The Future of Black
Afrofuturism, Black Comics, and Superhero Poetry
Edited by Len Lawson, Cynthia Manick, & Gary Jackson
an anthology of poetry and art
Paperback - ISBN: 9781949467673
“The Future of Black is a marvel. Some of the best Black voices out there deconstructing subjects we've all come to know intimately. But not like this. Superheroes and superheroism, pop-culture and genre media are transmuted into poetry that is sharp and staggering. Pick this book up and savor it. You won't regret it.”
—Cadwell Turnbull, The Lesson
The expansion of Marvel and DC Comics’ characters such as Black Panther, Luke Cage, and Black Lightning in film and on television has created a proliferation of poetry in this genre―receiving wide literary and popular attention. Sections in the book include: Man of Steel, More Superheroes, Black Superheroes, Black Antiheroes, Black Pop Culture, Black History, Video Games & Fantasy, New Origins, New Faith Constructs, Black Women Narratives, and Afrofuturism & Speculative Poetry.
This groundbreaking collection highlights work from poets who have written verse within this growing tradition, including Terrance Hayes, Lucille Clifton, Gill Scott-Heron, A. Van Jordan, Glenis Redmond, Tracy K. Smith, Teri Ellen Cross Davis, Joshua Bennett, Douglas Kearney, Tara Betts, Frank X. Walker, Tyree Daye, and others. In addition, the anthology also features the work of artists such as John Jennings and Najee Dorsey, showcasing their interpretations of superheroes, Black comic characters, Afrofuturistic images from the African diaspora.
To download a list of Afrofuturism syllabus resources, click here:
Len Lawson is the author of Chime (Get Fresh Books, 2019), the chapbook Before the Night Wakes You (Finishing Line Press, 2017), and co-editor of Hand in Hand: Poets Respond to Race (Muddy Ford Press, 2017). He has received fellowships from Tin House, Callaloo, Vermont Studio Center, and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. His website is www.lenlawson.co.
Cynthia Manick is the author of Blue Hallelujahs, which won the 2016 Lascaux Prize in Collected Poetry, and editor of Soul Sister Revue: A Poetry Compilation (2019). She has received fellowships from Cave Canem, Hedgebrook, and MacDowell Colony. Her website is www.cynthiamanick.com.
Gary Jackson is the author of the poetry collection Missing You, Metropolis (2010), which received the 2009 Cave Canem Poetry Prize. His poems have appeared in numerous literary journals including Callaloo, Tin House, Los Angeles Review of Books, and Crab Orchard Review.
