Eugene Ethelbert Miller, best known as E. Ethelbert Miller (born November 20, 1950), is an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

, teacher and literary activist, based in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

.Hayley Garrison Phillips
"Local Legend E. Ethelbert Miller Isn't Going Anywhere"
'' Washingtonian'', February 6, 2018. He is the author of several collections of poetry and two memoirs, the editor of ''

Poet Lore ''Poet Lore'' is an English-language literary magazine based in Bethesda, Maryland. Established in 1889 by Charlotte Porter and Helen Archibald Clarke, two progressive young Shakespeare scholars who believed in the evolutionary nature of literatur ...

'' magazine, and the host of the weekly

WPFW WPFW (89.3 FM) is a talk and jazz music community radio station serving the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It is owned by the Pacifica Foundation, and its studios are located on K Street Northwest. History WPFW launched at 8 p.m. ...

morning radio show ''On the Margin''.

Life and career

Miller was born in the

Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state, state of New York (state), New York. It is south of Westchester County, New York, Westchester County; north and east of the ...

. He received his B.A. from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

. He is the author of 13 books of poetry, two memoirs and is the editor of three poetry anthologies. His work has appeared in numerous publications, including ''

Beltway Poetry Quarterly ''Beltway Poetry Quarterly'' is an English-language, online literary magazine based in Washington, D.C., United States. As its name suggests, it has featured poetry from the "Beltway" region of the Washington, DC area. The publication has "showca ...

'', ''

'', and ''

Sojourners ''Sojourners'' is a progressive monthly magazine and daily online publication of the American Christian social justice organization Sojourners, which arose out of the Sojourners Community. It was first published in 1971 under the original titl ...

''. Miller was the founder and director of the Ascension Poetry Reading Series, one of the oldest literary series in the Washington area. He was director of Howard University's African-American Resource Center from 1974 for more than 40 years. Miller has taught at various schools, including

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...

Emory & Henry College Emory & Henry College (E&H or Emory) is a private liberal arts college in Emory, Virginia. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry College is ...

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

Harpeth Hall School Harpeth Hall School is a private, college-preparatory school for girls in Green Hills, Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Its beginning dates back to 1865 as a seminary for young ladies. After various mergers and name changes, the antecedent s ...

and the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...

. He was also a core faculty member of the writing seminars at

Bennington College Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont. Founded in 1932 as a women's college, it became co-educational in 1969. It claims to be the first college to include visual and performing arts as an equal partner in ...

. He worked with

Operation Homecoming Operation Homecoming was the return of 591 American prisoners of war (POWs) held by North Vietnam following the Paris Peace Accords that ended U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Operation On January 27, 1973, Henry Kissinger (then assistant ...

for the

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

(NEH).

Dupont Circle Metro - north entrance sign

He currently serves as board chairperson of the

Institute for Policy Studies The Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) is an American progressive think tank started in 1963 that is based in Washington, D.C. It was directed by John Cavanagh from 1998 to 2021. In 2021 Tope Folarin was announced as new Executive Director. ...

.E. Ethelbert Miller Finding Aid
Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, The George Washington University. He is also on the boards of

Split This Rock {{Short description, American national nonprofit organization of poets, artists, and activists Split This Rock is a national nonprofit organization of poets, artists, and activists based in Washington, D.C. The organization's stated goals are: To ...

and the

Writer's Center The Writer's Center, founded in 1976, is an independent literary center that is housed in a 12,200-square-foot (1,130 m2) facility in the arts and entertainment district of Bethesda, Maryland. The organization consists of approximately 2,500 wri ...

, and since 2002 has been co-editor of ''

'' magazine, the oldest poetry journal in the US. He is former chair of the Humanities Council of

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and has served on the boards of the AWP, the

Edmund Burke School Edmund Burke School is an independent college preparatory school in Washington, D.C. Located on Connecticut Avenue NW, two blocks from the Van Ness - UDC metro station, Burke enrolls approximately 315 students in Grades 6-12. Founded in 1968 by ...

PEN American Center PEN America (formerly PEN American Center), founded in 1922 and headquartered in New York City, is a nonprofit organization that works to defend and celebrate Freedom of speech, free expression in the United States and worldwide through the ad ...

PEN/Faulkner Foundation PEN/Faulkner Foundation (est. 1980) is an independent charitable arts foundation which supports the art of writing and encourages readers of all ages.Washington Area Lawyer for the Arts (WALA)
He hosts a weekly morning radio show on

called ''On the Margin''. In 1979,

Marion Barry Marion Shepilov Barry (born Marion Barry Jr.; March 6, 1936 – November 23, 2014) was an American politician who served as the second and fourth mayor of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991 and 1995 to 1999. A Democrat, Barry had served ...

, the Mayor of

Washington, D.C ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

., where Miller lives, proclaimed September 28, 1979, as "E. Ethelbert Miller Day." Subsequently, on May 21, 2001, an "E. Ethelbert Miller Day" was also proclaimed by the Mayor of

Jackson, Tennessee Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States ...

. Miller's papers are held at

and

The George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

Awards and honors

*1979: September 28 proclaimed as "E. Ethelbert Miller Day" by the

Mayor of Washington, D.C. The mayor of the District of Columbia is the head of the executive branch of the government of the District of Columbia, in the United States. The mayor has the duty to enforce district laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed ...

*1982: Mayor's Art Award for Literature *1988: Received the Public Humanities Award from the D.C. Humanities Council"Biography"
, E. Ethelbert Miller website. *1993: Columbia Merit Award *1994: Made an Honorary Citizen of the city of

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

on July 17 by the

Mayor of Baltimore The mayor of Baltimore is the head of the executive branch of the government of the City of Baltimore, Maryland. The Mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills, ordinances, or resolutions passed by the ...

*1994:

PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Award The PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award is for U.S. multicultural writers, to "promote works of excellence by writers of all cultural and racial backgrounds and to educate both the public and the media as to the nature of multicultural work. ...

(for ''In Search of Color Everywhere'') *1995:

O. B. Hardison, Jr. Poetry Prize The O.B. Hardison Jr. Poetry Prize was awarded by the Folger Shakespeare Library to honor a U.S. poet whose art and teaching demonstrated great imagination and daring.

*1996: Honorary doctorate of literature awarded on May 18 by Emory & Henry College *1997: Stephen Henderson Poetry Award from the African American Literature and Culture Society *2001: May 21 declared as "E. Ethelbert Miller Day" by the Mayor of Jackson, Tennessee *2003: ''Fathering Words'' selected by DC WE READ for the one book, one city program sponsored by the D.C. Public Libraries *2003: Honored by First Lady

Laura Bush Laura Lane Welch Bush (''née'' Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American teacher, librarian, memoirist and author who was First Lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009. Bush previously served as First Lady of Texas from 1995 to 2000. ...

at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

*2004:

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

Scholarship recipient *2015: Inducted into the Washington, DC Hall of Fame *2016: AWP George Garrett Award for Outstanding Community Service in Literature and the DC Mayor's Arts Award for Distinguished Honor *2018: Inducted into Gamma Xi Phi, a fraternity for artists

Bibliography

Poetry

*"The Land of Smiles and the Land of No Smiles: A Poem." 1974. * * * * *''The Fire This Time: 1992 and Beyond Los Angeles'' (Heaven Chapbook series), White Fields Press, 1993. * * * * * * * * ''The Collected Poems of E. Ethelbert Miller'' (ed. Kirsten Porter), Willow Books, 2016. * ''If God Invented Baseball: Poems'',

Simon and Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, 2018. * ''When Your Wife Has Tommy John Surgery and Other Baseball Stories'', Simon and Schuster, 2021.

Anthologies

* * * * * *Jonathan Andersen, ed. (2008). ''Seeds of Fire: Contemporary Poetry from the Other U. S. A.'' Smokestack Books.

Memoirs

* *

References

External links

"Living the Legacy"
– official website
American Academy of Poets page
at ''

''
Audio interview
with

Grace Cavalieri Grace Cavalieri is an American poet, playwright, and radio host of the Library of Congress program '' The Poet and the Poem''. In 2019, she was appointed the tenth Poet Laureate of Maryland. Education * BS - Education: English and History, The ...

"E. Ethelbert Miller"
''reverbiage'', NPR
"Poetry by E. Ethelbert Miller"
, ''On Being''
"E. Ethelbert Miller, Featured Writer"
Writing For Peace, February 2020.
"Talking With Poets: E. Ethelbert Miller, The Poet of Baseball and of Life"
Interview with Indran Amirthanayagam. The Poetry Channel, July 12, 2021. {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, E. Ethelbert 1950 births Living people 20th-century African-American writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American poets 21st-century African-American writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American poets African-American male writers African-American poets American male poets American University faculty and staff Bennington College faculty Emory and Henry College faculty George Mason University faculty Howard University alumni PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award winners Poets from New York (state) University of Nevada, Las Vegas faculty Writers from the Bronx