>
 > Newark's man of letters
 >
 > 06/01/01
 >
 > Many times we can find good things right in our own
 > back yards. In the world of letters, that is certainly
 > true.
 >
 > Newark's literary giant, Amiri Baraka, was recently
 > inducted, along with 13 other artists, architects,
 > composers and writers, into the American Academy
 > of Arts and Letters.
 >
 > Members are elected each year to fill vacancies in
 > the academy's membership of 250 American cultural
 > figures. Nominations are submitted for vote by
 > discipline, and the candidates receiving the most
 > votes from their peers are voted on by the entire
 > membership.
 >
 > Though often viewed as controversial, Baraka is
 > well-respected nationally. Hailed as one of the most
 > important poets of his generation, he has also written
 > numerous plays, 10 collections of essays, a novel, an
 > autobiography and a collection of stories. He was
 > one of the founders of the Black Arts movement in
 > the 1960s.
 >
 > Although his art has often been eclipsed by his role
 > as a political, cultural and social activist, Baraka is,
 > first and foremost, a writer, one of the most prolific
 > produced by Newark. His induction into the
 > academy is a fitting recognition of a literary career
 > that has spanned nearly half a century.
 >

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**********

VIDEO RELEASE: The Kings and Queens of Black Consciousness

Title: The Kings and Queens of Black Consciousness
Producer/director: Marvin X
Editors: Ptah Allah-El, J.R. Valrey
VHS, 120 minutes
Price: $25.00, including postage
Features: Amiri Baraka, Amina Baraka, Dr. Cornel West, Dr. Julia Hare,
Ishmael Reed, Destiny, Rev. Cecil Williams, Phavia Kujichagulia, Avotcja,
Tarika Lewis, Lothario Lotho, Rudi Wongozi, Elliot Bey, Kalamu Ya Salaam, Eddie Gale,
Andriette Earl-Bozeman, Askia M. Toure, Nefertiti Rhodes, Marvin X 

The video of the Kings and Queens of Black Consciousness has been released
and is now available. It is a two hour version of the event which took place
at San Francisco State University on April 1, 2001. Proceeds benefit Recovery
Theatre and the participants. Price: $19.95, plus $5.00 for postage and
handling--priority mail. Send $25.00 to Recovery Theatre, 3116 38th Ave.,
Suite 304, Oakland, CA 94619. We feel the video of the historic event is a m
asterpiece. In fact, anyone not satisfied can receive a full refund.
Obviously, we had to select highlights of the concert/teach-in, so we have
included nearly all the participants, except when technical difficulties
prevented inclusion, such as the elders council when the elders were too
tired to hold the mike to their mouths. Scenes from Recovery Theatre were
deleted since our next project is a video docudrama of Marvin X's play ONE
DAY IN THE LIFE. What we have included is a consciousness raising ritual of
Black Art that continues the tradition we established during the 60s. Again,
I want to thank all the kings and queens and especially the editors, Ptah
Allah-El and J.R. Valrey, two gentlemen from the hip hop generation who had
to endure me while we completed this project. Peace, Marvin X.

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