The Nyack Library is the winner of the 2020 Joseph F. Shubert Award
​for the Black American Culture & Art Series: The Legacy of Toni Morrison

The Joseph F. Shubert Library Excellence Award

Event Photos

​The BACA Series is made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by ArtsWestchester.

2020-2021 Black American Culture & Art Series: Nyack Foundations: Exploring the Back Family

Author BIBLIOGRAPHY

Author Filmography

Author Chronology

Born Chloe Anthony Wofford, in 1931 in Lorain (Ohio), the second of four children in a black working-class family. Displayed an early interest in literature. Studied humanities at Howard and Cornell Universities, followed by an academic career at Texas Southern University, Howard University, Yale, and since 1989, a chair at Princeton University. She also worked as an editor for Random House, a critic, and gave numerous public lectures, specializing in African-American literature. She made her debut as a novelist in 1970, and soon gained the attention of both critics and a wider audience for her epic power, unerring ear for dialogue, and her poetically-charged and richly-expressive depictions of Black America. She was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and was awarded a number of literary distinctions, among them the Pulitzer Prize in 1988.
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From Nobel Lectures, Literature 1991-1995, Editor Sture Allén, World Scientific Publishing Co., Singapore, 1997

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     Ode to Toni Morrison"
By Ernest Gregg

Baptized in the Song of Solomon
Saved by the
Grace of Sula
and
Ordained under their eyes
are watching
God!

Ernest Gregg

lOCAL AUTHOR

Why did you write this poem?
The poem was written before Toni Morison died. I had planned to send it to her after it was conceived. Unfortunately she passed before I could do so.

Toni Morrison’s works have made an indelible impression on me. Her characters were unique but familiar. She captured a dimension of black womanhood seldom seen or celebrated.

My poem is an expression of my gratitude for helping me develop a voice.

​I don't write poetry. Poetry writes me!

About the author
Ernest Gregg is a retired principal of the Edward Williams Elementary School in Mount Vernon, NY. The State Board of Education recognized the school as one of New York's 795 "high-performing/gap-closing schools." He is also the author of a 1972 children's book, And the Sun God Said That's Hip, which was published by Harper & Row and made Mr. Gregg one of the first black children's authors to be published by a major publisher. Ebony and several other magazines have published Mr. Gregg's work. His poem Harlem was published in the Journal of Black Poetry. Ernest Gregg also holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and two master's degrees from Bank Street College. 

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CALENDAR of events

The Black American Culture & Art Series: The Legacy of Toni Morrison project grew from a small plan to explore Black American social culture in honor of Black History Month 2020. With the August 2019 death of Nyack Library district resident and Nobel Laureate, Toni Morrison, plans expanded to include a yearlong celebration using various program formats to attract and engage participants of all ages with the ultimate goal of highlighting the important and enduring role Dr. Morrison played in creating a literary platform to encounter the Black Experience in American life. 

Oral Histories

NaNoWriMo Write In In Honor of Toni Morrison 1st Place Winner - John Quilty

NaNoWriMo 2nd Place Winner - Italia Young

Nyack Sketch Log: Toni Morrison’s Full Measure

Nyack Sketch Log: Manufactured Minstrel Mascots

African American Memorabilia as Cultural Symbols -- Resources

Partners:
Historical Society of the Nyacks
Rivertown Film
Village of Nyack
Toni Morrison Society
River River Writers Circle
​Nyack Sketch Log
​Valley Cottage Library - Book & Pub Book Club

Toni Morrison and Jonathan Demme at the Nyack Library