Living by the Word: African American Women Writers

Skillman Library, Simon Room & Corridor
February 1 – July 31, 2017

Launched by a generous collection donated by Lafayette alumnus Joe Nechasek ’62, Skillman Library’s Spring 2017 exhibit features the extraordinary work of over 30 African American women writers. From the first published African American female poet Phillis Wheatley (c. 1753-1784) to Lafayette alumna and current Poet Laureate of Philadelphia Yolander Wisher; from Broadway playwrights Lorraine Hansberry and Lynn Nottage to Pulitzer Prize novelists Toni Morrison and Alice Walker; from MacArthur Fellow science fiction writer Octavia Butler to Black Acts performance artist Jayne Cortez; from Harlem Renaissance luminary Zora Neale Hurston to 21st century million-dollar debut novelist Yaa Gyas—the rich and varied body of work produced by these writers is inspiring.