The Project on the History of Black Writing presents the Mississippi Renaissance Syllabus, an electronic teaching and learning resource on Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Richard Wright, Margaret Walker, Jesmyn Ward and Mississippi literary culture in general.

Our 2017 Black Literary Suite focus on the Mississippi Renaissance placed it in conversation with other literary periods, such as the Harlem Renaissance, the Chicago Renaissance, and the Southern Renascence. We have explored why Mississippi is important to Black writing, the commonalities in form, content, and symbols found in Black Mississippian texts, and what historical, social, economic, etc., conditions have heavily influenced this writing. Through the Mississippi Renaissance Syllabus, we hope we will continue this thoughtful exploration and analysis.

We invite your contributions to the syllabus here: Call for Sources

Related publications in any genre, film, and other visual and performance arts are welcomed and encouraged. We are interested in highlighting the cultural productivity of the authors and critical responses to their work, especially as it pertains to racial, class, and gender politics, as well as how Mississippi settings and influences interact with our current political moment.