Ahmos Zu-Bolton

Ahmos Zu-Bolton II
Born(1948-10-21)October 21, 1948
Poplarville, Mississippi, U.S.
DiedMarch 8, 2005(2005-03-08) (aged 56)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
EducationLouisiana State University
Occupations
Writing career
GenresPoetry, Drama

Ahmos Zu-Bolton II (October 21, 1948[1] – March 8, 2005[2]) was an activist, poet and playwright also known for his editing and publishing endeavors on behalf of African-American culture.[3]

Zu-Bolton's work was associated with the Black Arts Movement and with African-American literary activity in Louisiana, Washington, D.C., and Texas. He founded the literary magazine HooDoo and then HooDoo Festivals that gathered writers from across the South.[4]

Life

Born in Poplarville, Mississippi, Zu-Bolton grew up in DeRidder, Louisiana, near the Texas border. In 1965 he was one of several black students who integrated Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.[5] After serving in the U.S. Army in Vietnam, Zu-Bolton founded Hoo-Doo, a magazine devoted to African-American activism and arts, published A Niggered Amen: Poems, and coedited Synergy D.C. Anthology, in 1975. Zu-Bolton participated in the first Southern Black Poetry Festival at Southern University in Baton Rouge on May 3, 1972, along with poets including Haki R. Madhubuti, Margaret Danner, Jerry W. Ward Jr., Pinkie Gordon Lane and Kalamu ya Salaam.[6] He also opened the Copestetic Bookstore on Marigny Street in New Orleans, LA.[2] HooDoo later relocated to Galveston, Texas, where he organized HooDoo Festivals in the late 1970s.[4]

While living in New Orleans he taught English, African-American Studies, and Creative Writing classes at Xavier University, Tulane University and Delgado Community College. He was Visiting Writer in Residence at University of Missouri.[7]

Writing and literary work

Zu-Bolton's poetry and storytelling was about African-American oral traditions in Louisiana. He attributes it to the learned stories from his family members during front porch storytelling sessions.[8]

His books include A Niggered Amen: Poems, Ain't No Spring Chicken and 1946: A Poem. He also wrote plays, including The Widow Paris: A Folklore of Marie Laveau, The Funeral, Family Reunion and The Break-In.[9]

Death

Ahmos Zu-Bolton died of cancer on March 8, 2005 in Washington, D.C..[2]

Archives and papers

Materials related to Zu-Bolton are held in the Jerry Washington Ward Collection at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. The collection includes manuscripts, poems, an interview of Zu-Bolton by Ward, flyers, newsletters and pamphlets dated from 1976 to 1995.[10]

A 1990 letter from Zu-Bolton to Storyteller is also listed in the Augusta Baker papers, held by the University of South Carolina Libraries and indexed through the Civil Rights Digital Library.[11]

Bibliography

  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos (1975), A niggered amen: poems / by Ahmos Zu-Bolton II., Solo Press
  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos; Miller, E. Ethelbert (1975), Synergy D.C. Anthology, Energy BlackSouth Press
  • Thomas, Lorenzo; Alakoye, Adesanya; Zu-Bolton, Ahmos (1978), Hoo-doo 6½, Energy Earth Communications
  • Peter Blue Cloud; William Oandasan; Ahmos Zu-Bolton; Ricardo Sánchez (1979), "Featuring four third world poets", A: A Journal of Contemporary Literature, 4 (1), A Press
  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos (1998), Ain't No Spring Chicken: Selected Poems, Voice Foundation, Incorporated, The, ISBN 978-0-9668063-0-4
  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos (2002), 1946: a poem, Ishmael Reed Pub. Co., ISBN 978-0-918408-34-1
  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos (1992), "The governor of Ollie Street; By the 5th generation", in Killens, John Oliver; Ward, Jerry W. (eds.), Black Southern Voices: An Anthology of Fiction, Poetry, Drama, Nonfiction, and Critical Essays, Plume, ISBN 9780452265875
  • Zu-Bolton, Ahmos; Miller, E. Ethelbert (1975), Synergy: An Anthology of Washington D.C. Blackpoetry, Energy BlackSouth Press

References

  1. ↑ "The Mississippi Writers page, biography of Ahmos Zu-Bolton II". Archived from the original on 2015-10-11. Retrieved 2011-07-16.
  2. 1 2 3 Michael Perlstein (March 17, 2005). "Ahmos Zu-Bolton II, poet, bookstore owner". Times-Picayune (New Orleans). p. 4.
  3. ↑ Andrews, William L.; Foster, Frances Smith; Harris, Trudier (2001), The concise Oxford companion to African American literature, Oxford University Press US, p. 455, ISBN 978-0-19-513883-2
  4. 1 2 Christensen, Paul (December 3, 2004). "Keeping the Flame Alive". The Texas Observer. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
  5. ↑ "The Mississippi Writers Page, Ahmos Zu-Bolton II". Archived from the original on 2015-10-11. Retrieved 2011-07-16.
  6. ↑ Bradshaw, Jim (December 1, 2024). "Where the Fire Started". 64 Parishes. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Lynita F. Jones, "Candelight Vigil for Ahmos Zu-Bolton", ChickenBones: A Journal". Archived from the original on 2018-11-03. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
  8. ↑ "African American Oral Traditions in Louisiana". Louisiana Folklife Program. Louisiana Division of the Arts. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Ahmos Zu-Bolton II, a Writer, and Teacher born". African American Registry. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Jerry Washington Ward Collection (T/032) Box List". Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Letter, 1990, Ahmos Zu-Bolton II to Storyteller". Civil Rights Digital Library. Retrieved May 9, 2026.
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