Celebrating the legacy of Toni Morrison and today's Black female authors at Toronto's Luminato Festival
Eight acclaimed Canadian and international writers will discuss Morrison's influence on their work
When Toronto-based writer and literary critic Donna Bailey Nurse heard about the death of Toni Morrison in August 2019, she immediately flashed back to the time she had had the opportunity to interview the legendary American novelist two decades prior.
"I was very sad about it, because I had somehow fully expected to see her again," Bailey Nurse told CBC Books in a recent interview. "But I thought, 'Okay, I'm going to do something nice for her.'
"It's a very strong impulse for people of African heritage to honour their forebears — so immediately, that's what I felt like doing," she added. "Not only do I want to honour her because of what she accomplished, but because she's had such a tremendous impact on the literature and the culture, particularly for Black people and Black women."
I want to honour her because she's had such a tremendous impact on the literature and the culture, particularly for Black people and Black women.
Morrison, the Ohio-born novelist, children's author, playwright, poet, essayist and academic whose career spanned more than four decades, left a remarkable literary footprint — including winning a Pulitzer Prize in 1987 for her acclaimed novel Beloved and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993.
Bailey Nurse's instinct to want to recognize Morrison and her work eventually turned into Beloved: A Celebration of Toni Morrison and Black Women Writers, a two-night event that will be presented at Toronto's Winter Garden Theatre on June 17 and 18, 2022, as part of the annual Luminato Festival.
Curated by Nurse, each evening features a different lineup of Canadian and international Black women writers who will discuss Morrison's influence on their own work. Directed by Luminato's associate artistic director Dian Marie Bridge, the events will be hosted by actor, singer and playwright Nicky Lawrence, accompanied by a house band led by musician Orin Isaacs.
During both nights, Bailey Nurse will lead conversations with a handpicked group of writers who have been influenced by Morrison's work, including Zalika Reid-Benta, Rebecca Fisseha and Francesca Ekwuyasi on June 17, with a special guest appearance by Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia; and Myriam J.A. Chancy, Aminatta Forna and Dawnie Walton on June 18, with a special guest video appearance by Esi Edugyan.
Listen | Donna Bailey Nurse on The Next Chapter:
Selecting which writers to include in the panels was no easy task, Bailey Nurse said, given how many of today's leading Black authors have been directly impacted by Morrison's unapologetically Black literary voice.
"We have a lot of fabulous Black women writers — and I feel like they really are a dominant force in world letters right now," Bailey Nurse said. "I've interviewed so many Black women writers, and no matter where they're from — Nigeria, Jamaica, Britain, Canada, you name it — they bring up Toni Morrison. So I wanted people who could speak to her work specifically, but also her influence on their own work."
In addition to the writers who will appear at the live event, Bailey Nurse also solicited heartfelt written testimonials about Morrison's legacy from award-winning authors such as Ian Williams, Jane Urquhart, Chelene Knight and others that can be read on the Luminato website.
What draws Black writers and thinkers in particular to Morrison's work is how she used her pen to tell stories — about the harsh realities faced by Black Americans and the consequences of the racism that underpinned U.S. history — that had gone untold for too long, Bailey Nurse noted.
"We all want to feel empowered. And when it's very hard in this world to be Black and walk the walk, we still do our best. We do collect all our strength and power, but each day can be quite challenging. But to have somebody that was so absolutely sure of her value — and our value — it's just the most empowering feeling," she said.
"Through reading her literature, I began to become more affirmed in my identity [and] in my pride."
Bailey Nurse, who points to the 1977 novel Song of Solomon as her favourite of Morrison's books, says novels such as Beloved, The Bluest Eye, and Sula still resonate today — and have lessons to teach readers as we navigate many of the same issues Morrison was turning her unflinching eye to in her writing.
LISTEN | Toni Morrison on Writers & Company:
"One of the things she's still teaching us today is how we want to address our history — we have to find our own ways of telling our own stories," Bailey Nurse explained. "And that would be one of the reasons why some people find certain works of hers challenging, because she wants to make sure that it is a very African-centered way of telling our history — because how we tell a story is just as important as the story itself."
The freedom with which Toni Morrison writes reminds us all to tell your story your own way.
She hopes those who attend the Luminato events will come away with a deeper understanding of how Morrison's words live on — and how a new generation of writers draws from both the sorrow and joy inherent in her work.
"The evening is about her legacy, and how these women [writers] represent her legacy. And the rest of the show, including the music, is really associated with the spirit in their work. I'm really expecting people to get up out of their seats!" Bailey Nurse said.
"What she has given us is this deep confidence in our value and humanity as Black people," she added. "And it sounds silly, that we might need books to tell us that, but it's just a reinforcement and a validation of our stories and our lives. The freedom with which she writes reminds us all to tell your story your own way."
For more stories about the experiences and stories of Black Canadians, check out CBC's Being Black in Canada. You can read more stories here.
