James Baldwin

James Arthur Baldwin was an American writer and civil rights activist acclaimed for his essays, novels, plays and poems. His 1953 novel Go Tell It on the Mountain was ranked by Time magazine among the top 100 English-language novels, and his 1955 essay collection Notes of a Native Son helped establish his reputation as a voice for human equality; his 1965 debate with William Buckley is regarded as one of the most influential American debates on race. His fiction explored masculinity, sexuality, race and class through protagonists who were often, though not exclusively, African American and frequently gay or bisexual, as in his 1956 novel Giovanni's Room, and his work continues to influence artists and writers today.