James Baldwin

James Arthur Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – December 1, 1987) was a well-known African American writer and controversial public figure and orator during the civil rights movement in the United States. He received praise for his writings, books, plays, and poems, among other works. Go Tell It on the Mountain, his debut novel was launched in 1953; This became his biggest work, as years after it was published, Time magazine listed it among the top 100 English-language books produced between 1923 and 2005.

In the midst of complex social and psychological circumstances, Baldwin fictionalizes essential personal issues and questions. Themes of sexuality, race, class, and masculinity intertwine to create complex storylines that reflect some of the most significant political movements for social change in mid-twentieth-century America, such as the gay liberation movement and the civil rights movement. Gay and bisexual males commonly play significant roles in Baldwin's literature, and his characters are typical, though not always, African Americans. In their pursuit of self-acceptance and social acceptability, these characters frequently encounter both internal and external challenges. About love and sexuality, he famously said: "Love... is the only human possibility", and "Love is where you find it." "If you lie about that, you lie about everything."

Since his passing, his legacy has persisted, and his work has been successfully translated for the big screen. In 2018, Barry Jenkins, who also directed and produced the Academy Award-winning film If Beale Street Could Talk, adapted one of his books.