From The Ebony Files - poet Gwendolyn Brooks - Brief Article - Obituary

Ebony, Feb, 2001

Gwendolyn Brooks, poet laureate of Illinois, took center stage when she delivered a poem written especially for the 1983 inauguration of Chicago's first Black mayor, Harold Washington (1.), who unseated Mayor Jane Byrne (r.). Brooks became the first Black Pulitzer Prize winner in 1950 when she was honored for the volume of poetry titled Annie Allen.

For six decades she was at the forefront of American letters, inspiring generations of writers with the power of her economical verse and the dignity of her presence. In December 2000, she died at age 83.