The 2026 Mackinac Policy Conference theme was “A Quest for Common Ground.” I found the discussions fascinating and interesting on the various approaches to achieve a common ground among business, education, and government. After listening to these sessions, I then researched and found two books on the subject with a very different approach.
Today’s post feature two books on historical African American preachers.
Happy birthday Dominique Christina! Born May 22, Dominique Christina s a writer, performer and social activist. She is a champion at the National Poetry Series and Women of the World Poetry Slam. Christina’s 4th book Anarcha Speaks won the National Poetry Series in 2017. Here are her notable works:
Belated birthday wishes Kadir Nelson! Born May 15, Kadir Nelson is an award winning author, illustrator, and artist. His work has appeared on several New Yorker covers. He is the 2026 Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award for his body of artwork. Here are some of his notable works:
Belated heavenly birthday wishes Manning Marable! Born May 13, 1950, Manning Marable was an African American professor of public affairs, history and African-American Studies at Columbia University. He founded and directed the Institute for Research in African-American Studies. He passed away in 2011.
His most notable work is Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention (2011). He was posthumously awarded the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for History for this work.
Belated heavenly birthday Albert Murray! Born May 12, 1916, Albert Murray was an African American literary and music critic, novelist, essayist, and biographer. He passed away in 2013. His notable books are:
Belated heavenly birthday Calvin C. Hernton! Born April 28, 1932, Calvin C. Hernton was a poet, sociologist and professor. His notable works were:
I attended a booksigning at Detroit Public Library. April C. E. Langley, Associate Professor and Chair of African American studies at the University of South Carolina and Associate Professor emerita of English and Black studies at the University of Missouri–Columbia, wrote a book titled: Depoliticizing the Word Through Poetry and Preaching. She focuses on three women, Phillis Wheatley, Maria W. Stewart, and Jarena Lee, and examines their speeches, poetry, and other written works through the lens of Afrofuturism and Sankofa. I was truly fascinated by her talk: the depth of her research and how she examined these women works through so many different lenses.
Happy birthday Kalamu ya Salaam! He celebrates his 79th birthday today! Kalamu ya Salaam is a poet, author, filmmaker, and teacher from the 9th Ward of New Orleans. A well-known activist and social critic, Salaam has spoken out on a number of racial and human rights issues. Here are a few of his works:
Cheryl W. Thompson was at the Detroit Public Library talking about her book, Forgotten Souls, The Search for the Lost Tuskegee Airmen. These Airmen risked so much for America and the war. Their significance and impact should be told. Thank you Cheryl Thompson for writing their stories.
The CamaraIfe Maktaba 