Cheryl Clarke...
Author and Director of
Office of Diverse Community Affairs and Lesbian/Gay Concerns --
Rutgers University
 Cheryl
Clarke was born in Washington, D.C. She is the author of four
books of poetry, Narratives: poems in the tradition of black
women (1983), Living as a Lesbian (1986), Humid Pitch (1989),
and Experimental Love (1993). She attended Howard and Rutgers
Universities. As a member of the lesbian and gay communities
since 1973, Clarke's writing integrates queer perspectives with
her feminist and African-American perspectives. Her poems,
essays, and book reviews have appeared in numerous feminist,
lesbian, gay, "straight," and African-American publications,
among them:
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This Bridge
Called My Back: Writing
by Radical Women of Color
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Blue Stones and
Salt Hay:
An
Anthology of New Jersey Poets
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Home Girls:
A Black
Feminist Anthology
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Bridges:
A
Journal for Jewish Feminists and Our Friends
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Feminist Studies
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Belles Lettres
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The
Black Scholar
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Gay
Community News
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Outweek
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Sojourner
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The
Advocate
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Gay
and Lesbian Poetry in Our Time
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Conditions
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Thirteenth Moon
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Inversions
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Writing By Dykes, Queers and Lesbians
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Persistent Desire:
A Femme-Butch Reader
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The
Arc of Love:
An Anthology of Lesbian Love Poetry
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Radical America
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The
Kenyon Review
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A
Formal Feeling Comes
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The
Harvard Lesbian and Gay Review
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Theorizing Black Feminisms
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Cookin' With Honey
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She has read her poetry and
spoken in numerous venues throughout the United States and
Canada.
She is the Director of Diverse Community Affairs and Lesbian-Gay
Concerns at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey-New
Brunswick campus. In addition to her work on behalf of queer
students, Clarke also works on issues of diversity as well as
issues of diabilities. She has directed this office since 1992,
though she has worked at Rutgers since 1969, when she arrived
here as a graduate student. She served as a member of the
editorial collective of Conditions magazine from 1981 - 1990, as
a member of the board of directors of New York Women Against
Rape, 1985 - 1988, was a founding member and fundraiser for New
Jersey Women and AIDS Network from 1987 - 1990, and served as
co-chairperson of the board of the Center for Lesbian and Gay
Studies at the CUNY Graduate School from 1990 - 1992. Currently,
she serves as the Chair Person of the Board of Directors of the
Astraea Lesbian Action Foundation.
to
email Cheryl Clarke, click below:
cclarke@rci.rutgers.edu
Living
As a Lesbian
In her book, Living As a Lesbian Cheryl
Clarke presents a stunning collection of poetry. As the
title indicates, much of the book's content revolves around
loving and surviving as a lesbian in the 20th century. Clarke
also writes about racism and injustice, and reflects upon the
people and events of her world. Much of the book has a gritty,
urban flavor to it.
In the poem "wearing my cap backwards," Clarke
writes, "poets are among the first witches / so suffer none to
live." This sets the tone for her poetic style: edgy, dangerous,
and allied with the most marginalized elements of society. As
she explores her subjects--lesbian sex, racially biased
courtrooms, recreational drug use, road kill, and more--Clarke
uses language that is alternatingly lusty, playful, profane,
enraged, and/or outraged.
Some of the most memorable selections from
"Living As a Lesbian" include "living as a lesbian on the make,"
which narrates the adventure of a lesbian in a "straight" bar; "Indira,"
an irony-laden reflection on the life and public image of Indian
leader Indira Gandhi; and "sexual preference," a humorous
meditation on lesbian sexual practices.
As Clarke spins her poetic webs, she ensnares
many public figures: Jesse Jackson, Anita Bryant, Vanessa
Williams, and more. Her vision is international, multi-cultural,
and unbound by time: "i hear a marimba player chanting / her
slave song in Portuguese" (from "marimba"). As in her other
books, Clarke finds a wealth of inspiration in African-American
culture and history.
In the poem entitled "living as a lesbian
underground: a futuristic fantasy," Clarke writes, "Leave signs
of struggle. / Leave signs of triumph." This book, along with
Clarke's other volumes of poetry, contains powerful signs of
both struggle and triumph on the part of a remarkable poet.
-- Michael J. Mazza
Interview With Cheryl Clarke
Description:
Poetess Cheryl Clarke describes how a well-defined community
of lesbians gave her the best entrée into the world of lesbian
poetry. Along the way, she pays homage to her predecessors and
contemporaries, including Phyllis Wheatley, Gwendolyn Brooks
and Audre Lorde, and reads from her collection, Experimental
Love, published in 1993. -- Gail Cooper
Air Date:
Show Number: 252
Producer: Anat Salomon
Real Video Presentation
Click to view
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