( by JD Jung)
“As long as there is poetry, there will be an unknown; as long as there is an unknown there will be poetry. The function of the independent press (besides being essentially dissident) is still to discover, to find the new voices and give voice to them.”––Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Writer, poet, publisher, painter and social, political and free speech activist Lawrence Ferlinghetti passed away on February 22 at the young age of 101.
Ferlinghetti also co-founded my favorite bookstore, San Francisco’s City Lights Booksellers in 1953. In addition to carrying a wide selection of genres, City Lights gives a voice to the marginalized in our society. It also carries an impressive selection of translated world literature.
Ferlinghetti published many of the “Beat” poets such as Allen Ginsberg’s Howl and Other Poems in the City Lights Pocket Poets series. In fact, he was arrested in 1957 on obscenity charges for publishing Howl. You can learn more about the Howl Obscenity Trial here.
From City Lights’ website: “We intend to build on Ferlinghetti’s vision and honor his memory by sustaining City Lights into the future as a center for open intellectual inquiry and commitment to literary culture and progressive politics. Though we mourn his passing, we celebrate his many contributions and give thanks for all the years we were able to work by his side.”
You can learn more about this literary icon here.
BTW check out our post on Trump’s Trojan Horse.
