Cultural society fosters knowledge of poet Langston Hughes at local event

Feb. 1—Community members promoting awareness of Joplin-born Harlem Renaissance writer Langston Hughes say their efforts are taking root.

About 60 members of the Langston Hughes Cultural Society and local residents gathered Thursday at the Minnie Hackney Community Service Center to celebrate the birthday of the multifaceted Hughes, known as the "Poet Laureate of Harlem."

The group was formed about four years ago to honor Hughes, who became one of the leading artists of the Harlem Renaissance, an African American literary movement of the 1920s and 1930s. He was born in Joplin in 1901, and there had not been any organizations formed here to recognize him and provide information about him.

A bookworm in his youth who began writing poetry in grade school, Hughes as an adult was credited with creating jazz poetry inspired by the rhythms of jazz music. He also became a strong voice in his work for the unequal status and treatment of Blacks. He also served as a war correspondent covering Black soldiers, among other types of writing.

Melissa Swindell, president of the society, said of the event, "I am very happy and very, very pleased. I didn't expect this many people to turn out, but I'm glad that they did. I appreciate it, and I can just see what is going to come. This is a big, big step, and we're really happy. We've done a lot of work. There's still a lot more to do, but yes, this is a big deal."

Two of the founding board members of the society, Linda Teeter and Nanda Nunnelly, said they can see the potential to bring about the community recognition Hughes deserves as a result of Thursday's event.

"We have all generations here and people who came down from Kansas City who are part of our board," Teeter said, noting the diversity of the audience.

During the birthday ceremony, two children read Hughes' poetry, including the famous 1926 poem on diversity, "I, Too," known for the phrase "I, too, am America." That composition is engraved on the wall of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.

Nunnelly brought a performer to the microphone at the program, Sade Shine of Branson. She sang a selection from "The Color Purple" musical.

Shine stars in the "Queens of Soul" show in Branson and produces an annual public festival celebrating freedom each year in Springfield on Juneteenth.

Nunnelly said of the event, "I think it was a huge success" that moved Hughes supporters closer to their goals. "I think at every one of these events if we can spread just a little bit more knowledge about Langston, that's what it's all about."

Joplin's mayor pro tem, Keenan Cortez, capped off the celebration by presenting a city proclamation that establishes Langston Hughes Day in the city every Feb. 1.

Hughes' family left Joplin in 1903 when he was a baby and relocated to Lawrence, Kansas, where he spent his early years with his grandmother, Mary Patterson Langston.

On Oct. 11, 1958, Hughes returned to Joplin, where he met with members of the local Black community at what then was the Negro Service Center, now the Minnie Hackney Community Service Center.

He would later write in a column that the visit had given him a feeling of kinship with his birth town.