Calvin Coolidge Hernton (April 28, 1932 — September 30, 2001) was an American sociologist, poet and author, particularly renowned for his 1965 study ''Sex and Racism in America'', which has been described as "a frank look at the role sexual tensions played in the American racial divide, and it helped set the tone for much African-American social criticism over the following decade."

Biography

Hernton was born in

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

, Tennessee, United States, on April 28, 1932. He studied at Talladega College in Alabama, where he received a B.A. in sociology (1954), and at

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

, where he earned a master's degree. In the mid-1950s, he worked as a social worker in New York City. He also gave poetry readings there and co-founded the magazine ''Umbra'', which published a collective of Black writers including

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

Ishmael Reed Ishmael Scott Reed (born February 22, 1938) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, composer, playwright, editor and publisher known for his satirical works challenging American political culture. Perhaps his best-known work is '' M ...

and Alice Walker. Hernton subsequently went to London and worked with the

Institute of Phenomenological Studies Ronald David Laing (7 October 1927 – 23 August 1989), usually cited as R. D. Laing, was a Scottish psychiatrist who wrote extensively on mental illnessin particular, the experience of psychosis. Laing's views on the causes and treatment ...

(1965–69), studying under R. D. Laing. Margalit Fox
"Calvin Hernton, 69, Scholar Of American Race Relations"
''New York Times'', October 10, 2001. Hernton was active alongside

Obi Egbuna Obi Benue Egbuna (18 July 1938 – 18 January 2014) was a Nigerian-born novelist, playwright and political activist known for leading the Universal Coloured People's Association (UCPA) and being a member of the British Black Panther Moveme ...

, C. L. R. James and others in the Antiuniversity of London. He returned to the US in 1970, and went to

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

as a writer in residence and two years later joined the Black Studies department. He was a Professor of African-American Studies there until his retirement in 1999."Oberlin College Professor Calvin Hernton to be Honored November 6-8"
, press release, October 27, 1998. Oberlin Online. Hernton was the author of nine books that reflect his writings as a poet, novelist, essayist, playwright, and social scientist, including the bestselling ''Sex and Racism In America'' (1965), which was translated into several languages, and the ground-breaking ''The Sexual Mountain and Black Women Writers: Adventures in Sex, Literature, and Real Life'' (1987). His poems were also published in '' Essence'', ''

Evergreen Review ''The Evergreen Review'' is a U.S.-based literary magazine. Its publisher is John Oakes and its editor-in-chief is Dale Peck. The ''Evergreen Review'' was founded by Barney Rosset, publisher of Grove Press. It existed in print from 1957 until 19 ...

'' and ''

Black Scholar ''The Black Scholar'' (''TBS''), the third-oldest journal of Black culture and political thought in the United States, was founded in 1969 near San Francisco, California, by Robert Chrisman, Nathan Hare, and Allan Ross. It is arguably the most inf ...

'', among other places, and on various recordings and were performed in plays on Broadway and on tour. In 2011 the

Chelsea Art Museum The Chelsea Art Museum (CAM) was a contemporary art museum located at 556 22nd Street (Manhattan), West 22nd Street on the corner of Eleventh Avenue (Manhattan), Eleventh Avenue in the Chelsea (Manhattan), Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New Y ...

recreated a performance of ''Black Zero'', a happening staged by Aldo Tambellini at Group Center on several occasions between 1963 and 1965. Sound recordings of Hernton reciting his poetry were accompanied by improvised performances by Ben Morea and Henry Grimes."Back In The New York Groove!"
, October 26, 2011; accessed December 10, 2011. Hernton died in Oberlin, Ohio, at the age of 69.

Bibliography

Fiction * ''Scarecrow'' (novel; 1974) Non-Fiction * ''Sex and Racism in America'' (Doubleday, 1965) * ''White Papers for White Americans'' (Doubleday, 1966) * ''Coming Together: Black Power, White Hatred, and Sexual Hang-ups'' (Doubleday, 1971) * (with

Joseph Berke Joseph H. Berke, M.D., (January 17, 1939 – January 11, 2021) was an American–born psychotherapist, author and lecturer. He studied at Columbia College of Columbia University and graduated from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New ...

) ''The Cannabis Experience: An Interpretative Study of the Effects of Marijuana and Hashish'' (London: Peter Owen, 1974) * ''The Sexual Mountain and Black Women Writers: Adventures in Sex, Literature, and Real Life'' (1987) Poetry * ''The Coming of Chronos to the House of Nightsong: An Epical Narrative of the South'' (Interim Books, 1964) * ''Medicine Man: Collected Poems'' (Reed Cannon & Johnson Publishing, 1976) * ''The Red Crab Gang and Black River Poems'' (Ishmael Reed Publishing Company, 1999) *''Selected Poems'' (Wesleyan University Press, forthcoming, 2022) Plays * ''Glad to Be Dead'' (1958) * ''Flame'' (1958) * ''The Place'' (1972) *(These plays remain unpublished) Contributions to Anthologies * (Poetry)

Rosey E. Pool Rosey E. Pool (born Rosa Eva Pool; 7 May 1905 – 29 September 1971) was a Dutch poet and anthologist of African-American poetry. Biography Early years Rosey Pool was born and raised in a secular Jewish family in Amsterdam. In the 1920s sh ...

, ed., ''Beyond the Blues: New Poems by American Negroes'' (Hand & Flower Press, 1962) * (Poetry and essay)

LeRoi Jones Amiri Baraka (born Everett Leroy Jones; October 7, 1934 – January 9, 2014), previously known as LeRoi Jones and Imamu Amear Baraka, was an American writer of poetry, drama, fiction, essays and music criticism. He was the author of numerous bo ...

and

Larry Neal Larry Neal or Lawrence Neal (September 5, 1937 – January 6, 1981) was a scholar of African-American theatre. He is well known for his contributions to the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. He was a major influence in pushing for black ...

, eds, ''Black Fire: An Anthology of Afro-American Writing'' (Morrow, 1969)

References

External links

* *Margalit Fox
"Calvin Hernton, 69, Scholar Of American Race Relations" (obituary)
''The New York Times'', October 10, 2001.
"Medicine Man"
by Calvin Hernton, African American Registry
FBI file on Calvin Hernton
at the Internet Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:Hernton, Calvin C. 1932 births 2001 deaths 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American poets African-American social scientists African-American novelists American male novelists American sociologists Fisk University alumni Oberlin College faculty People from Chattanooga, Tennessee Talladega College alumni American male poets Academics from Tennessee 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Ohio Novelists from Tennessee 20th-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers African-American poets 20th-century African-American writers African-American male writers

Biography

Bibliography

References

Further reading

External links