'Voices of Leimert Park: Redux' Celebrated as Harriet Tubman Press' First Volume

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Oct 24, 2017, 19:12 ET

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- TSEHAI Publishers and Loyola Marymount University launched Harriet Tubman Press with a high-profile celebration at the Vision Theatre on Oct. 15, in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angles. More than 500 people, including dignitaries, celebrities, community members and LMU faculty, staff and students heard poets read from "Voices From Leimert Park: Redux," the first volume under the Harriet Tubman Press imprint.

TSEHAI Publishers and Loyola Marymount University launched Harriet Tubman Press with a high-profile celebration at the Vision Theatre on Oct. 15, in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles.

Angela Rye, political commentator for CNN and National Public Radio, hosted a series of panel discussions during the afternoon, which included Rep. Karen Bass, L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Rev. Kelvin Sauls, and Umar A. Hakim, executive director of Intellect Love Mercy Foundation, NewsOne anchor Roland Martin, and Freedom Rider Helen Singleton. LMU professors Robert Singleton and Cheryl Tawede Grills also participated in the panel discussions. Kevin Nash of 102.3 KJLH radio in Los Angeles served as the master of ceremonies.

Readings from the poetry anthology alternated with the panel discussions and musical performances by the Supa Lowery Brothers. Blues and jazz legend Barbara Morrison surprised the audience with an impromptu performance.

Over the past 20 years, TSEHAI Publishers has developed a reputation in Los Angeles as a nonviolent force against injustice. Mayor Eric Garcetti commended TSEHAI on its 20th anniversary and recognized the publishing house "for being committed to social justice and creating a platform from which to project otherwise unheard voices" as well as "its continued effort to bridge divides and create a more unified and socially conscious world."

After Howard University Press closed in 2011, TSEHAI Publishers became the only African or African American-run university press in the country. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, congratulated TSEHAI for its collective "dedication and fortitude" that is "necessary to the preservation of the African-American voice." Bass also commended TSEHAI Publishers, for "two decades of service to the reading public, and for offering a platform to lift up minority voices."

TSEHAI Publishers, which is housed at LMU's Marymount Institute for Faith, Culture and Arts, has published almost 150 books through its five imprints along with two academic journals, the authors of which have included former presidents, prime ministers, a Nobel laureate, MacArthur and Pulitzer Prize winners, and professors, as well as emerging writers. Elias Wondimu, Founder and Editorial Director of TSEHAI, explains that the name of Harriet Tubman Press was chosen to serve as an inspiration and guide in terms of "paving a new path towards an equal and just society," one that "honors our ancestors who endured so much to provide us our freedom and proclaims our commitment to document and share our stories with the world."

Contact: Mason Stockstill, 1-310-338-5133, [email protected]

SOURCE Loyola Marymount University