Kevin Young has authored 12 books of poetry and is the Andrew W. Mellon Director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

He is an acclaimed poet, who produces era-defining work that is moving, lyrical, and often deeply innovative, with bold juxtapositions and unexpected deconstructions of form and style. He is poetry editor of The New Yorker, where he hosts the Poetry Podcast.

From 2005 to 2016, Young was curator of Emory's Raymond Danowski Poetry Library. He also served as Emory's curator of literary collections, making tremendous contributions in growing the collections at Emory's Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library.

In this episode, Emory President Gregory L. Fenves talks with Young about his multifaceted career and the life-changing power of museums.

Related Media

• "Poet Kevin Young Transforms Memories, Grief into Beauty" (Atlanta Journal Constitution, 9/27/21)
• "Lyrical Leadership: Kevin Young, a Poet Is Now Running the African American Museum"(Washington Post, 5/20/21)
• Video: Kevin Young Poetry Reading (Emory University, 2019)

Related Resources

• Kevin Young Bio
• New Yorker Poetry Podcast
• National Museum of African American History and Culture

Ada Limón is United States Poet Laureate and the author of six books of poetry, which have earned her many prestigious awards, including the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Her poetry vividly explores the majesty of the natural world, the frailty of human memory and relationships, the destruction wrought by modern society, love, joy, humor, pain, awe, and numerous ethereal qualities with startling lyrical strength. As poet laureate, she has engaged in many projects and events to support poetic expression including a collaboration with NASA and the Library of Congress that will send a new poem 1.8 billion miles to the Jupiter system via the Europa Clipper spacecraft.

In this episode, Emory President Gregory L. Fenves talks with Limón about the mystery and majesty of poetry, her experiences as poet laureate, and the importance of human artistic expression in the age of AI.

Related links:

• "U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón reading at Emory University" (YouTube, 2/28/23)
• "'12th Night Revel' hosts guest poet laureate Ada Limón, celebrates power of poetry" (Emory Wheel, 2/21/23)
• "Jumping fences with U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón" (Emory News, 2/15/23)
• "24th Poet Laureate Ada Limón explores human connection at Emory reading" (Emory Wheel, 2/25/23)
• Ada Limon (official web site)

Carol Anderson is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies at Emory University. With scholarly precision as well as an undeniable urgency, she has authored acclaimed and bestselling books that have transformed perceptions by focusing boldly on systemic racism and its influence on voter suppression, gun rights, and much more.

As a historian, she has shed light on episodes of injustice that had been hidden in darkness; amplified voices that had long been silenced; and rewritten chapters on discrimination, disenfranchisement, and destruction that had been torn out of the historical record.

In this episode, Emory University President Gregory L. Fenves talks with Dr. Anderson about history—who writes it, how we understand it, and the ways in which it shapes our society today.

Related Articles

• "Anderson explores country's racial past, present in 'White Rage'" (5/31/16)
• "Civic engagement focus of new Mellon Foundation grant awarded to Emory College" (2/28/23)
• "Emory's Carol Anderson honored for contributions to social justice by Brandeis University" (2/3/22)
• "'I, too, am America': Carol Anderson's journey to become a documentary filmmaker" (1/3/23)
• "New book explores history of voter suppression in America" (9/24/18)

• Carol Anderson Official Web Site
• Faculty Bio: Carol Anderson