An African American Cultural Event:
Literary Giant Paul Laurence Dunbar
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
11:00 am to 1:00 pm
The Dayton Woman’s Club
225 N. Ludlow St, Dayton, OH 45402
This is a FREE PUBLIC EVENT with an optional lunch immediately following the program for $12.95 per person
THIS EVENT IS AT CAPACITY – REGRETFULLY WE CANNOT ACCEPT ANY FURTHER REGISTRATION
Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906)
In honor of Black History Month, join us as we celebrate the artistic works of Paul Laurence Dunbar through spoken word, music, and acting performances.
Learn all about this historic Dayton native who was one of the first influential Black poets in American literature.
Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872 – 1906) was an American poet, novelist, and short-story writer. In 1888, at the age of 16, he published his first poems in Dayton’s The Herald newspaper. In 1890 Dunbar wrote and edited The Tattler, Dayton's first weekly African-American newspaper, which was printed by Wilbur and Orville Wright, with whom he remained lifelong friends. Dunbar, who wrote both in conventional English as well as in an African-American dialect, was the first African American poet to earn national acclaim and acceptance.
Although he died from tuberculosis at the age of 33, during his short career Dunbar was extremely prolific and published a dozen books of poetry, four books of short stories, four novels, lyrics for a musical, and a play. Maya Angelou titled her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, (1969) from a line in Dunbar's 1899 poem, “Sympathy,” and his legacy and influence continues to this day.
Support for this event has been provided by Ohio Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
THIS EVENT IS AT CAPACITY – REGRETFULLY WE CANNOT ACCEPT ANY FURTHER REGISTRATIONS
PLEASE DO NOT SIGN UP - RSVPs NO LONGER BEING ACCEPTED