Cheryl Clarke
Biography
Born in Washington, D.C., in 1947, Cheryl Clarke grew up in the city and attended Howard University, where she earned a B.A. in English in 1969. She later earned an M.A. in English, an M.S.W., and a Ph.D. in Literatures in English from Rutgers University.
Clarke emerged as a writer and activist through Black feminist and lesbian feminist movements. Her poetry and essays address the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, class, and political resistance. She served on the editorial collective of Conditions, the lesbian feminist literary journal, and published work in influential anthologies including This Bridge Called My Back and Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology.
Her poetry collections include Narratives: Poems in the Tradition of Black Women (1983), Living as a Lesbian (1986), Humid Pitch (1989), and Experimental Love (1993). Her critical work includes After Mecca: Women Poets and the Black Arts Movement (2005), while The Days of Good Looks (2006) brought together 25 years of her poetry and prose.
Clarke also spent more than four decades at Rutgers University, where she became founding director of the Office of Diverse Community Affairs and Lesbian/Gay Concerns and later served as Dean of Students for Livingston Campus. She continues to write and participate in literary and LGBTQ+ communities. Her recent publications include Archive of Style: New and Selected Poems (2024) and Acts of Resistance: Essential Essays, Archival Encounters, and New Poems (2026).
BQW Impact
Clarke is a foundational voice in Black lesbian feminist literature. Her writing challenged the exclusion of Black lesbians from both mainstream literature and broader Black feminist and liberation movements.
Her essay “Lesbianism: An Act of Resistance” (1981) became an influential work of Black lesbian feminist thought, while “The Failure to Transform: Homophobia in the Black Community” (1983) examined homophobia within Black communities and liberation movements. Across her poetry, essays, scholarship, and community work, Clarke has connected Black women's liberation with lesbian visibility, LGBTQ+ rights, and feminist organizing.
Her decades of institutional work at Rutgers further extended that contribution by creating and supporting programs for LGBTQ+ students and diverse communities.
Notable Works
Narratives: Poems in the Tradition of Black Women (1983)
Debut poetry collection centering Black women's experiences, identity, and resistance.
Living as a Lesbian (1986)
Poetry collection exploring lesbian identity, sexuality, relationships, race, and political resistance.
After Mecca: Women Poets and the Black Arts Movement (2005)
Critical study examining Black women poets and their relationship to the Black Arts Movement.
The Days of Good Looks: Prose and Poetry, (1980 - 2005, 2006)
Collection spanning 25 years of Clarke's poetry and prose.
Archive of Style: New and Selected Poems (2024)
Retrospective collection spanning more than four decades of Clarke's poetry.
Acts of Resistance: Essential Essays, Archival Encounters, and New Poems (2026)
Collection bringing together influential essays, archival material, correspondence, and new poetry.
Learn More
Biography, publications, poetry, and literary career.
Extensive first-person oral history covering Clarke's life, writing, activism, and Rutgers career.
Cheryl Clarke papers and archival biography.
Information on Archive of Style: New and Selected Poems.