About the History of Black Writing
Poet and performance artist Gabrielle Civil reads from her book, The Déjà vu, during the HBW co-sponsored event, “The Déjà vu live.” Image credit: Laura Kingston
Connecting with African American literature and scholarship
Situated in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in the Department of English at the University of Kansas, the History of Black Writing (HBW) is an interactive research center designed to expose students, instructors, and audiences to reading literature by Black authors and its study.
HBW actively works, through a wide variety of public facing events and programs, to amplify the importance of literature. We curate exhibits, produce and support innovative scholarship, and build partnerships with educators, libraries, institutions, and donors. It is our mission, with these efforts, to build a collaborative research community where we engage in dialogue about the history of books and the future of their recovery and preservation.