Latest news with #LangstonHughes
Epoch Times
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Epoch Times
Epoch Booklist: Recommended Reading for July 11–17
This week, we feature an atmospheric mystery set in Edwardian England and a compilation of moving verses from the famous African American poet Langston Hughes. Mystery ' By Sally Smith Sir Gabriel Ward, KC, a barrister, practices at the Inner Temple (the London's secret inner legal world) where he also lives. On May 20, 1901, his normal routine is disturbed when he literally stumbles over the body of Norman Dunning, the lord chief justice of England, at his chambers' doorstep. Then William Waring, head of Inner Temple, assigns Ward to investigate the murder. Ward has the only ironclad alibi at the Inner Temple. A reluctant Ward, with a Watson-like sidekick, sets out to crack the case in this delightful mystery.
National Geographic
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- National Geographic
How Black culture has shaped Paris—and where to experience it
Creative Black minds and artisans have been present in Paris's renowned art and food scene since the 1920s. American writers like Langston Hughes and James Baldwin found a home in the city's bustling jazz cafes, and their future works have laid the foundation for Black American literature. In addition to literary legends, tens of thousands of families of African origin reside in Paris, specifically in the 18th arrondissement, where a resilient and thriving community exists. La Goutte d'Or (the drop of gold) or locally known as Little Africa, is a neighborhood that borders one of Paris's most popular cabarets, the Moulin Rouge. The Chateau Rouge, Gare Du Nord, Goutte D'Or, and Barbes neighborhoods are all metropolitan districts where people of African descent work, thrive, and live. History buffs in search of an immersive cultural experience in Paris can wander through these congested city blocks of Goutte D'Or, home to Parisian locals from North and West Africa. Busy African hair-braiding shops, produce markets, textile businesses, and art galleries will transport tourists, at least for a couple of hours, from Europe to the world's second-largest continent. Paris armorial bearings, which include the stylized boat and fleur-de-lis, are seen on metro bridges in the La Goutte d'Or district. Photograph by Jarry & Tripelon, Anzenberger/Redux Parisians head to the open-air Marché Dujean to pick up fresh spices, African seafood staples, and a variety of other food offerings, such as those found at this halal butcher's shop. Photograph by Jarry & Tripelon, Anzenberger/Redux The Pantheon's Josephine Baker tribute, Little Africa Paris Village, the Le Paris Noir walking tour, and more are informative ways that educate travelers about the history of the African diaspora, which has influenced the city's world-renowned artistic and cultural identity. Here's how you can experience it. (6 ways to experience the Paris of the Roaring '20s.) Take a tour of Little Africa Guided by a local expert, tourists can take a walking tour through Little Africa, an in-depth journey into the culture and history of the 18th arrondissement. 'French people don't feel comfortable talking about race,' says Kevi Donat, the tour operator and founder of Le Paris Noir. 'We use the word 'origins' here.' Donat yearned to create more spaces, like Le Paris Noir, to share the African diaspora culture and provide a way to help others explore the city's African origins. Since migrating from Martinique, the young Parisian has proudly called the city his home for over two decades. The engaging, two-hour Le Paris Noir walking tour honors the significant role that people of African descent played in Paris's larger community and their influence on its history, as described on a journey through areas near the Sorbonne, the Luxembourg Gardens, around Montmartre, and along the riverbanks of the Seine. Tourists learn about how Black Americans fled to Paris in the mid-1900s to find peace during rising racial prejudices and the pre-Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Travelers on this unique journey ascend Paris's hilliest roads near the Sacré-Cœur, where Donat would point out discreet cafés where Josephine Baker performed. Then, he would describe how the 369th Infantry, known as the Harlem Hellfighters (Black American WWI Soldiers), introduced jazz music to Europe and popularized jazz cafés in Paris, such as the now-defunct Café Tournon. Along the tour route, visitors will also see current and former sites, such as Les Deux Magots, where world-renowned jazz artist Miles Davis was once a patron and where authors Richard Wright and James Baldwin had passionate debates about the plight of being Black in America. Baldwin also worked on his first novel, Go Tell It On the Mountain, in Café Flore at 172 Boulevard Saint-Germain. Journalist William Gardner and writer Ralph Ellison were known to frequent Café Tournon (now Le Tournon) , and author Langston Hughes dined at the now-defunct Le Grand Duc. Visitors may want to consider grabbing a bite to eat at La Palette (43 Rue de Seine), a favorite spot for painter Beauford Delaney. In the 9th Arrondissement, history buffs may spot the signed light post plaque dedicated to André Breton, a French writer and co-founder of the Surrealist movement, as well as an ally in the Négritude movement. This movement was a 1930s response to colonialism from French-speaking Black intellectuals aimed at reclaiming and celebrating Black identity and African cultural heritage. Le Paris Noir is a truly eye-opening way to uncover how Paris has always been a destination that has cultivated Black art, even through its complicated history, strife, and controversy. Visitors in search of sweets should consider a visit to La Rose de Tunis, one of several cake shops located throughout Paris, including the Little Africa location at 7 Boulevard Ornano. Photograph by Jarry & Tripelon, Anzenberger/Redux A woman passes by La Régulière, a bookstore, workshop, and café at 43 Rue Myrha in Paris's La Goutte d'Or neighborhood. Photograph by Michael Zumstein, Agence VU/Redux Art and jazz in Little Africa Immersive travelers who want to explore Paris's Little Africa neighborhood independently can visit Little Africa Village, a multidisciplinary space and cultural hub, located at 6 bis Rue des Gardes, where artists of African descent can support one another. The basement—the pièce de résistance—features an ongoing exhibition that showcases the perspectives of Black artists on living in Paris. For music lovers in Little Africa, the recommended Le Baiser Salé is a jazz club that fuses Afro-beats with French Jazz; meanwhile, La Gare, a renovated train station, hosts jazz late nights that usually feature African musicians. (Can Paris live up to the hype? Find out on a walking tour of its gilded past.) Taste the flavors of Africa in Paris Marché Dejean Little Africa is home to several markets that feature vendors selling spices such as piri piri and berbere. Located on Rue Dejean, Marché Dejean is an open-air market where stalls and local entrepreneurs sell a variety of produce, including okra, spinach, and seafood staples such as tilapia and barracuda. Many French chefs of African descent have transformed their home-cooked meals (usually served at a restaurant) into prepared dishes to sell at the market. Baraka Baraka, a spice shop located off Rue Robert Fleury, is an unexpected find far outside of Little Africa. A short walk from the Eiffel Tower, Chef Antompindi Cocagne, also known as Chef Anto, owns a brick-and-mortar shop that features authentic African herbs and pays homage to her hometown of Libreville, Gabon. She serves honey wines and ingredients imported from various regions of West Africa to educate the local community and tourists about the culinary history and offerings based rooted in her heritage. (Sights and bites: What to eat while touring Paris.) Kuti Chef Antoine Joss Lecocq's third restaurant, Kuti, is a stunning amalgamation of African street gastronomy and culinary tradition. The lively, canteen restaurant is painted with bold greens and oranges splashed across the exterior and is a good place for lunch. Entering the space feels like a warm hug; the intimate seating arrangements make enjoying Kuti's menu a communal experience. After his six-month journey across Cameroon, Lecocq returned to Paris with knowledge on how to prepare authentic pan-African fare. Kuti's delectable masa servings are probably their most famous dishes; a Nigerian pancake covered with either chicken or beef and plated, slathered with spicy, savory Baobob sauce, was seen on nearly every packed table. Their hearty vegetarian kondré stews and "Jungle Beat" dishes—crispy fried chicken atop of a bed of yellow rice, potatoes, spinach, and plantains, blanketed in Afro-spices—were my favorite plates. La Table Penja Chef Pierre Siewe offers his innovative, fine-dining interpretation of African fare with a French twist at La Table Penja. The Michelin-recognized restaurant opened in October 2024 and serves experimental, creative dishes such as thyme-roasted French sirloin paired with a fresh green Penja peppercorn sauce and rock octopus poached in court-bouillon, seared on a griddle. End your dinner with Siewe's sweet-and-spicy peppercorn ice cream—one of the most memorable, pleasant treats from my trip. (How to explore Paris from the seat of a bicycle.) Where to stay Tourists should consider staying at the centrally-located 25Hours Hotel Terminus Nord , situated in front of Gare Du Nord train station—also in a tourist hotspot. The eclectic hotel has a bike rental service and is popular for remote workers. Guests can travel outside of the busy 10th arrondissement with ease whenever they wish. However, guests who want to explore Paris's African diaspora history on their own should consider checking into the Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris , a luxury hotel located just a short walk away from the Arc de Triomphe. Guests can opt to stay in the Ray Charles Suite, a room where the iconic African American jazz singer stayed. In his honor, the downstairs restaurant has nightly jazz soirees, and the monochromatic cigar room next door is a moody, crimson-red escape. Guests at both hotels can access the metro via nearby major train stations. They can take the 'B' or 'C' lines to Parisian landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower, and more. Editor's pick: In addition to the Le Paris Noir walking tour, Walking The Spirit Tours also offers customized Paris vacation packages and guided tours that provide travelers with the authentic history and spirit of Paris based on founder Julia Browne's personal experiences living in France for 12 years. This trip was created with the support of the Paris Je t'Aime tourism office and Hotel 25H. Malik Peay is a culture writer from Los Angeles who uncovers distinctive art and food scenes of global destinations. Follow him on Instagram.
The Guardian
06-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Who preserves the homes of Black literary giants
Nothing could prepare me for seeing the house that Langston Hughes, the heralded Harlem Renaissance poet, author, journalist and traveler, lived in as a teenager in Cleveland, Ohio. Only eight steps separated me from the walkway that led to the front door as my Uber driver idled behind me. I clasped my camera in my hand, the shutter echoing in the quiet of a snowy February day. I looked more like a too-curious-tourist than a concerned writer researching the literary legacy of a man who had inspired me all my life. The house was ordinary, painted in an aging beige that was deepened with crisp, burgundy accents. At the top in an attic space the burgundy was most prominent. I'd learned before this visit that Hughes had lived and written there. I'd also known going into this trip that the house had at one point been at risk of being demolished, efforts that were subverted largely in part due to local librarian Christopher Bucka-Peck's intervention. Located on the east side of Cleveland in an area that has been historically Black for generations, this home, which is crucial to understanding Langston Hughes and his creative origins, remains unmarked and vacant as it was then. The longer I stood, instead of soaking up the moment in awe, unending questions tugged at me. Such as: why was there no marker? Would it be in danger of possibly being demolished again? And if the city of Cleveland didn't care about his legacy then who would? That trip in 2023, and the crushing disappointment that encircled it, became a silent quest I've carried with me. I wanted to see more homes of the Black literary forefathers and foremothers, the ones I draw inspiration from in order to write. The anger and discontent are something Tara L Conley, an assistant professor at Kent State University's School of Media and Journalism, felt herself in 2019 when she visited Toni Morrison's childhood home in Lorain, Ohio, a mere 30 miles from where I landed in Cleveland four years later. Morrison's powder blue home also has no marker and continues to fall further and further into a dilapidated state. 'My initial reaction was, 'Why isn't anyone doing anything here?' Even to this day I wonder why Northeast Ohio feels so stuck. And if you talk to other Black folks who grew up here you might hear the same thing,' Conley said. Morrison's home, according to Conley during her visit, is privately owned, as demonstrated by Donald Trump signs she saw surrounding the property. As of now, there are no efforts for a historical marker or any other kind of preservation of the home. Hughes' home in Cleveland has endured many changes throughout the years beyond the planned demolition in 2009 – including a renovation before being sold for $85,000 to a private owner in 2013. Being privately owned means the hurdles for historical markers or any other designation of its status fall into the owner's hands, if they choose to pursue it at all. These homes, however, represent a much larger pattern of neglect of integral legacies of Black writers, even after their deaths. The statistics on preservation of African American historical structures reflect this. Only 2% of the 95,000 entries on the National Register of Historic Places focus on the lives, experience and culture of African Americans. That means there's larger systemic failings and inequities to be addressed for cases like Hughes' and Morrison's homes in Ohio, despite the issue of their current ownership. And the countless other homes of Black literary figures throughout history, those who have held us together and dazzled us in written form on the page. These legacies matter and have personal and collective stakes. What is preserved, after all, molds what we remember and what is known about Black writers of the past. Our Black creative memory, too, is sculpted from these things. Preserving spaces such as historic Black literary homes from an official capacity entails certain complexities–completing extensive paperwork, securing funding, time spent waiting to hear back once nominations have been submitted. The process has prevailed in some cases, such as Richard Wright's childhood home, Lucille Clifton's and where Zora Neale Hurston lived in the years prior her death. Some of the homes of Black authors of the past have some sort of historical marker, whether as a result of being designated a national historic landmark, included on the National Register of Historic Places or local recognition whether from the state or town/city municipality of which they are located. National historic landmarks (NHS) and the National Register of Historic Places are both guarded by the National Park Service (NPS). Established in 1935 due to the National Historic Sites Act, an NHS designation requires a nomination and evaluation of the property. The NPS advisory board reviews nominations and determines whether to recommend it to the secretary of interior, who has the power to name landmarks. Getting a historic home or other property on the National Register of Historic Places is simpler. The National Register was established in 1966 per the National Historic Preservation Act and also requires prepared nominations that next proceed through the state's historic preservation office. The state historic preservation officer can then officially nominate a property, kicking it up to the NPS where the keeper of the National Register, who has the authority to list the property. In urgent response to the dire statistic, the National Trust for Preservation launched the Cultural Heritage Action Fund in 2017. Helmed by architect and preservationist Brent Leggs, who acts as executive director, the aim was to intensely focus on gathering these Black touchstones and treating them as precious. 'What's so beautiful about the African-American Cultural Heritage Action Fund–as we're eight years in as an emerging social movement advocating for an increased recognition and celebration of Black people and Black history–is that we're creating a big tent of advocates,' he said. Leggs was instrumental in helping to preserve the homes of other Black cultural legends – Nina Simone and Alice and John Coltrane – as both have designation and have been preserved through varied mechanisms. Simone's childhood home in Tryon, North Carolina is bounded by non-profit Daydream Therapy, a collective of artists Ellen Gallagher, Rashid Johnson, Julie Mehretu and Adam Pendleton who bought the home together for $95,000 to save it. When the fund originally launched in 2017, a five year $25m campaign began an 'audacious and bold vision' according to Leggs. The intent, he said, is to intentionally partner in what is longterm work of expanding the African-American story by preserving spaces and homes like those of Black writers of the past–to offer these lived spaces as testimonies of the reality of Black lives lived. As of now, $150m in funding has been secured and the organization has collaborated with 353 preservation organizations across the country to make it happen. Historical markers, whether national or local, are purely an architectural designation – what the owners of the home choose to do with the property is at their discretion. There is no mandate, for instance, that historic homes be opened to the public, though some Black literary homes have taken that pathway in service of writers of new generations. Overall, the paths are varied. The novelist Richard Wright's childhood home in the historically Black Woodlawn historic district of Natchez, Mississippi, has had a historical marker since 1998. This marker is local, however, as the Mississippi department of archives and history erected it. Wright's home is solely a historic structure as it's not open to visitors, though visitors can take pictures and peek in from the outside. The historic East Harlem brownstone that Hughes called home during the Harlem Renaissance is another that falls in this category. Now privately owned, it has had a marker since 1981 per the New York Landmarks Preservation Foundation. Hughes' former Harlem home has struggled with directional instability throughout the years, with current managing director Louie P Sosa committed to ushering forth a new era for the home, centered in structured programming and establishing a non-profit organization to guide its future. 'The goal of the Langston Hughes Home is to exude Langston's personality and all its facets,' he said. In Baltimore, Maryland is the Clifton House, a tribute to the legacy of poet Lucille Clifton who lived there with her husband Fred Clifton and her six children. When foreclosure in 1980 forced them from their home, it was traumatic. But when her daughter Sidney Clifton reached out to former owners on the ninth anniversary of her mother's death in 2019, she learned the house had been put on the market that very day. She purchased the home, intent on recapturing the communal space she remembered. 'What this house always wanted to be was what my parents established there and it's what it means to be there,' she said. 'The house needs to be that place where we are focusing on providing sanctuary for emerging writers, poets, artists, activists and people that walk those intersections. And to be a place of nurture, feeding, spirit, growing and possibility.' As the home is already considered a national historic landmark and appears on the National Register of Historic Places, the most challenging aspect of preserving the legacy, according to Sidney, has been managing the business side. Though the non-profit organization that guides the home–including that of writing workshops and residencies–does make it somewhat less challenging. And down south in Fort Pierce, Florida, the Agape senior recreation center where the novelist, anthropologist and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston died from a stroke in 1960 has no designation whatsoever, though a home she rented in the years prior to her death received national historic landmark status in 1991. The Zora Neale Hurston Florida education foundation acquired the building where Hurston died from St Lucie county in 2019. They've made significant strides in renovating to turn it into a community center and museum–they received a $500,000 African-American cultural and historical grant from the Florida department of state to actualize these needed changes. Marina Santos, vice-president of the organization's board, said hopes are that renovations for the building will be completed no later than this summer. 'Currently we're about 50 percent completed on the renovations on the inside,' she said. 'Our vision and mission is not only to preserve and celebrate the life of Zora but to also encourage, inspire and educate the community by ways of helping authors and creating space where authors can come in and work.' Thinking about seeing Hughes's home in Cleveland years ago and others attached to Black writers, thinkers and culture shifters – spaces and places scattered throughout this country – remains an amalgamation of anguish and hope. Anguish for how displacement, dispossession and rejection of personhood for Black people is commonplace. But hope for how writing down these narratives in this piece itself is a reclamation and can't be erased even if obscured. Perhaps through communal effort, collaboration, funding and public awareness, preserving these legacies aren't as fraught as it seems. During my conversation with Leggs, he shared similar sentiments. 'Even in moments of fragility […] I believe that we can create a more knowledgeable and empathetic society that will begin to bear witness to Black humanity,' he said. 'And if we can use historic preservation to create that–to facilitate learning and reconciliation in a way that strengthens everyone's individual capacity–that for me is the beauty of the work.'
The Guardian
06-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
Who preserves the homes of Black literary giants
Nothing could prepare me for seeing the house that Langston Hughes, the heralded Harlem Renaissance poet, author, journalist and traveler, lived in as a teenager in Cleveland, Ohio. Only eight steps separated me from the walkway that led to the front door as my Uber driver idled behind me. I clasped my camera in my hand, the shutter echoing in the quiet of a snowy February day. I looked more like a too-curious-tourist than a concerned writer researching the literary legacy of a man who had inspired me all my life. The house was ordinary, painted in an aging beige that was deepened with crisp, burgundy accents. At the top in an attic space the burgundy was most prominent. I'd learned before this visit that Hughes had lived and written there. I'd also known going into this trip that the house had at one point been at risk of being demolished, efforts that were subverted largely in part due to local librarian Christopher Bucka-Peck's intervention. Located on the east side of Cleveland in an area that has been historically Black for generations, this home, which is crucial to understanding Langston Hughes and his creative origins, remains unmarked and vacant as it was then. The longer I stood, instead of soaking up the moment in awe, unending questions tugged at me. Such as: why was there no marker? Would it be in danger of possibly being demolished again? And if the city of Cleveland didn't care about his legacy then who would? That trip in 2023, and the crushing disappointment that encircled it, became a silent quest I've carried with me. I wanted to see more homes of the Black literary forefathers and foremothers, the ones I draw inspiration from in order to write. The anger and discontent are something Tara L Conley, an assistant professor at Kent State University's School of Media and Journalism, felt herself in 2019 when she visited Toni Morrison's childhood home in Lorain, Ohio, a mere 30 miles from where I landed in Cleveland four years later. Morrison's powder blue home also has no marker and continues to fall further and further into a dilapidated state. 'My initial reaction was, 'Why isn't anyone doing anything here?' Even to this day I wonder why Northeast Ohio feels so stuck. And if you talk to other Black folks who grew up here you might hear the same thing,' Conley said. Morrison's home, according to Conley during her visit, is privately owned, as demonstrated by Donald Trump signs she saw surrounding the property. As of now, there are no efforts for a historical marker or any other kind of preservation of the home. Hughes' home in Cleveland has endured many changes throughout the years beyond the planned demolition in 2009 – including a renovation before being sold for $85,000 to a private owner in 2013. Being privately owned means the hurdles for historical markers or any other designation of its status fall into the owner's hands, if they choose to pursue it at all. These homes, however, represent a much larger pattern of neglect of integral legacies of Black writers, even after their deaths. The statistics on preservation of African American historical structures reflect this. Only 2% of the 95,000 entries on the National Register of Historic Places focus on the lives, experience and culture of African Americans. That means there's larger systemic failings and inequities to be addressed for cases like Hughes' and Morrison's homes in Ohio, despite the issue of their current ownership. And the countless other homes of Black literary figures throughout history, those who have held us together and dazzled us in written form on the page. These legacies matter and have personal and collective stakes. What is preserved, after all, molds what we remember and what is known about Black writers of the past. Our Black creative memory, too, is sculpted from these things. Preserving spaces such as historic Black literary homes from an official capacity entails certain complexities–completing extensive paperwork, securing funding, time spent waiting to hear back once nominations have been submitted. The process has prevailed in some cases, such as Richard Wright's childhood home, Lucille Clifton's and where Zora Neale Hurston lived in the years prior her death. Some of the homes of Black authors of the past have some sort of historical marker, whether as a result of being designated a national historic landmark, included on the National Register of Historic Places or local recognition whether from the state or town/city municipality of which they are located. National historic landmarks (NHS) and the National Register of Historic Places are both guarded by the National Park Service (NPS). Established in 1935 due to the National Historic Sites Act, an NHS designation requires a nomination and evaluation of the property. The NPS advisory board reviews nominations and determines whether to recommend it to the secretary of interior, who has the power to name landmarks. Getting a historic home or other property on the National Register of Historic Places is simpler. The National Register was established in 1966 per the National Historic Preservation Act and also requires prepared nominations that next proceed through the state's historic preservation office. The state historic preservation officer can then officially nominate a property, kicking it up to the NPS where the keeper of the National Register, who has the authority to list the property. In urgent response to the dire statistic, the National Trust for Preservation launched the Cultural Heritage Action Fund in 2017. Helmed by architect and preservationist Brent Leggs, who acts as executive director, the aim was to intensely focus on gathering these Black touchstones and treating them as precious. 'What's so beautiful about the African-American Cultural Heritage Action Fund–as we're eight years in as an emerging social movement advocating for an increased recognition and celebration of Black people and Black history–is that we're creating a big tent of advocates,' he said. Leggs was instrumental in helping to preserve the homes of other Black cultural legends – Nina Simone and Alice and John Coltrane – as both have designation and have been preserved through varied mechanisms. Simone's childhood home in Tryon, North Carolina is bounded by non-profit Daydream Therapy, a collective of artists Ellen Gallagher, Rashid Johnson, Julie Mehretu and Adam Pendleton who bought the home together for $95,000 to save it. When the fund originally launched in 2017, a five year $25m campaign began an 'audacious and bold vision' according to Leggs. The intent, he said, is to intentionally partner in what is longterm work of expanding the African-American story by preserving spaces and homes like those of Black writers of the past–to offer these lived spaces as testimonies of the reality of Black lives lived. As of now, $150m in funding has been secured and the organization has collaborated with 353 preservation organizations across the country to make it happen. Historical markers, whether national or local, are purely an architectural designation – what the owners of the home choose to do with the property is at their discretion. There is no mandate, for instance, that historic homes be opened to the public, though some Black literary homes have taken that pathway in service of writers of new generations. Overall, the paths are varied. The novelist Richard Wright's childhood home in the historically Black Woodlawn historic district of Natchez, Mississippi, has had a historical marker since 1998. This marker is local, however, as the Mississippi department of archives and history erected it. Wright's home is solely a historic structure as it's not open to visitors, though visitors can take pictures and peek in from the outside. The historic East Harlem brownstone that Hughes called home during the Harlem Renaissance is another that falls in this category. Now privately owned, it has had a marker since 1981 per the New York Landmarks Preservation Foundation. Hughes' former Harlem home has struggled with directional instability throughout the years, with current managing director Louie P Sosa committed to ushering forth a new era for the home, centered in structured programming and establishing a non-profit organization to guide its future. 'The goal of the Langston Hughes Home is to exude Langston's personality and all its facets,' he said. In Baltimore, Maryland is the Clifton House, a tribute to the legacy of poet Lucille Clifton who lived there with her husband Fred Clifton and her six children. When foreclosure in 1980 forced them from their home, it was traumatic. But when her daughter Sidney Clifton reached out to former owners on the ninth anniversary of her mother's death in 2019, she learned the house had been put on the market that very day. She purchased the home, intent on recapturing the communal space she remembered. 'What this house always wanted to be was what my parents established there and it's what it means to be there,' she said. 'The house needs to be that place where we are focusing on providing sanctuary for emerging writers, poets, artists, activists and people that walk those intersections. And to be a place of nurture, feeding, spirit, growing and possibility.' As the home is already considered a national historic landmark and appears on the National Register of Historic Places, the most challenging aspect of preserving the legacy, according to Sidney, has been managing the business side. Though the non-profit organization that guides the home–including that of writing workshops and residencies–does make it somewhat less challenging. And down south in Fort Pierce, Florida, the Agape senior recreation center where the novelist, anthropologist and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston died from a stroke in 1960 has no designation whatsoever, though a home she rented in the years prior to her death received national historic landmark status in 1991. The Zora Neale Hurston Florida education foundation acquired the building where Hurston died from St Lucie county in 2019. They've made significant strides in renovating to turn it into a community center and museum–they received a $500,000 African-American cultural and historical grant from the Florida department of state to actualize these needed changes. Marina Santos, vice-president of the organization's board, said hopes are that renovations for the building will be completed no later than this summer. 'Currently we're about 50 percent completed on the renovations on the inside,' she said. 'Our vision and mission is not only to preserve and celebrate the life of Zora but to also encourage, inspire and educate the community by ways of helping authors and creating space where authors can come in and work.' Thinking about seeing Hughes's home in Cleveland years ago and others attached to Black writers, thinkers and culture shifters – spaces and places scattered throughout this country – remains an amalgamation of anguish and hope. Anguish for how displacement, dispossession and rejection of personhood for Black people is commonplace. But hope for how writing down these narratives in this piece itself is a reclamation and can't be erased even if obscured. Perhaps through communal effort, collaboration, funding and public awareness, preserving these legacies aren't as fraught as it seems. During my conversation with Leggs, he shared similar sentiments. 'Even in moments of fragility […] I believe that we can create a more knowledgeable and empathetic society that will begin to bear witness to Black humanity,' he said. 'And if we can use historic preservation to create that–to facilitate learning and reconciliation in a way that strengthens everyone's individual capacity–that for me is the beauty of the work.'
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
FSU football recruiting: Seminoles land 4-star tight end Xavier Tiller for 2026 class
Florida State football is not done gathering commitments from blue-chip prospects. Just hours after landing 4-star receiver Devin Carter, FSU received a commitment from 4-star tight end Xavier Tiller on Monday. Tiller selected the Seminoles over Auburn and Alabama. Advertisement Listed at 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, Tiller is ranked No. 154 and No. 9 tight end nationally according to 247 Sports. He will be the 17th commitment in the 2026 class and the sixth four-star player. FSU gained momentum after landing quarterback Jaden O'Neal on Sunday. Tiller last visited the FSU campus on June 14. Last season at Langston Hughes High School, Tiller recorded 25 catches for 344 yards and three touchdowns. Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. Florida State's 2026 commits Xavier Tiller, tight end, Langston Hughes (Fairburn, Georgia), 4-star Devin Carter, wide receiver, Douglas County (Douglas County, Georgia), 4-star Jaden O'Neal, quarterback, Mustang (Mustang, Oklahoma) 4-star Brandon Bennett, wide receiver, American Heritage (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) 4-star Efrem White, wide receiver, Vero Beach (Vero Beach, Florida), 4-star James Carrington, defensive line, Crean Lutheran (Irvine, California), 4-star Noah LaVallee, linebacker, Walton (Marietta, Georgia), 3-star Sean Johnson, cornerback, Archbishop Spalding (Severn, Maryland), 3-star Tedarius Hughes, safety, Northwestern (Miami, Florida), 3-star Darryl Bell III, safety, Barbara Gorman (Hialeah, Florida), 3-star Amari Thomas, running back, Blountstown (Blountstown, Florida) 3-star Darryon Williams, wide receiver, Plant (Tampa, Florida), 3-star Karon Maycock, linebacker, Miami Central (Miami, Florida), 3-star Michael Ionata, offensive line, Calvary Christian (Clearwater, Florida), 3-star Wihtlley Cadeau, defensive line, Booker T. Washington (Atlanta, Georgia), 3-star Luke Francis, offensive line, Coral Gables (Coral Gables, Florida), 0-star More: FSU football recruiting: 4-star WR Devin Carter, son of Dexter, commits for 2026 class Peter Holland Jr. covers Florida State athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at PHolland@ or on X @_Da_pistol. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU football receives commitment from 4-star tight end Xavier Tiller
