... Leukerbad, not far in terms of absolute distance, was not all that easy to get to. August 2, 2014: it was James Baldwin's birthday. Were he alive, he would be turning ninety. He is one of those people just on the cusp of escaping the contemporary and slipping into the historical-John Coltrane would have turned eighty-eight this year; Martin Luther King, Jr., would have turned eighty ... a village up in the mountains. And so Baldwin, who was depressed and distracted at the time, went, and the village (which is also called Loèche-les-Bains) proved to be a refuge for him. His first trip w...

• Word Count: 1342
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

To go to jail for committing a crime, such as theft, rape, or murder, must be a difficult thing to do. To go to jail for a crime never committed must be worse. It must be a taxing event, both mentally emotionally. This is the situation that Fonny is in; accused of a crime he did not commit. He however, is strong. He is able to do so with the love and support of his family. The early 1970's were still tumultuous times for African American people. New York City was no excuse. "New York must be the ugliest and the dirtiest city in the world."(10). Harlem New York is where Tish and Fonny grew up ...

• Word Count: 747
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School