kYmberly Keeton is a young, Generation X artist with immense artistic talent and a strong appreciation for the literary and cultural history of our people. I met her when I extended an invitation to her to participate in San Antonio’s Black History Literary Weekend back in February. Since then, we have developed an uncle/niece relationship. Our age differences are quite unique in that she is post-civil rights and I am pre-civil rights. That age-gap explains the difference in our perspectives as to what should be the role or purpose of the modern day Black writer.
Often we will find ourselves immersed in telephone conversations about the nature of writing fiction (she likes experimental fiction and I prefer the conservative, time proven old style of telling a story). We also differ when discussing the function of the writer in Twenty-First Century Black America. Our conversations remind me of the differences that existed between Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois and Langston Hughes in their beliefs as to the duty of the Harlem Renaissance writer to the growth of the African American budding and definable culture. Their age differences were comparable to kYmberly and me.
Dr. Du Bois believed the writers had an obligation to write stories that uplifted the Black race. In 1926, he wrote, “Thus all art is propaganda and ever must be, despite the wailings of the purists. I stand in utter shamelessness and say that whatever art I have for writing has been used and always for propaganda, for gaining the right of black folk to love and enjoy.” According to Du Bois, art must serve to advance the rights of Black Americans through the writings of the Talented Tenth. One of the goals also was for cultural improvement.
On the other side, Hughes represented the generation of avant-garde, young radicals known as the Bohemians. He articulated their position in his article in Nation Magazine, “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain,” when he wrote, “We younger Negro artists who create now intend to express our individual dark-skinned selves without fear or shame. If white people are pleased we are glad. If they are not, it doesn’t matter. We know we are beautiful. And ugly too. The tom-tom cries and laughs. If colored people are pleased we are glad. If they are not, their displeasure doesn’t matter either. We build our temples for tomorrow, strong as we know how, and we stand on top of the mountain, free within ourselves.”
I happen to be a supporter of the Du Bois position and strongly believe that we need to write about the beauty, strength and unyielding determination of Black folk to make it in this country over the decades. We need to create heroes so that our young can have positive images to hang their hat onto. We also need to lighten up on the onslaught of writings that attack the very nature of our existence as a people, specifically much of the street fiction. We have an enormous amount of stereotypes to overcome that have plagued us as a people for a very long time. Free expression is a luxury we cannot afford at this historical juncture in our cultural existence.
My young niece and fellow writer disagrees with me. She believes that writers must have the freedom to express themselves. Do not put shackles on their right to say and be who they are. They should always be cognizant of the need to capture the African American experience in their writing. However, kYmberly believes that she has no obligation to alter her writing to meet a larger objective. If the artist is not allowed to write as they please, then they are not free within themselves. According to kYmberly, creativity loses its meaning if the writer must follow certain rules of the game, in order to fulfill only one specific goal. And the larger question is who has the right to define what those rules should be.
This seems to be the age-old question confronting African American writers. Richard Wright challenged the writers of the Renaissance. James Baldwin challenged Richard Wright and Amiri Baraka challenged Ralph Ellison. But today, there appears to be no challenge, but instead a sort of existential right for the artists to do their own thing with no questions asked. What is refreshing in my dialogue with kYmberly, is that at least we are willing to ask questions and challenge our positions, knowing all along that we do love the art and we do love the culture.
For the full text of Dr. Du Bois’s remarks please visit http://www.webdubois.org/dbCriteriaNArt.htlm
For the full text of Langston Hughes’ remarks please visit
Abogond.wordpress.com/2009/10/08langston-hughes-on-wanting-to-be-white/
thewriterfred 
It is terrific that the two writers can come to an agreement about the writing. As African American Writers we have a duty to write what is best for our people and not be fooled by deception of the present generation. We must remember our women are our backbone, our men are our strength, the elders are our wisdom and youth are our future. Antoinette V. Franklin poet
Generally speaking, although racism is alive and kicking butt, I feel like I shouldn’t have to tow the line when it comes to what I write. There will always be forces who feel you rose to the occasion or failed miserably. Dubois in all honestly had class leanings in his critique and Hughes had his stuff too as Zora Neale Hurston referred to some in that circle as the “niggerati”. I think of the demands of the black arts movement of the 60s and 70s and believe that there is no such thing as “art for art’s sake.” Everything we write has political and social leanings. We just can’t get away from it. I don’t want to write to prove a point to white people. I don’t want to write to prove my loyalties to black people. I want to write what I see happening amongst black folks (and beyond) and let the chips fall where they may. I know for a fact that many times if you’re not reinforcing heterosexual and class aspirations or not writing something so called “urban” some might consider you either undermining black aspirations for legitimacy in America or selling out.
I tend to agree with your niece Fred. To my mind, a writer, in order to be true to himself, must listen to his own drummer. He should not be overly concerned about what others may think. How else will we ever get new thoughts on the table? On the other hand, it is great if we can make an effort to be positive about our past as Black people while doing what COMES NATURAL.In the final analysis, the printed word is an excellent way to share ideas one with another while understandin that the ultimate goal is to hold high our Blackness.