City Councilman Ras Baraka, 44, son of the legendary poet-writer-activist Amiri Baraka, won today’s mayoral election in Newark, New Jersey, defeating former state assistant Attorney General Shavar Jeffries. With 87% of districts reporting, Baraka had a 53.14% to 46.66% lead over Jeffries with his South Ward precincts the only ones left to be reported. We are the Mayor!!! http://t.co/O5bLBwV2ku […]

The first thing that strikes many about Amiri Baraka‘s poetry, most especially his later works, is that it carried the sharp tone of an oppressed, angry people. It wasn’t flowery prose full of lofty life affirmations. It was the product of the frustration typically used when writing from a critical stance of a society that […]

Nation

Amiri Baraka died today at the age of 79 after battling an undisclosed illness. Indeed, the world has lost one of its greatest literary giants. While Baraka’s work is widely known and read, there may be a few things that many may not know about him. Below are ten facts about the writer and activist. […]

Nation

Amiri Baraka, former poet laureate of New Jersey and an icon in American literature, has died, according to The Star-Ledger. He was 79-years-old. The literary legend was hospitalized at Beth Israel Medical Center last month for an undisclosed illness. And while Baraka has a history of battling diabetes, the cause of his death was not […]

Nation

Amiri Baraka, the legendary African-American playwright and former Poet Laureate of New Jersey, has been hospitalized, according to a broadcast report by Roland Martin. The radio and television host of NewsOne Now announced the news on his Twitter handle as well as his radio program.  Not much is known about the condition of the poet […]