The Language Lane

Once I was at a composition conference headquartered in downtown Nashville. Some colleagues and I, having never seen Fisk University, decided to make the trip. During our trip, we ran across a sports shop near campus that showcased Negro League memorabilia. When I stepped inside and saw a photo of Satchel Paige, I exclaimed firmly and confidently, “That’s the best pitcher right there.” I was an expert among my companions. An elderly man chuckled and replied, as if I had addre

Never been all that easy to get Black doctoral students through English departments. They know it and I know it. Research not needed to verify. I imagine that’s why my office remained a hub of activity for about fifteen years. It became known as the Barbershop. I’m not going to use the cliché safe space because feelings could get hurt up in the shop. And we definitely were not always on task. But the collective commitment was to keep it poppin, that is, generate projects we h