James Baldwin centenary: His life and legacy

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James Baldwin was one of America’s most influential thinkers and writers. Born in 1924 in Harlem, New York, his novels, essays and speeches articulated the racial oppression facing African Americans. In works like Notes on a Native Son and The Fire Next Time, Baldwin expressed how colour is not a human or personal reality, but a political one. In Giovanni’s Room, a frank portrayal of a gay relationship, he draws on his own life as a gay man. In the wake of Black Lives Matter, the US continues to grapple with tension and division, with race and identity still huge cultural and social issues. In this edition of The Cultural Frontline Cianna Greaves looks at how Baldwin’s life and works still matter and inspire artists today. We journey to France where Baldwin moved in 1948 to escape the violence and enforced racial segregation of the Jim Crow laws in his native country. To mark the centenary of his birth, La Maison Baldwin in Paris held a week long celebration of his life, bringing together black artists who have been impacted by Baldwin and whose work continues his legacy. We hear from Detroit based artist Sabrina Nelson, whose exhibition Frontline Prophet: James Baldwin has travelled across the US; curator Ashara Ekundayo; poet and founder The Baldwin Institute Achille Tekiang; writer and Executive Director of La Maison Baldwin, Tara Phillips; as well as French journalist, filmmaker and graphic novelist Rokhaya Diallo. Producer: Andrea Kidd This episode contains some outdated racial language that could cause offence. (Photo: James Baldwin. Credit: Peter Turnley)