Results tagged “langstonhughes”

Langston Hughes came to New York to study at Columbia in 1921, but after a year he left due to racial prejudice at the institution. He aimed his focus towards Harlem, becoming a large influence on the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, even when he was physically worlds away.

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a shooting at Tremont and University Aves. in the Bronx, a person pinned by a bus on the upper level of the Queensboro Bridge, and a car overparked into a storefront at 258th St. and Riverdale Ave. in the Bronx.
• The Queens mother of a kidnapped soldier in Iraq hopes that her son is still alive, even though her son's ID and other effects were found in an al Qaeda safehouse.
• Thanks to the "Mad Hatter," NJ is on pace to set a record for bank robberies in 2007.
• New York firefighters have mixed opinions about Giuliani's Presidential aspirations and invocations of 9/11.
• Someone was required to be rescued after falling into a sewer in Brooklyn (fuller post tomorrow).
• Langston Hughes' former 127th St. Harlem brownstone is being converted to a performance space.
• Brooklyn North criminal violence is up 64% over the last two years. A John Jay College criminal expert and neighborhood resident pins the blame on teenagers.
• A community group wants to respond to difficulties encountered with (more darn) kids by privatizing Manhattan Beach, which is maintained by the Parks Dept. Gowanus Lounge has all the details of heavy restrictions proposed for a popular seaside destination for city dwellers that can't afford shares in the Hamptons.

Last night Gothamist attended the 4th annual benefit for the Academy of American Poets at Alice Tully Hall and was reminded that reciting poetry aloud is really a wonderful thing. As the kick-off to National Poetry Month in April, a panel of celebrity readers including William Wegman, Mike Wallace, Dianne Weist, Alan Alda and Meryl Streep read a few examples each from a variety of American poets. Great poets like William Carlos Williams, Sylvia Plath, Robert Frost, Langston Hughes and Kenneth Koch were represented in the mix, with a highlight for the night coming from musician Wynton Marsalis's lyrical reading of Sterling A. Brown's "Ma Rainey -- a poem he punctuated by breaking into song a cappella during one portion.

The Daily News reports that the female student's dorm room door was unlocked because her roommate lost the key. Columbia is cooperating with the investigation, stating, "Columbia University is committed to ensuring the safety of its students and requires that students adhere to standards of appropriate sexual and other conduct on campus. Our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our students." Columbia does have a rape crisi and anti-violence support center for its students.