggest challenge is the traffic to the website. Through the years we have upgraded a few times because the site continues to grow.

4. What was your greatest disappointment?

My greatest disappointment is a bit broader than just online. I think we do not cherish our culture and the people/institutes that try to preserve it. It comes in the form of lack of sponsorship by Jamaican businesses or lack of support by the community. Even online we tend to tear down than build up.

5. What are the benefits of Internet publishing?

The ability to get information out quickly and getting instant feedback.


(Optional)

What makes you laugh?

The creativity of Jamaicans and just our style of humor. The Jamaicans.com online forums is the outlet for a lot of funny stuff. Whenever I need a good laugh, I take a look at some of the discussions there. We have the ability to make the serious very funny or put a hilarious spin on things.

***

Caribbean Caribbean-American Jamaica Jamaican Internet

I Just Live My Life: Muhtadi Thomas

The multimedia artist Elspeth Duncan from Trinidad recently spent time here (lucky us!), and posted this about her experiences working with us on a documentary about Master drummer Muhtadi Thomas:

The name Muhtadi means ‘rightly guided’. As he says, if each one of us looks back on our lives, we will see that we have been rightly guided to be where we are now.

I came to Canada to do a course in reflexology. Two days after my arrival, when the course was unexpectedly canceled due to low enrollment, another door opened in the form of an opportunity to work with Leda Serene Films on a documentary about the drummer/musician, Muhtadi. This documentary is the fourth in Leda Serene’s documentary series on Canadian-Caribbean Musicians and Composers for Bravo!

It felt ironic to be working on a documentary about a drummer, since prior to coming to Toronto, I kept feeling that I wanted to experience drum circles while being here. Also, a friend of mine (who did not know I had been feeling this), told me before I left that she ‘saw me‘ carrying my drum on the plane. In fact she advised me to and I told her I didn’t feel like the extra luggage (although I have since bought a drum while being here), so my heart will have to be ‘my drum’. It may sound kind of soppy to say that, but looking back, it reflects what Muhtadi said later on: that once you are alive, you are a drummer, since we all have a heart, which is a drum, beating the rhythm of life and connecting us. “The drum is love. And everybody loves to love.”

I had never met Muhtadi before and, while I must have heard his name, I was not aware of him and his work. On my first day at Leda Serene, surrounded by a welcoming staff of people and cats, I sat and scrolled through 15 tapes of previously shot ‘Muhtadi doc’ footage. There, amidst the montage of images, sounds and interviews, I encountered Muhtadi as ‘the centre’. He is at the centre of himself, as much as he is at the centre of the world of souls around him. (I say ‘souls’ because his son, Talib, in his interview, casually spoke of his father attracting ‘souls’. I found it interesting that he did not use the word ‘people’). Souls of all ages, genders, nationalities, races, creeds and professions have gathered around the drum and Muhtadi. No doubt, in ways specific to each, they have been moved and inspired by him.

Before the shoot, I decided to meet Muhtadi by physically going to one of his Saturday drum classes. That day it was being held outdoors, on Hanlan’s Point (Toronto Islands). He brought a djembe for me and we rode across together on the ferry. He is not an overly talkative person, but whenever he speaks, what he says is interesting and meaningful. That day, by being a part of his class, I realised that he does not need to speak loudly, if at all, to command love, attention and respect from those around him.

On the day that Jeff (production co-ordinator), Powys (camera), Ayol (sound) and I went to Muhtadi’s home to interview him, I asked him if he would open our filming session in the same way that he opens his drumming sessions, with his hands playing a prayer (for centering) on the drum skin. As we watched him do this, I felt drawn in … and there came a point where he and the drum merged, becoming one. It struck me in that moment that I am yet to truly connect with and know my own 'drum' as deeply. That may be so for many of us. From meeting Muhtadi, I realize there is no big secret to be discovered or revelation to be had where this is concerned. The answer is in his simple statement: “I just live my life.”

Thanks to Frances Anne, everyone at Leda Serene Films, Sniper and crew (cats), Powys, Ayol, Jay (editor) and Muhtadi for this experience.

The Muhtadi International Drumming Festival, "celebrating the drum as an international instrument,... and that nurtures a lifelong appreciation of the drum as a unifying symbol" will bring together professional drummers from all over the world - free all weekend - at Queens Park, on June 2-3rd.

Via Newz From Leda Serene & CaribbeanTales:

Our work documenting artists here is wonderful for us. It is dynamic, uplifting, and empowering, not least because many of these talented creators have been working in the community and having an impact on life here for years with little or no recognition of the breadth and importance of their contribution. Muhtadi is one extraordinary example. He is from Trinidad.

Creation is generally a lonely unsung process, so it's wonderful when artists are able to come together to share and serve each others forms of expression.

I feel like in a simple synergistic way, this happened here. I would like all of us Elspeth, Muhtadi, me and my little company (and our office full of cats) to get the widest possible circulation.

***

Caribbean
Caribbean artists
Trinidad

St. Martin Book Fair: "Writing Justice"--May 31 to June 2, 2007

GREAT BAY/MARIGOT, St. Martin—The 5th annual St. Martin Book Fair (May 31 –June 2, 2007) will open in Spring Concordia, Marigot at the Maison des Entreprises (Chamber of Commerce Building) on Thursday, May 31, at 8pm..

Most of the book fair workshops will be hosted in Great Bay (Philipsburg) at the University of St. Martin (USM) on Friday, June 1 and all day on Saturday, June 2.

"Famous and new visiting writers will crisscross the island to primary and high schools. The cultural concert will be held in Cay Hill. The main book launch and closing ceremony will conclude the St. Martin Book Fair in Cupecoy, at the American University in the Caribbean, " said book fair coordinator Shujah Reiph.

With its theme of “Writing Justice,” book fair 2007 will see over five new books released. Workshop topics will range from constitutional matters to death penalty issues, to one entitled “RasTafari as Image & Voice of Justice in Caribbean Literature,” said Reiph, who is also president of Conscious Lyrics Foundation (CLF).

The cultural night, which was such a hit in 2006, with poets reciting in their native language, will be repeated with readers from St. Martin, St. Lucia, Nigeria, France and the Bahamas—to name a few of the places where the authors are originating this year.

The standard favorites such as the ponum dance, the day-long “In the Children’s Room” (for ages 4 – 12), and the computer/Internet media workshops will return in style. Remember the massively popular celebrity hair-care workshop in 2006? There will be a different twist in 2007, by a French author who will use her book on hair and skin attitudes as the center piece of discussion, said Jacqueline Sample, president of House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP).

“The Book Fair Committee [BFC] will have its hands full with a record 18 workshops and general sessions. “House of Nehesi is pushing the envelope to have five books ready for book signings and the main book launch, and we added more schools that will be visited by the writers,” said Reiph.

“As usual, we got the multi-lingual features as an aspect of the St. Martin culture, and the BFC is busy with plans to attract more people from all over the island to enjoy and benefit from this new book fair edition.

“This year, also for the first time, we were contacted by tourists, from New York and Puerto Rico, who are coming in especially for the St. Martin Book Fair. So news about this cultural event is growing at home and abroad,” said Reiph.

The St. Martin Book Fair is organized by CLF and HNP, both non-profit NGOs, in collaboration with USM. The St. Maarten Tourist Bureau is the major patron of the St. Martin Book Fair.

Visit www.houseofnehesipublish.com for St. Martin Book Fair 2007 updates. View Book Fair 2006 photos at www.consciouslyricsonline.com.

***

Caribbean writers
Caribbean poetry
Caribbean
Book Fair
Caribbean writing

Book Giveaway Contest: Caribbean-Americans and the “American-Dream”

In celebration of Caribbean-American Heritage Month, Geoffrey Philp’s Blog Spot in coordination with Akashic Books and Jamaicans.com will be hosting a book giveaway contest on the theme, “Caribbean-Americans and the 'American Dream.'”

The Prizes

The top four winning entries will receive a copy of one of the following books from Akashic Books:

The Girl With the Golden Shoes by Colin Channer

She’s Gone by Kwame Dawes

Dog War by Anthony Winkler

The Lunatic by Anthony Winkler.

How to Participate

1. Write a brief paragraph (250- 500 words) about any Caribbean-American and her/his contribution to the “American Dream.”

2. Post it on Geoffrey Philp's Blog Spot, “Caribbean-Americans and the American-Dream” under the Comments, or post on your own blog with a link to the book give away contest, “Caribbean-Americans and the American Dream.”

(5/23/07) Entries may now be e-mailed to me: geoffreyphilp101 [at] gmail.com. You MUST have book giveaway in the subject line or else it will be treated as spam.

If you leave a Comment under Anonymous, please leave your name (or alias) in the box and send me an e-mail confirming your identity. My e-mail address is geoffreyphilp101 [at] gmail.com

3. One entry per person.

4. Entries close at 4:30 PM EST, May 31, 2007.

5. The drawing will be held on Saturday, June 2, 2007 and the winners will be announced on Wednesday, June 6, 2007.

6. The winners will be published in Jamaicans.com and Geoffrey Philp’s Blog Spot.

The Judges

Preston Allen, author of All or Nothing.

Nicholas Laughlin, editor of The Caribbean Review of Books, and, Antilles, the CRB blog.

Geoffrey Philp, author of Florida Bound.

Guidelines

Be as creative as you want to be with the topic.

Personalize. Make the judges believe that you didn't just copy from Wikipedia.

“Caribbean American” refers to any person, first or second generation, from the Spanish speaking, French speaking, and English speaking Caribbean.

Here is a link to a few Caribbean-Americans: Wikipedia.

Don't forget the oldies, but goodies such as Jose Marti, Nicolas Guillen, Felix Morriseau-Leroy, Luis Pales Matos, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Toure) , and Colin Powell.

And, of course, so many writers.

Link to the post, “Caribbean-Americans and the American-Dream ” or leave your entry in the Comments.

Other Requirements:

To enter the book giveaway, you must meet these requirements:

*You must be 18 years of age or older. Sorry, I don’t want to be accused of corrupting the youth.

*Only English language entries are eligible.

*You must either submit under Comments or link to the post “Caribbean-Americans and the American-Dream.”

*You must submit your entry no later than 4:30 PM EST, May 31, 2007.

Thank you, Johnny Temple of Akashic Books and Xavier Murphy of Jamaicans.com

Good luck to all!

***

PS. Please check here for updates. I've just learned that Xavier is going to throw in some T-shirts courtesy of Jamaicans.com.

***

Caribbean Books book giveaway contest Caribbean-American
Caribbean-American Heritage Month

Five Questions With Kyra E. Hicks

Kyra E. Hicks taught herself to quilt after visiting a museum exhibit of African American story quilts in 1991. Her quilts have been shown in such prestigious venues as the American Folk Art Museum in New York, the Smithsonian Institution’s Renwick Gallery in Washington DC, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford. One of her quilts is included in the Permanent Collection of the Museum of Arts & Design in New York City.

Kyra’s story quilts have been featured in several books, including Textural Rhythms: Quilting the Jazz Tradition by Carolyn Mazloomi (2007), Creating Black Americans by Nell Irvin Painter (2005), and American Quiltmaking 1970 – 2000 by Eleanor Levie (2004). Kyra’s essay, “Black Women Have Always Quilted,” appears in Elise Schebler Roberts book The Quilt: A History and Celebration of an American Art Form (2007).

Kyra holds an MBA from the University of Michigan, a diploma from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a BBA from Howard University. Kyra is a marketing professional. She has worked in marketing and ecommerce for major corporations including America Online, Washingtonpost.com, and Hallmark Cards. Currently, she is the Director, Online Sales Programs at Marriott International.

1. After viewing Eva Ungar Grudin’s traveling exhibition, “Stitching Memories: African-American Story Quilts,” you said, “I found my voice that afternoon in the museum.” How did that epiphany change your life?

Geoffrey, I couldn’t imagine that the 1991 quilting exhibit I was about to visit at the Taft Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio would indeed change my life. I had never made a quilt. There was no way to know that my quilts would one day be exhibited in museums and galleries. There was no way to know that I would write Black Threads: An African American Quilting Sourcebook, the most comprehensive sourcebook on the topic. Or that I would write a children’s book, Martha Ann’s Quilt for Queen Victoria, about a nineteenth century African American quilter named Martha Ann Ricks.

2. What was the biggest challenge in telling Martha Ann’s story?

First, let me tell you about the greatest joy. It was the actual research of Martha Ann Ricks’s life as a slave in Tennessee and of her journey and life in Liberia. I learned about her life from a simple magazine article. I then spent about four years following endless threads to recreate her life. I read many, many books and articles about nineteenth century Liberia and East Tennessee.

Martha Ann Ricks’ father purchased her and her family from slavery and took the family to Liberia in 1830. Unfortunately, within the year, malaria and other events led to the death of all her family members except her oldest and youngest brothers. The three children stayed in Liberia. Over time, Martha Ann would observe the British Navy patrolling the coast of Liberia (and Sierra Leone) to prevent slavers from landing and capturing people for the slave trade. Martha Ann wanted to thank Queen Victoria for sending the Navy. Despite ridicule by family and neighbors, Martha Ann pursued her dream to see Queen Victoria for fifty years. In 1892, Martha Ann Ricks had an audience with Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle, where she presented the queen with a handmade quilt of a coffee tree in full-bloom.

The greatest challenge in writing the children’s book was to indeed learn how to write a children’s book! My goal was to stay true to Martha Ann’s story, while having her story span from childhood to old age when she finally meets the queen. I also wanted to provide a context of why Liberia was so important to African Americans in the 1800s. When we learn about American slavery, we rarely learn about the Liberian connections.

3. Do you see any similarities between your life and Martha Ann’s?

I would love to have met Martha Ann Ricks in real life and spent an afternoon quilting with her. Here was a creative, determined black woman. Can you imagine? She designed a quilt to highlight the coffee tree, one of the most important cash crops at the time. She saved enough money to afford a voyage across the ocean. She actually set out to meet one of the most powerful women on Earth at the time. What Martha Ann accomplished was like a young, poor girl today in San Pablo, Brazil telling her friends she is going to go to Chicago and see and talk to Oprah Winfrey at Harpo Studios. Who would believe the young girl?

I can only hope that Martha Ann and I share a creative vision related to quilting and a determination to accomplish our dreams.

4. Although Martha Ann’s Quilt for Queen Victoria is a children’s book, what do you think older readers and parents will learn from it?

There are a number of themes that both older readers, parents, and social studies teachers can learn from: believing in one’s self, saving for one’s dream, pursuing one’s dream, honoring one’s creative talents.

I visited PS76 in Harlem earlier this year to visit with 4th and 5th graders who read the book. What marvelous questions and comments the boys and girls had about Martha Ann and her story! Several of the students were from outside of the US and could identify with Martha Ann’s travels to start a life in a new country. I have a free book discussion guide for the book at www.BlackThreads.com for parents and teachers.

5. Is there a connection between quilting and the African-American experience?

Black men and women have been quilting in American for more than two hundred years! I have a blog to capture today’s news, exhibits, and profiles of black quilters at www.BlackThreads.blogspot.com. Do come visit!

What makes you laugh?

I love wit. I’m embarrassed to say, but I love laughing along with the British Comedies on PBS – shows such as Are You Being Served?, The Vicar Of Dibley, and Desmond’s (the comedy about a West Indian family).

Martha Ann’s Quilt for Queen Victoria

Brown Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1-933285-59-7

$16.95 US retail

Book Guide: African American Quilting News

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Writing Books African-American writers African-American Books

The Power and Grace of Poetry

"But I rejoice because Clifton reminds me always of why writing poetry is important and why it is good to believe this. She has taken many blows to her body through sickness and to her heart through the deaths of so many of those close to her, and yet she has managed to remain resilient, engaged and wonderfully ebullient through it all. Her poetry is a gift to us; that is the good news. But for me, that audience I had with her, and the opportunity to watch her embody the poet’s art, will remain with me for a really long time."

Kwame Dawes' very moving and eloquent meditation on James Dickey, Lucille Clifton, and the power and grace of poetry. For more, follow this link over to the Poetry Foundation's blog: Lucille Clifton

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African-American writers
African-American Books Poetry Writing