On Poetry In Detroit
From the introduction to Abandon Automobile: Detroit City Poetry 2001, edited by Melba Joyce Boyd and M. L. Liebler (Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 2001), pages 23-28
“…The unique contribution of Detroit poetry to American literature is as distinct as the city’s historical contribution to the Industrial Revolution. Before Henry Ford induced thousands to work in his factories for five dollars a day, Detroit was largely regarded as a port city..."
This essay has been used with permission from Wayne State University Press. To read the rest of the essay, click on the document link below:
Student Essays on Detroit Poetry
- At the Corner of Tones and Poems by Edward Baranekby Edward Baranek
These essays were written by WSU students in ENG 5480, a literature course taught by Dr. Todd Duncan.
The first essay, by Edward Baranek, discusses the intersection of Detroit poetry and music. He offers examples of the work of John Lee Hooker,
Etheridge Knight, M.L. Liebler, the poets and jazz musicians of the Detroit Artists Workshop, etc.
The second essay, by Sarah Pokornicki, chronicles the work of U.S. Poet Laureate and Detroit native, Philip Levine, and the changing perceptions of Detroit.
More About Detroit Poets
Melba Joyce Boyd - Speaking about Detroit writers and being black in Detroit at the WSU Fall Humanities Symposium 2011
Dudley Randall - A reading of 5 of his poems and a brief biography
Detroit Poets Laureate
"We burn this city every day" -Philip Levine
Prominent poets with Detroit roots include:
Roberty Hayden was named the first African American Poet Laureate of the United States, in 1976. (At that time, it was called the Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress). He grew up in Detroit's Paradise Valley, and attended the City College of Detroit, which later became Wayne State University.
Philip Levine was the United States Poet Laureate in 2011. He grew up in Detroit, and was heavily influenced by working in its auto factories and his study of poetry at Wayne University (now WSU).
Dudley Randall became the city of Detroit's Poet Laureate in 1981. He established the Broadside Press, which played a key role in Detroit's expression of the Black Arts Movement.
Naomi Long Madgett began publishing poetry at seventeen, founded the Lotus Press, as a high school English teacher taught the first course in African American literature in Detroit Public Schools, and went on to teach at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University. She was named the City of Detroit's Poet Laureate in 2001, and is the winner of the 2012 Kresge Foundation Eminent Artist Award.
Search for Articles
Try these WSU licensed article databases. Full text articles are accessible by WSU affiliates only.
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new windowThis electronic version of the MLA International Index comprehensively covers modern languages and literature. (1963 -)
- Project Muse This link opens in a new windowA searchable database that provides access to the full text of journals published by Johns Hopkins University Press and other university presses.
"Detroit City Poets" Oral Histories
"Poem" drawing by Brenda Goodman
Melba Joyce Boyd's words in memory of Mick Vranich aptly describe the world of the Cass Corridor poets, who...
"could rock a poem
about hard knocks
in Detroit
like a siren protesting
murdered dreams"
(from Crystallizing the Moon, 2011)
The following poets have been interviewed for the "Detroit City Poets Oral History Project" by Canadian researcher and documentarian, Monika Berenyi. The CDs are available for checkout from the Undergraduate Library. Click on interviewee names to get to library catalog records with call numbers.
- Grace Lee BoggsWriter, activist, and feminist who has lived in Detroit since 1953. Founder of Detroit Summer, an intergenerational youth program.
- Melba Joyce BoydProfessor, poet, and author of thirteen books. She worked as Dudley Randall's assistant at Broadside Press.
- Aurora HarrisAfrican American Filipina poet, educator, and member of the Broadside Press Board.
- Dr. Gloria HouseProfessor of English at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, Associate Professor Emerita at Wayne State University, poet and member of the Broadside Press Board. She has also published under the name "Aneb Kgositsile".
- Chris RutherfordPresident of the Broadside Press Board, he previously taught in Detroit Public Schools, and has worked in the publishing and consulting fields.
- Albert M. WardPoet and member of the Broadside Press Board.
- William CoxHe and his former wife formed Red Hanrahan Press and ran it from their Highland Park home.
- Robin EichelePoet and writer, founding member of the Detroit Artist's Workshop, established Artists' Workshop Press
- Bill HarrisRetired Wayne State University professor, poet, playwright, and novelist, currently affiliated with the Inside/Out Literary Arts Program, and previously involved with the Detroit Artists Workshop. A 2011 Kresge Foundation Eminent Artist Award winner.
- Barton LessinRetired librarian from the Wayne State University Library System. A former director, assistant dean, and librarian in charge of the African American Literature Special Collection.
- M. L. LieblerPoet, professor at Wayne State University, musician, and literary arts activist.
- Cary LorenCo-owner of the Book Beat in Oak Park, MI, and founding member of the band Destroy All Monsters
- Naomi Long MadgettPoet, educator, publisher, and editor, who founded Lotus Press in 1972. She is a Poet Laureate of the City of Detroit, and 2012 Kresge Foundation Eminent Artist Award winner.
- Glen MannistoPoet, writer, teacher and co-founder of Detroit River Press.
- Ken MikolowskiLecturer in Creative Writing at University of Michigan's Residential College, poet and publisher, he co-founded The Alternative Press in Detroit, MI with his wife Ann Mikolowski.
- Christine MonhollenPoet and publisher of Doorjamb Press, and editor of DISPATCH Detroit: Journal of Poetry, Prose and Art.
- Frank RashidProfessor of English at Marygrove College in Detroit, MI. and founding member of the Institute of Detroit Studies. He researches and writes about poetry, and Detroit history.
- James SemarkPoet, musician and activist who was one of the founders of the Detroit Artists Workshop. He died in 2010.
- John SinclairPoet, musician, founding member of the MC5 and the Detroit Artists Workshop, anti-war activist, and founder of the White Panther Party.
- Leni SinclairRock and Roll photographer, founding member of the Detroit Artists Workshop, and activist.
- Dennis TeichmanPoet, publisher and co-founder of Detroit River Press.
- Chris TyshPoet, playwight, and English Department faculty member at Wayne State University. She was a 2010 Kresge Foundation Artist Fellow.
- George TyshPoet and co-founder of the Detroit Artists Workshop.
- Don VestOwner, with his wife Hilda Vest, of Broadside Press, from 1985-1998.
- Hilda VestOwner, with her husband Don Vest, of Broadside Press, from 1985-1998.
More Detroit Independent Poetry Presses
Independent Detroit Poetry Presses:
- Detroit Artists Workshop Press
- Lotus Press - An African American poetry press, established in 1972 by Naomi Long Madgett -- link to Lotus Press Collection (part of African American Literature Special Collection) at the Purdy-Kresge Graduate Library
- Detroit River Press
- Past Tents Press -founded in 1985 the Press supports and publishes writers who live, work or have a history of involvement in Detroit's cultural communities.
- Doorjamb Press - published Dispatch Detroit, a local poetry magazine, from 1998-2007 (available at the Undergraduate Library)
Bibliography of Detroit Literature
Bibliography of Detroit Literature: Fiction, Poetry, Drama, Creative Nonfiction - From Marygrove College in Detroit, and compiled by Frank D. Rashid (Professor of English at Marygrove),Thomas A. Klug, Jamie Babcock, Cassie Atkinson, and Laurie LePain Kopack
A comprehensive list of works by and about Detroiters.
Featured Books- Detroit Poets
A Different Image by ISBN: 0911550976Publication Date: 2004-06-01An anthology of content from Broadside Press.
Pilgrim Journey by ISBN: 0916418979Publication Date: 2006-05-01This book describes the rich and varied influences on the author's life and poetry.
Booker T. and Them by ISBN: 9780814337165Publication Date: 2012-02-15A poetic look at the life of Booker T. Washington that explores the issues of being an African American male of note at the beginning of the 20th Century.
Wide Awake in Someone Else's Dream by ISBN: 9780814333822Publication Date: 2008-03-01A new collection from Detroit poet M. L. Liebler, a unique voice in contemporary poetry.- Detroit Artists' Workshop Press: A Bibliography of Publications byPublication Date: 2009
Broadside Press
The Broadside Press, established by poet Dudley Randall, played an integral role in Detroit's manifestation of the national Black Arts Movement. It published works of African American poets, who had often struggled to find publishers for their writings. You can find works from the Broadside Press in:
- Dudley Randall Collection (part of African American Literature Special Collection at the Purdy-Kresge Graduate Library)
- African American Literature Special Collection (Purdy-Kresge Graduate Library)
At the University of Detroit-Mercy:
The Alternative Press
Alternative Press Collection Archives (available at the Purdy-Kresge Graduate Library) - The Collection includes 3 boxes of announcements, books, calendars, mailings, and ephemera.
The Poetry Foundation contains material on Ann and Ken Mikolowski's seminal publishing venture, including: