Poet, black studies educator Sonia Sanchez to speak at Purdue on Nov. 9
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Sonia Sanchez, award-winning poet and an early leader in the black studies movement, will speak at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 9 in Purdue University's Loeb Playhouse.
Her lecture, which is free and open to the public, is part of the Purdue Black Cultural Center's fall Cultural Arts Series.
''We are excited to have such a dynamic and exciting speaker,'' said BCC director Renee Thomas. ''With her prominent background in the black arts movement as well, as being a pioneer in black studies programs, her presentation will be a perfect fit for the theme of our fall cultural series, 'The Black Power Movement. ' ''
Sanchez is the author of more than a dozen poetry books, along with several plays and children's books. Her first book in more than 10 years, ''Morning Haiku,'' which celebrates African-American figures in the realms of music, literature, art and activism, was released earlier this year.
She was the Poetry Society of America's 2001 Robert Frost Medalist and received the Harper Lee Award for 2004, the American Book Award in 1985 and the National Endowment for the Arts' Lucretia Mott Award in 1984.
Called ''a lion in literature's forest'' by poet Maya Angelou, Sanchez explores women's lives, the struggles and triumphs of people of color, and global and humanist themes in her writing. She is known for her innovative use of language and structure in her poetry.
Sanchez helped organize one of the first black studies programs at what is now San Francisco State University in the late 1960s. She has taught at eight universities, including 22 years at Temple, where she was the first Presidential Fellow.
She has lectured and read her poetry at more than 500 universities, colleges and organizations in the United States as well as Africa, Europe, Cuba, Australia and China.
Writer: Greg McClure, 765-496-9711, gmcclure@purdue.edu
Source: Renee Thomas, 765-494-3091, rathomas@purdue.edu