Leslie Pinckney Hill
Leslie Pinckney Hill was an influential African American poet, educator, and advocate for civil rights, known for his contributions to literature and education in the early 20th century. Born in 1880 in Pennsylvania, Hill pursued higher education at both the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University, where he became deeply engaged in the intellectual and cultural movements of his time. His work often reflected the struggles and aspirations of the African American community, and he was a prominent figure in the Harlem Renaissance, contributing to the rich tapestry of African American literature.
Famous Quotes
View all 2 quotes“Summer Magic- 1880-1960So many cares to vex the day, So many fears to haunt the night,My heart was all but weaned away From every lure of old delight.Then summer came, announced by June, With beauty, miracle and mirth.She hung aloft the rounding moon, She poured her sunshine on the earth,She drove the sap and broke the bud, She set the crimson rose afire.She stirred again my sullen blood, And waked in me a new desire.Before my cottage door she spread The softest carpet nature weaves,And deftly arched above my head A canopy of shady leaves.Her nights were dreams of jeweled skies, Her days were bowers rife with song,And many a scheme did she devise To heal the hurt and soothe the wrong.For on the hill or in the dell, Or where the brook went leaping byOr where the fields would surge and swell With golden wheat or bearded rye,I felt her heart against my own, I breathed the sweetness of her breath,Till all the cark of time had flown, And I was lord of life and death.””
“A Far CountryLeslie Pinckney Hill - 1880-1960Beyond the cities I have seen,Beyond the wrack and din,There is a wide and fair demesneWhere I have never been.Away from desert wastes of greed,Over the peaks of pride,Across the seas of mortal needIts citizens abide.And through the distance though I seeHow stern must be the fare,My feet are ever fain to beUpon the journey there.In that far land the only schoolThe dwellers all attendIs built upon the Golden Rule,And man to man is friend.No war is there nor war’s distress,But truth and love increase”
