Author Deborah Plant, Dr. Indira Etwaroo and Dr. Brenda Greene will explore Hurston's influence on Black culture and discuss her book Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo"
The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, in partnership with RestorationART, presents "Rediscovering Zora Neale Hurston: A Literary Salon" featuring Deborah G. Plant, editor of the 2018 New York Times bestseller Barracoon by acclaimed author Zora Neale Hurston on Thursday, September 13 at the Billie Holiday Theatre.
The salon will discuss Zora Neale Hurston's non-fiction work Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" as well as the influence of her works on Black culture. Joining Deborah Plant in the conversation will be Dr. Indira Etwaroo, executive director of RestorationART and The Billie Holiday Theatre, and Dr. Brenda Greene, executive director of the Center for Black Literature.
Deborah G. Plant is an African American literature and Africana Studies scholar and literary critic whose special interest is the life and works of Zora Neale Hurston. She is editor of the 2018 New York Times bestseller Barracoon, The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" which is based on interviews Hurston conducted in 1927 with Cudjo Lewis, the last living survivor of the Middle Passage.
Plant has been the keynote speaker for National Endowment for the Arts Big Read programs on Their Eyes Were Watching God in Brunswick, Georgia; Decatur, Georgia; and Spelman College, Atlanta, Georgia. She has served as a consultant and speaker at Fort Pierce's ZoraFest over several years. Plant was also instrumental in founding the University of South Florida's Department of Africana Studies and in the development of its graduate program, and chaired the department for five years.
Other notable works by Plant include Every Tub Must Sit On Its Own Bottom: The Philosophy and Politics of Zora Neale Hurston, a reevaluation of Hurston's philosophical bases for individualism and self-reliance; The Inside Light: New Critical Essays on Zora Neale Hurston which includes 20 essays on recent findings and issues in Hurston studies; and Zora Neale Hurston: A Biography of the Spirit, an exploration of Hurston's spirituality as reflected in her writings, folkloric publications, life experiences, societal concerns and struggles, her political activity, and even the nature of her final years and death.
The event is free and open to the public. To RSVP go here.
Rediscovering Zora Neale Hurston: A Literary Salon - An Official 2018 Brooklyn Book Festival Event
When: Thursday, Sept. 13, 6:30pm — 8:30pm
Where: The Billie Holiday Theatre, 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216
