PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 29 (2019) Winner
Kalamu ya Salaam
からむ・や・さらーむ
Kalamu ya Salaam
Aliases:
Vallery Ferdinand III
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1947-03-24 （New Orleans, Louisiana）
- Nationality
- American
- Languages
- English
- Religion
- Unknown
- Residence History
- 9th Ward of New Orleans
Career
- Occupations
- Poet, Author, Filmmaker, Teacher, Activist
- Active Years
- 1969-2025
- Affiliations
- Co-founder of NOMMO Literary Society, Co-founder/editor of Runagate Press, Moderator of Neo-Griot, Editor of The Black Collegian
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carleton College | — | — | — | 1964-1969 | United States |
| Delgado Junior College | — | Business Administration | Associate Arts | — | United States |
Carleton College
Period:
1964-1969
Country:
United States
Delgado Junior College
Business Administration
Degree:
Associate Arts
Country:
United States
Earned Associate Arts degree in business administration
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Blues Merchant: Songs for Blkfolk
1969 PoetrySongs for Blkfolk
Black cultureBlues
What is Life? Reclaiming the Black Blues Self
1994 EssayReclaiming the Black Blues Self
IdentityBlues
Magic of Juju: An Appreciation of the Black Arts Movement
1998 CriticismAppreciation of the Black Arts Movement
Black ArtsJuju
Bibliography
- The Blues Merchant: Songs for Blkfolk (1969)
- Hofu ni kwenu: My Fears for You (1973)
- Pamoja tutashinda: Together We Will Win (1973)
- Ibura (1976)
- Tearing the Roof off the Sucker: The Fall of South Africa (1977)
- South African Showdown: Divestment Now (1978)
- Revolutionary Love: Poems and Essays (1978)
- Herufi: An Alphabet Reader (1979)
- Iron Flowers: A Poetic Report on a Visit to Haiti (1979)
- Our Women Keep Our Skies from Falling (1980)
- Our Music is No Accident (1988)
- What is Life? Reclaiming the Black Blues Self (1994)
- Tarzan Can - Not Return to Africa But I Can (1996)
- He's The Prettiest (1997)
- 360° A Revolution Of Black Poets (1998)
- Magic of Juju: An Appreciation of the Black Arts Movement (1998)
- New Orleans Griot: The Tom Dent Reader (2018)
- Be About Beauty (2018)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Innovative poetic expressionUse of Black vernacular
- Recurring Motifs
- Black identitySocial justiceNew Orleans culture
Legacy
Key figure in New Orleans Black literature and culture. Co-founded workshops for Black writers and contributed through numerous publications and activism on human rights issues.
Trivia
- Kalamu ya Salaam means 'Pen of Peace' in Swahili.
- From the 9th Ward of New Orleans.
- Hosted radio shows on WWOZ for years.