Langston Hughes was born on February 1, 1901, and died on May 22, 1967.
He was a poet,
novelist, playwright, and columnist all in Joplin Missouri. Langston Hughes was one of the
earliest innovators of the literary art form called Jazz and was mostly known as a leader of
the Harlem renaissance. Langston Hughes's mother Carrie Langston Hughes and James
Nathaniel Hughes had a total of 5 kids including him (just like me) and he remained
unmarried till his death.
Even though Langston Hughes's parents separated when he was young.
Throughout his lifetime Langston won many awards like the 1935 Guggenheim fellowship
for creative arts award, the 1960 Spingarn medal, even the 2005 quill award for poetry, and
even another award called the Anisfield-Wolf book award for fiction that was earned in
1954.
Langston is best known for his poem 'The black Boy.' Hughes was also a Harlem
Renaissance icon and civil rights leader. He protested against racial segregation in the
South. Hughes was an outspoken liberal with a staunch belief in justice and civil rights for
all citizens.
Hughes's work has had a huge influence on American poetry; many famous poets have
written poems based on his work. Hughes rose to fame during the Harlem Renaissance.
Based on the name given to it by writers who were part of it, the Harlem Renaissance was a
period of intellectual and social rebirth in Harlem, New York City. Hughes's poems were
part of this renaissance; they helped define the time and place better than any other art
had done. Hughes's work helped define the Harlem Renaissance through its works of
literature, painting, jazz and dance, and architecture.
As well as influencing other authors, Hughes supported other African American artists.
Other famous writers like Ralph Ellison adopted Hughes as an inspiration. Both men wrote
about the mistreatment of African Americans during the Jim Crow era. Their works
highlighted the struggle African Americans faced during this time and inspired others to
speak out against discrimination. By highlighting these injustices, Hughes showed others
that they should stand against bigotry no matter where they lived in the country. By
highlighting racial inequality, he helped elevate the status of all African Americans through
his writing.
Hughes was also a well-known civil rights activist. He protested against racial segregation
in the South by joining the Gomery bus boycott in Alabama in 1956. The protest started
after a discriminatory bus company canceled its black pass-holders passes so they could
only use white pass-holders passes. The protest was successful- it led to an end to bus
segregation in Alabama and neighboring states within months. In addition, Hughes joined
the lunch counter sit-ins during the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. He did so by sitting at
segregated lunch counters himself so others could do so legally without risking legal
consequences for doing so.
century. His work helped define the Harlem Renaissance through his poems, which defined
it alongside other African American authors such as Ralph Ellison and Zora Neale Hurston.
Hughes was also an active participant in the civil rights movement by joining protests
against racial segregation in the South during the 1950s and 1960s Civil Rights Movement.
