Cheryl Clarke

Cheryl Clarke
Born
Cheryl Lynn Clarke

(1947-05-16) May 16, 1947 (age 77)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
EducationHoward University (BA)
Rutgers University, New Brunswick (MA, MSW, PhD)
Occupation(s)Poet, essayist, educator and community activist
Years active1940s–present
SpouseBarbara Balliet
RelativesBreena Clarke (sister)

Cheryl L. Clarke (born Washington DC, May 16, 1947)[1] is an American lesbian poet, essayist, educator and a Black feminist community activist who continues to dedicate her life to the recognition and advancement of Black and Queer people. Her scholarship focuses on African-American women's literature, black lesbian feminism, and the Black Arts Movement in the United States. For over 40 years,[2]

Cheryl Clarke worked at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey,[3] and maintains a teaching affiliation with the Graduate Faculty of the Department of Women and Gender Studies, though retired. In addition, Clarke serves on the board of the Newark Pride Alliance.[4]

She currently lives in Hobart, New York,[5] the Book Village of the Catskills, after having spent much of her life in New Jersey. With her life partner, Barbara Balliet, she is co-owner of Bleinheim Hill Books, a new, used, and rare bookstore in Hobart.[6] Actively involved in her community, Clarke along with her sister Breena Clarke, a novelist, organizes the Hobart Festival of Women Writers each September.[7]

  1. ^ "Clarke, Cheryl 1947– | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  2. ^ Allen Lee, Nia; Fernandez, Katerin (December 5, 2012). "An Interview with Cheryl Clarke" (PDF). iwl.rutgers.edu. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
  3. ^ "Cheryl Clarke". Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences, Women and Gender Studies. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  4. ^ Gumbs, Alexis Pauline (October 4, 2012). "In Praise of the Never Straight". The Feminist Wire. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  5. ^ Clarke, Breena (September 5, 2017). "Spotlight: Cheryl Clarke". Hobart Festival of Women Writers. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  6. ^ "Bleinheim Hill Books". Hobart Book Village of the Catskills. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  7. ^ "Hobart Book Village Festival of Women Writers". June 26, 2015. Retrieved December 4, 2015.