This festival is a a nonprofit that is funded exclusively through donations. One of the ways to help us through this kind of programming is through the friends of fall for the book. To learn more please visit that website again. We ask that you please remember to silence your cell phone and thank you in advance of filling out a survey which will help fall for the book improve the festival in the future. Thank you to our main sponsor, african and africanamerican studies. So we are pleased to have fear Marylouise Patterson and Jeffrey Stewart, two writers who examine key figures of the harlem renaissance, Langston Hughes and alan locke, respectively. In letters from langston dr. Patterson explores relationship that her family but particularly her mother had with Langston Hughes, and in the new negro the life of alain locke, Jeffrey Stewart chronicles the education and career of the central figure in the harlem renaissance. Its important Say Something about the subjects that they write about. They celebrate, vote up authorities that other celebrate geniuses in a society said you did not belong. And their great gift to many through the art is to say this is how we do belong. So without further ado Marylouise Patterson, thank you here. [applause] thank you, everyone. Thank you, george mason university. Thank you, professor benedict carton. Thank you for inviting me. I couldnt agree that this is, these two people, Langston Hughes and alan locke, whatever important people in American History. Certainly in american literacy. I would like to introduce you to my parents who, and to the parents of my coauthor a new Langston Hughes for over 40 years and who corresponded with him for over 40 years, and this is an introduction for you to houthis to sets of parents, before people actually were. My parents, william and louise patterson, and my coauthor evelyn crawford, her parents. Their uniqueness perhaps was that they were africanamerican communists. They were very Close Friends of langston, as i said, for most of their lives. And for the first half of the 20th century. So id like to show you this 17 minute video so that you would get some sense of who they were. The letters, the correspondence is in a book that we coedited. Its entitled letters from langston from the harlem renaissance to the red scare and beyond. I also want to say that the voice youre going here is the voice of paul robeson, and our pictures in there that dont have names, labels on them, but if you want to know who the people are in the pictures, you can ask me afterwards. [inaudible] we actually new Langston Hughes from the very beginnings of our lives. On the occasion of our birth, he wrote to each of us to welcome us into the world. He did this because of his close ties to our two sets of parents, Louise Thompson and william paterson, and evelyn and Matt Crawford. When you learn of my arrival he wrote me a card from paris. It said, to nady lou from lang. Ps, glad youre here. And on a visit to california the following year, he saw me take my first steps. When i came along a few years later he sent me this handwritten first draft of this poem. I found the soldiers cat lying in the snow. It has a red star on it. Whose is it . Do you know . He also enclosed a letter. Dear marylouise, this is for your first collection of original manuscripts. By the time youre old enough to read my world will be over and by the time your big girl i hope a red star would be shining everywhere and that you will be here a long time to enjoy all of its blessings. So be a nice baby and take your card liver oil and grow coal of strong. With love from langston. The story of the friendship between Langston Hughes, the crawfords and the pattersons begin with my mother Louise Thompson who would later become Louise Thompson patterson here louise with the first among our four parents to have a close personal friendship with langston and it was she who brought her childhood friends Matt Crawford and evelyn grace crawford into his life. Louise thompson and my mother evelyn grace hit him in the genes in a game best friends in the early 1920s when louise was a student at the university of california and my mother worked as the sonographer in San Francisco. My father had migrated with his family to california from alabama when he was a boy and attended high school with louise in oakland. In the fall of 1927, louise was a young teacher at Hanson Institute in virginia. She and langston met on the hampton campus while he was there for speaking engagement. Louise left hampton soon after his appearance there and moved to harlem. She had witnessed separate student strike against the patronizingly racist white administration, and felt she could no longer be part of the school. Once in harlem she became a a t of the circle of artists and intellectuals whose most prominent figure was Langston Hughes. Earlier that year my mother went to new york on vacation. During that brief trip she met my father, San Francisco born William Lorenzo patterson, known as pat she was friend. Pat and langston had been earlier to the mutual friend paul robeson during the heyday. Pat had settled in new york in 1920 and was well known in the committee as one of heartlands is prominent attorneys and dedicated political activists. He would later become a National Leader of the american communist party. In the summer of 1928 nettie great vacation in harlem with a friend louise who introduced her to Langston Hughes and his circle of friends, including artist erin douglas and his wife. Langston and nettie hit it off immediately. After a few weeks of the fast harlem life, she would return home to the bay area and her sweetheart, Matt Crawford, whom she married the following year. Louise in her early days in new york worked for a time as secretary to langston and novelist of folklore. She was hired by the wealthy white patron, mrs. Charlotte mason if the relationship with mrs. Mason came to a dramatic halt when the park avenue matron saw that she could no longer control langston or louise. She abruptly dismissed and humiliated them both. One night langston comes to my house. He had been down at [inaudible] she was a very, very wealthy woman who had been a patron of the arts all of her life. Her particular interest were in what she called primitive people. She did not wanting to write poems or audios of social protests. She wanted him to remain primitive as she said. She had to control you. When she couldnt control you should be out of her life. He was heartbroken and it been grateful to have somebody from time he didnt have to worry about [inaudible] he was going to college. He had me to work for him. She made it very hard for langston for a long time. In march of 1932 langston was on a speaking tour when you wrote Matt Crawford for the first time from oklahoma. Dear mr. Crawford, thank you for your letter. Id be happy to appear under the auspices you mentioned in oakland and berkeley. I shall should be in californin april. I hope we shall meet. Tell nettie im anxious to see her. Sincerely, Langston Hughes. By may of that year my father and langston had become fast friends. Later that month langston sent matt a telegram about an exciting prospect, a trip to moscow that louise had been organizing from new york. Dear matt, here is a copy of your wire from louise. Moscow wired all players must arrive moscow by july 1. There he misses her you new york ready to sail by june 15. Have a good group. Consult map. Wire immediately. Louise. So if you are going you have to get a passport at once. Airmail louise your decision. I hope you can go, langston. The group of young black professionals, intellectuals anarchists had been invited to moscow to make a film entitled black and white about the state of Race Relations in the United States. Matt and langston were roommates during their stay in the soviet union. They are in heavy atmosphere of the new socialism, they forged their friendship and commitment to radical political struggle. William paterson had gone to the soviet union earlier. By 1920 he was seriously studying radical political philosophy and travel to moscow to continue to study socialism. I went to make a movie picture. The picture was about the Race Relations in the United States and the labor struggles here. We got there and we found they had no idea what black folks were like in this country. Langston tried to work on the script. I said, well, i dont believe we can make a picture from this. Anybody would believe anywhere else in the world. Eventually the film was canceled. We left langston. I was able to travel all over the soviet union, and i particularly wanted to see the asiatic portion because there are colored people like myself, so wanted to go and see how they lived. Matt, louise and langston were profoundly affected and uplifted by the trip into soviet central asia. On the return to the states they would both become active in the fight to free the ninth scottsboro boys of alabama. At this time that also join the communist party, convinced that the only hope for black americans was a fundamental change in an oppressive political, economic, and socil order. Langston remained in the soviet union until the spring of 1933. Back in the states langston throws itself into the scottsboro boys case, investment was building to free young men. Langston wrote and spoke on their behalf and went to visit them at the scottsboro alabama prison. Later in the the 1930s he would travel as a journalist for the baltimore afroamericans to cover the spanish civil war. Louise had also going to spain to help with relief work. Spain at that time was a focal point for anyone who had any social conscience, especially writers who came from all over the world. [inaudible] when langston came back in spain in 1938, he said [inaudible] together 1938, langston the mother wanted the heart and 60s you to get successful production that you was his play, dont you want to be free. Throughout the 1930s and 40s, langston is been a great of time in carmel california at the home of his wealthy friend. He would often come up to berkeley to go to the barbershop and visit with my family. He was playful and lighthearted some of the time but it also confide in my parents and saw a sense of family among us. He also would seek their advice on serious personal and political matters. He called this meeting clarification. In 1941 he was attacked by the evangelist for an early poem he written called goodbye, christ took occasion he was broke borrowed small amounts of money, paying them back probably when he received his next check from a speaking engagement or a publishing project. In the early 1950s langston was called to testify about his political views before the infamous senator mccarthy. Shortly after this ordeal in washington, d. C. , he sent our parents a summary of his testimony with a touching note explaining that come with the exception of paul robison, yet not been forced to name names. In june of 1957 langston invited my parents in the to see his play, simply heavenly, on broadway. My father was very disturbed by the play and vote langston in part, dear langston, louise, we saw simply heavenly tuesday night. Thanks for the tickets, and may i hear now very belatedly, thank you for sending us, i i wonderf the one and several other books. It is difficult to define my reaction to simply heavenly. I cannot say that i liked it. It did not appeal to me. Simply heavenly does not say what greatly needs to be set at this moment, at least not to me. So simple is the eternally recurring primitive negro, so childishly simple and so simply childish. That time and place called for something else. Then negro can today play a moral role in american life. Thanks again. One must do more than get ones fingers into progressive life. Sincerely, pat. Langston answered the next day. In spite of the harsh criticism, he replied without anger or surprise. Dear pat, i was certainly sorry i was at the theater tonight you all came come as a would of loved to say hello to you. Your letter is greatly appreciated, and your views valid in the number of ways. I am sure when it comes to place it is a a miracle to end up wih anything at all one wishes left in the play. After 20third of the people have had a hand in the creation, from the producers and directors to actress. So all i can say is i did the best i could under the circumstance. That it gets your serious consideration and you write me thoughtful letter is only something to be grateful for. Best ever, and hope to see you and the family soon as work pressures let up. Sincerely, langston. This correspondence couldve caused a break in the friendship between these two men, but instead their bonds of solidarity endured frank criticism and adamantly held opinions. In the 1950s and 60s, langston visit were less frequent but he kept up with what were doing and thinking. Marylouise was studying in moscow and i was in graduate school in new york when news of her marriage to a fellow student from university was announced. I called langston tell but the news and you so happy to receive her wedding picture. In the summer of 1966 on his way back to the States Senate cow, langston pastdue pairs i was living. Senegal the four of us went out to dinner at a low restaurant. Langston tease me that evening, telling me i had no business speaking french better than he did. It was a joyous reunion, and after saying our goodbyes on a Street Corner facing notre dame cathedral, we watched dear langston watch up boulevard in search of the next mornings New York Herald tribune. It was the last time i would see him, for the following year he was gone. So langston, as we knew him, was someone who, along with our parents, dedicate his life to the cause of justice for black americans and other oppressed people around the world. He was our uncle and our friend. And the writings and the books he suggested we read helped us to understand the world and our rightful place in it. I, too, seeing america. I am the darker brother. I laugh and eat well and grow strong. Tomorrow i will be at the table when company comes. Nobody will dare say to me, eat in the kitchen then. Besides, they will see how beautiful we are and be ashamed. I, two, an american. [applause] so now hes met my parents, william and the wiese patterson, my parents, evelyn and Matt Crawford, and had a glimpse of their 40 plus your friendship with langston. If you enjoyed the video, youll love our book. Letters from langston from th e red scare and beyond coauthored by me and Evelyn Louise crawford, better known as nettie. My mother louise was a last survivor of the aforementioned quintet, and when she departed in 1999, nettie and i were left with a trove of letters from langston, but we didnt know it are the langston had kept any of the letters our parents must have written him. So in 2002 we went to the library at Yale University to the James Weldon Johnson collection where langston said papers reside to see what, if anything, langston had kept. Lo and behold he kept just about everything, including letters we had written to him that we long ago forgotten about. We sat there in silence overwhelmed i what we found and slowly realized that this for your correspondence was a window into some of the most important sociopolitical events of the 20th century. Many of which were littleknown yet nonetheless real historical significance. Additionally, this correspondence displayed black radical intellectual brilliance and activism. They are choosing to make a commitment to progressive struggle that they knew would leave them all financially strapped. Lastly, it eliminated a profound, a real friendship. We realized we had to share this discovery. I couldnt just remain our family treasure. We had to write a book. We had to write it for uncle langston, for we knew that one who never stop, because we knew that he had never stop believing that workers deserve to enjoy the fruits of their labor, or in biblical terms, that the meek deserve to inherit the earth they killed. He never stipulated in the imperative to struggle for true democracy in america, the america that never was but could be, as he so poignantly wrote in his poem, let america be america again. Id like to make three points about langston from the Vantage Point of being one of his nieces. The first, there was the Langston Hughes politically independent outside of june at the National Negro congress, the only groups he joined that i recall where writers groups. Most of those were politically progressive. He was also artistically independent, holding a normal nine to five job only twice in his right life and then only for a few months. One was at Atlanta University and other was at the lab school in chicago. Despite the fact he was a famous screenwriter, playwright, poet heard on the radio and requested speaker for many events, he was penniless most of his writing life. Borrowing from friends are thankful for the largest of his patrons and the few awards they came his way. He survived mostly from his speaking engagements which forced him to be on the road for weeks to months at a time, often in a dilapidated car, facing the grueling schedule that pushed him to a newtown every one to two days. Entering the human nation of jim crow accommodations, unless he landed somewhere here friends, or else