Encounters with James Baldwin

Stella Dadzie, writer and activist, is best known for her co-authorship of The Heart of the Race: Black Women's lives in Britain which won the 1985 Martin Luther King Award for Literature. She is a founder member of OWAAD (Organisation of Women of African and Asian Descent), a national umbrella group that emerged in the late 1970s as part of the British Civil Rights movement, and was recently described as one of the "grandmothers" of Black Feminism in the UK. Her career as a teacher, writer, artist and education activist spans over 40 years. She previously worked with editor Cheryl Robson on 'Hairvolution: Her Hair, Her Story, Our History'.Kadija George Sesay, co-editor, MBE, Hon. FRSL is a British literary activist, short story writer and poet of Sierra Leonean descent, and the publisher and managing editor of the magazine SABLE LitMag. Her work has earned her many awards and nominations, including the Cosmopolitan Woman of Achievement in 1994, Candace Woman of Achievement in 1996, The Voice Community Award in Literature in 1999 and the Millennium Woman of the Year in 2000. She is the General Secretary for African Writers Abroad (PEN International) and organises the Writers' HotSpot - trips for writers abroad, where she teaches creative writing and journalism courses.Sesay has edited or co-edited several books, including Burning Words, Flaming Images: Poems and Short Stories by Writers of African Descent (1996), IC3: The Penguin Book of New Black Writing in Britain (with Courttia Newland, 2000),[5][6] Dance the Guns to Silence: 100 Poems for Ken Saro-Wiwa (Flipped Eye Publishing, 2005), and (as Kadija George) Six Plays by Black and Asian Women Writers (Aurora Metro Books, 2005), Write Black, Write British: From Post Colonial to Black British Literature (Hansib Publications, 2005). In 2007, she created the first SABLE Literary Festival in The Gambia, where she now programmes the Mboka literary festival and bookfair, which she co-founded in 2016.Sesay's first full collection of poems, entitled Irki, was published in 2013. Her poetry, short stories and essays have appeared in a range of publications, including the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby. In 2021, with Joan Anim-Addo and Deirdre Osborne she curated This is The Canon: Decolonize Your Bookshelf in 50 Books highlighting alternatives by people of African or Asian descent and indigenous peoples.

Encounters with James Baldwin isthe spiritual evidence seen by some of the finest writers and thinkers anddoers of our times. It is their majestic love letter to J.B., a love letterthat is poetry, essay, social justice, awareness, and the beautiful strugglefor freedom for all that Jimmy Baldwin represented his entire life. Life, yes,the words of this remarkable collection are breath blown back to our belovedancestor James Baldwin, and he to them, to us: air we breathe, air we need, forthese troubled times.- Kevin Powell, GRAMMY-nominated poet; human & civil rights activist;"Fromreflective pieces, interviews, essays, and poetic interventions, Encounterswith James Baldwin confirms the enduring resonance of the life and work ofJames Baldwin across the globe. This is an important text for readers eager toconsider the expansive legacy of arguably the most piercing and committedauthor and critic of the last century."- RichBlint, writer and critic"What a joythis book is, a fabulous collection of poems, interviews, think pieces andcultural commentary, all marking and celebrating the life and work of JamesBaldwin. One to dip in and out of, rather than read all the way through, youneed time to fully absorb what each writer has to say and process the newperspectives on Baldwin. Wonderful. " ****- Claire Estelle - Reviewer, netgalley"Encounterswith James Baldwinis a heartfelt celebration of the author's 100th birthday, a testament to hisenduring influence and legacy. This book features over thirty contributors whoreflect on Baldwin's life and work in fiction and non-fiction. Each sectionreflects on how his thoughts and actions affected their lives and the socialjustice movement. For fans of Baldwin, this book offers a deeper understandingof his life and, more importantly, its profound impact on the world, inspiringreaders to reflect on their own contributions to social justice."- --- BethKelly, Reviewer, netgalley

• Introduction by Stella Dadzie 9Three Memories of Baldwin by Rashidah Ismaili AbuBakr 18Blackspace by Victor Adebowale 26Talking about Baldwin with Victor Adebowale 28The World is White No Longer by Toyin Agbetu 35Uncle Jimmy's Calling by Rosanna Amaka 44The Spirit of James Baldwin by Michelle Yaa Asantewa 46Mea Culpa by Eugen Bacon 55Meeting Jimmy Baldwin in Paris by Lindsay Barrett57Genius as Moral Courage by Gabriella Beckles-Raymond62A Picture is Worth a Thousand Phone Calls by Alan Bell70Never Make Peace with Mediocrity by Selina Brown76Searching for the Centennial Man by Michael Campbell80In a Photograph with James Baldwin by Fred D'Aguiar82Fires in Our Time by Thomas Glave 89Can I get an Amen, Somebody? by Sonia Grant 93What Kind of World is This? by Zita Holbourne 101The Inspirational Blues by Paterson Joseph 102Letter to My Daughter by Peter Kalu 111James Baldwin Weeps with the Weight of Tiredness by Roy McFarlane 119What's Love Got to Do with It? by Ronnie McGrath 123Revisiting James Baldwin by Michael McMillan 129Six Degrees of James Baldwin by Tony Medina 137Of James Baldwin and Futures Not Seen by Bill V. Mullen 146The Fire is Now by Nducu wa Ngugi 152If Sonny's Blues were a Song... by Lola Oh 158Fahrenheit 1492 by Ewaure X. Osayande 160Passing by Nii Ayikwei Parkes 169The Amen Corner by Anton Phillips 177A Higher Calling by Ray Shell 180For Jimmy by SuAndi 186Wherefore, Nuncle? by Tade Thompson 191Letter to My Brother by Patrick Vernon 196James Baldwin and Black British Civil Rights by Tony Warner 201About the Authors 208