BOOKISH THINGS: (BHM) BOUND WORKS by SIXTY MEN OF COLOR!

Posted by Sonya McCllough Lockridge February 03, 2023

BOOKISH THINGS: (BHM) BOUND WORKS by SIXTY MEN OF COLOR!

Whenever I or we visit someone's home we are immediately drawn to their bookshelf. When they step out of the room, we look closely at all the books they have read or at one point were interested in reading. Often, we peak at the stacks of books they have displayed around their home. Because, the books we read shape us, the knowledge we glean from others, rather in person or otherwise both form and inform us into who we are today.

These days many folks around the World Wide Web are challenging one another to read actual books and Black History Month is just another reason for the growing interest in the importance of everyday literacy.

As we celebrate the History of Black folks, I would love for us to consider how gravely difficult it must be for MEN OF COLOR to write words in the hope of seeing the very same words, one day heat printed on slices of white or cream pages, glued tightly together, with the cover pressed and folded to be bound as a single work.

In 1843 James Fisher of Nashville wrote:

"I . . . thought it wise to learn to write, in case opportunity should offer to write myself a pass. I copied every scrap of writing I could find, and thus learned to write a tolerable hand before I knew what the words were that I was copying. At last, I found an old man who, for the sake of money to buy whisky, agreed to teach me the writing alphabet, and set up copying. I spent a good deal of time trying to improve myself; secretly, of course. One day, my mistress happened to come into my room, when my materials were about; and she told her father (old Capt. Davis) that I was learning to write. He replied, that if I belonged to him, he would cut my right hand off "

With all of this in mind, plus thoughts of my soon to be sixtieth birthday, not to mention it's been one hundred and sixty winters, since the signing of The Emancipation Proclamation, I have created yet another list to be celebrated for Black History Month and I have titled it: BOUND WORKS by SIXTY MEN OF COLOR! The only criteria for my list is the author needed to be a man of color, no other criteria was necessary, although, a tendency, did surfaced, to lean toward authors, whose works are biblical in some shape form or fashion.