Q: What gave you the idea for BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL?
A: BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL was written after Martin Luther King was killed. I went to a rally in New York City’s Central Park and saw so many people weeping. I heard a man shout to the crowd, “Black is beautiful. Know it, feel it!” I was very moved and stayed up most of the night writing a poem about the beauty of blackness. The poem became a book. BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL is illustrated with Hope Wurmfeld’s poignant photographs. Hope and I are close friends.