   Many stories by Black authors are still relevant decades later. “A Raisin in the Sun” (1958) by Lorraine Hansberry was the first play on Broadway to be written by a Black woman. It follows the lives of the Youngers, a Black family facing financial struggles. The story is a great depiction of race relations and class struggle as they try to decide how to use a life insurance check.
   My favorite character is the daughter, Beneatha Younger, because she has a very spirited personality and is not afraid to speak out against her family. Throughout the play, she finds comfort in her boyfriend, Joseph Asagai, who helps her better understand her African heritage and the ways that white culture has infiltrated her life. It feels satisfying to witness Beneatha’s self-confidence grow through her fulfilling relationship with Joseph.
   The most powerful moment in the play comes at the end, when the family refuses to accept a white man’s payment to leave a white neighborhood. It’s a great moment when the whole family denies the man’s offer because they all recognize that, even though the money would help them, the principle of accepting it only because the man didn’t want a Black family in his neighborhood is wrong.
   “A Raisin in the Sun” is a very compelling story that conveys the importance of self-worth and family. In the 1950s, the prospect of putting a play on Broadway with nearly an all-Black cast was considered very risky, and getting investors was difficult. But once the play made it to Broadway, it stayed for over a year, and its words written by Hansberry still speak to many that experience racial discrimination and class struggle today. 

The Impact of Black Stories on Literature - A Raisin in the Sun

For most high school athletes, their sport is the perfect way to de-stress after a long school day. Athletes look to sports to not only get a good workout in, but also to learn from and cooperate with a like-minded community. Although all high school students should be able to benefit from participating in sports, many states have been making it significantly more challenging for transgender athletes to participate. 
Across the United States, 18 states have enacted laws that limit or ban transgender athletes from participating in sports. According to New York Times sports correspondent David Chen in 2022, those in favor of the law want to “promote fairness,” particularly in women’s sports.
At PHS, rules about transgender athletes at PHS follow the state rules given by the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association. The rules are non-restrictive, meaning that transgender students are allowed to compete in accordance with either their birth sex or gender identity.
“The state [of New Jersey] back in 2009 took a position based upon the law against discrimination, which is titled NJS-18 column 36-41. So all of our board policies are in compliance with that,” said PHS Athletic Director Brian Dzebenski. 
These rules have been applied to an emergence of transgender athletes at PHS. Nonbinary athlete Abby Walden ’22 started swimming when they were five years old. After Walden discovered their gender identity, they still continued swimming for the girls team. For them, the biggest change after coming out has been educating others to be conscious about their language while referring to them.
“It can be a struggle [to correct people on] my pronouns over and over again. But I found that PHS, for the most part, is supportive. [Now], there are a lot of people who will help [correct my pronouns] for me,” Walden said. 
   For trans swimmer Sylven Waldman ’25, the transition from girls to boys swimming was more apparent. Waldman began swimming when he was eight, and this season, he transitioned to swimming for the boys team. Although coaches and many teammates made his experience on the boys team mainly positive, he never truly felt like he fit in with the cisgender boys on the team. 
“I think there’s this feeling of alienation, particularly because your body does not look like what others expect,” said Waldman. “It’s especially made apparent in changing rooms, where everybody is wearing [male]speedos, but I’m wearing more of a ‘female swimsuit’ with shorts.” 
Varying public opinion has made trans athletes, especially trans women, currently a hotly debated topic. When discussing transgender athletes in sports, many reference University of Pennsylvania trans female athlete Lia Thomas. Many believe her Division I National title was an unfair win because of her biological sex, despite following all the National Collegiate Athletic Association rules for testoterone suppression. While her times have slowed significantly since before her transition, she is still almost always far ahead of her competitors.
Some say that since the height and size of the heart and lungs of trans women can not be suppressed by hormone therapy, they should not be able to compete. However, medical physicist Joanna Harper described in a 2022 CBS interview that although trans women will maintain certain advantages, those advantages are not significant enough for them to outdo all the competition. Others have noted that cisgender athletes, such Michael Phelps, also have biological advantages that allow them to have an advantage over the competition. Instead of receiving backlash for these biological advantages like many transgender women, they are praised for their accomplishments.    
For Walden and many young transgender athletes in the U.S., the Lia Thomas controversy and debate about biological advantages has raised many questions regarding the true intentions of the opposing side.   “There’s a slippery slope of people saying if [Thomas] can win, then the regulations aren’t strict enough. But really, the question is: When do you stop? Do you stop when trans athletes can never win anything?” Walden said.    
 In consequence to the heated debates, there has been lots of misinformation around the topic. In order to combat this issue, Walden believes that there needs to be more education about the topic. 
 “There [has been] a lot of fear-mongering done, especially by politicians, to make people afraid of trans people or what they are doing to sports. There’s still a learning curve of the scientific community figuring out what the hormone regulation should be. But since trans people are currently allowed to compete, acceptance is the most important,” said Walden. 
However different the experiences of trans athletes are, the main point the trans athletes we interviewed wanted to drive home was that trans people in athletics just want to compete and enjoy their sport, something cisgender athletes are able to do with far less obstacles.   “Trans people have worked so hard compete in the sector that identifies best with the gender that they are. It is such a complicated process that cis athletes never have to experience,” Waldman said.

Swimming with Pride: Trans athletes in high school sports

In spite of the nearly insurmountable barriers that have stood in the way of female authors throughout history, ranging from denial of rights in the workplace to rejection from editors, women have emerged as pioneers in a wide variety of literary genres. While it has become increasingly common to see women’s names on book covers, the journey they’ve taken to get there can be traced back hundreds of years.

In the 1800s, women became more influential in literature for writing about topics that were mostly viewed as taboo, such as marriage, sexuality, social structure, suicide, adultery, and infidelity. The presence of these themes demonstrated the willingness of women to challenge what was considered “normal” to write about.  One text that contributed greatly to this new movement was Kate Chopin’s “The Awakening,” which drew from her past experience of being a young bride and businesswoman in Louisiana. The book was very controversial at the time for its frankness about sexuality. It was banned for over fifty years, returning to shelves as the portrayal of independent women became more widely accepted. It also heavily influenced women’s ambitions at the time as they realized the breadth of opportunities available to them.  It also allowed them to be more open about the many issues they faced in marriage. Jane Austen also made some substantial contributions to literature during the 19th century; notable novels of Austen’s include “Sense and Sensibility,” which tells of three girls coming of age, “Pride and Prejudice,” which uses its protagonist to teach the importance of true human decency over the superficial, and “Emma,” which depicts the nuances of the relationships intertwining several families. At the time these works were published, they did not gain the popularity they have today. But some years after her death, her works were republished in Richard Bentley’s Standard Novels series, making her a prominent author of the 19th century. Her works remain relevant and are still read today. In fact, her novel Emma later ended up inspiring the blockbuster 1995 teen comedy “Clueless.” Emily Brontë of the Brontë sisters also made a great contribution to 19th century literature with her novel “Wuthering Heights.” The novel told of love that transcended class limits and societal values, with supernatural elements that made the plot easier to stomach. The many horrors in the story bewildered and impressed readers at the time, and Emily’s expression of the disorder in the world was met with a more positive response later on.

The 20th century contains some of the most impressive and world-changing developments, from the Roaring Twenties to the invention of the internet, resulting in the creation of a wide range of literature. L.M. Montgomery’s “Anne of Green Gables,” set on Prince Edward Island, used details from Montgomery’s own life to spin a tale of the childhood of a young orphaned girl. Montgomery was inspired to write after her mother died and her father deserted her when she was a child. Anne’s innocent nature combined with the beautiful and quaint setting made “Anne of Green Gables” a must-read for children everywhere. Montgomery eventually became the first Canadian woman in history to be inducted into the British Royal Society of the Arts. While Montgomery reflected the somewhat whimsical attitude of literature early in the century, women such as Agatha Christie popularized murder mysteries. While murder mysteries were first brought about by Edgar Allen Poe, certain books of Christie’s caused the genre to skyrocket in popularity in the 1930s. “Murder on the Orient Express,” for instance, has gone down in history as the quintessential murder mystery, filled with perfectly placed misdirections, shady characters, and just enough detail to make looking away impossible for a reader. Christie used the book to define some of the most well-known tropes of mystery novels, especially the use of an exciting final accusation. The charming and witty Hercule Poirot was written and developed by Christie in such a way that the names will forever go together. Christie has gone down in history as the best-selling novelist, outsold only by Shakespeare and the Bible. Towards the end of the century, Toni Morrison, a pioneer of the Black Arts Movement, helped reinvent the major themes of literature such as purity, love, and peace with God. These themes in her novels were uniquely written so that they reflected the Black community as well as other underrepresented groups. Her work is now incorporated into school curriculums, making her a household name among students. With books like “Song of Solomon,” she wrote about the Black experience in America in a way that allowed everyone to empathize with it. Morrison eventually became the first Black woman to win the Nobel Prize for literature, and she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama. 

Present-day literature features several female authors, and more continue to emerge on the scene. Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch” is special in how it preserves the very poetic writing style of the 20th and 19th centuries while also adding more contemporary themes. The novel draws from the joy that art and paintings can bring to their audience, a theme that could possiblyperhaps come off as dated in today’s digital age. However, Tartt portrays young Theodore Decker as using art as a refuge, a coping mechanism that resonates with people from all generations. A total contrast to Tartt’s methods, authors like Celeste Ng have taken their place in the young adult genre. Known for younger characters and less abstract storylines, young adult novels have become increasingly popular for high schoolers. When the genre first emerged, distinct tropes were created that quickly grew boring and overused. However, Ng’s “Little Fires Everywhere” toes the line between YA and adult fiction and combines an exciting murder mystery with subtle commentary on American classism and racism. While social issues being presented as literary themes has never been a new concept, Ng has brought certain “uncomfortable” topics to younger audiences, forcing them to confront their own biases. Another author with similar aims is Jacqueline Woodson, writer of “Brown Girl Dreaming.” With this book, Woodson goes even younger than the YA genre and writes for elementary and middle school students. Woodson’s work focuses on the experience of being a young Black girl in America and the internal conflicts she faced as a result. The Black Lives Matter movement of the 2010s has placed great emphasis on teaching children acceptance and anti-racism from a young age. Woodson has allowed young Black girls to see themselves in the books they read. Furthermore, their non-Black peers are able to learn and empathize with the Black American experience. 

Women in literature have made a significant impact on the world that can be traced through hundreds of years. In 2022, nobody raises any eyebrows when they’re handed a book with a woman’s name on it.

Women’s literary journey through time

Despite their lack of recognition, Black people have always had an influence on the American music industry, starting from the creation of ragtime and blues in the late 1800s. The earliest forms of Black music were rooted in religion and faith, with spiritual gospel as the foundation for what would later become a multitude of unique genres.

Early jazz and blues were the beginning of contemporary American music, becoming popular across the South and Chicago as well. Singers like Louis Armstong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat King Cole were the icons of the time, despite not recording their music until years later. Blues singers sang slow, sorrowful tunes, with messages reflecting the poverty of African Americans and establishing a rich cultural heritage that was beginning to be expressed through music. When jazz emerged in the 1900s, its syncopated beats (on the weak or “off ” count) and use of new instruments such as the saxophone soon became one of the most defining sounds of the time.

Jazz continued its hold on the American public until the 1960s, when it gave way to soul and funk. This new style of music borrowed many elements from jazz, blues, and ragtime, such as improvised solos, horn arrangements, and guitar foundations. Vocal parts influenced by soul music and gospel were also heavily used. Artists such as Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, and Earth, Wind & Fire were popular, and their lyrics and themes reflected the changing socioeconomic status of African Americans and their struggle for racial equality. The word “soul,” which had previously been associated with romance and relationships, widened to also include social awareness for the injustices African Americans faced.

In the 1970s, these messages took on a more optimistic tone, a result of the recent cultural liberation. James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder rose to popularity with their upbeat grooves and modern sounds. Influenced by wild fashions and science fiction, funk began to take on a more psychedelic quality, creating the disco genre. Disco music and clubs influenced the development of better sound equipment as the clubs demanded better mixers and speakers in order to provide an atmosphere full of energy and excitement for their patrons.

After the disco craze, pop music was the defining sound of the 1980s, and its accessibility and variety allowed Black artists to flourish. Pop artists like Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, and Prince rose to fame by incorporating previous genres of music such as jazz, R&B, soul, and funk, and transforming them into a revolutionary new sound. The launch of MTV in the early 1980s also led to many songs being accompanied by music videos, and the added visual element helped further popularize pop music as a genre.

In the 1990s, the block party trend popularized hip-hop and artists such as Nas, Lauryn Hill, and Tupac. Block parties as we know them stemmed from the Jamaican dancehall “sound clashes,” where opposing DJs would play different songs and compete in an effort to win over the crowd. When this was brought to New York in the 1980s by DJ Kool Herc, it inspired many DJs to bring giant speakers outside and hype up the crowds. This was where the technique of spinning two records at the same time and mixing them together to create a dance break became popular. As the popularity of these parties grew, countless new rappers and groups started creating songs under the loosely interpreted hip-hop genre.

The 2000s saw the continuation of R&B and hip-hop changing with the times. Many songs now included psychedelic riffs and the audio processor Auto-Tune, which heavily influenced artists of today. New access to digital instruments, track boards, and mixers gave artists the ability to create music without needing any actual instruments. The socioeconomic status of many Black communities and the power to create music as an act of rebellion influenced the feel of Black artists’ music in the 2000s. Black artists such as Destiny’s Child, Outkast, Usher, and Snoop Dogg brought issues like racism, police brutality, and the struggles of romance to the public through their music as a means of inspiring their listeners. Black music evolved greatly throughout the 20th century, and each decade has many unique and important sounds. But throughout all those decades of music, love has been the predominant theme in many Black artists’ music. Everyone has experienced some form of romantic struggle — what better thing to do than write a relatable song about it? Many musicians have songs like this, and they are often the artist’s biggest hit. “L-O-V-E” by Nat King Cole, “My Girl” by the Temptations, “Sexual Healing” by Marvin Gaye, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” by Whitney Houston, and “Forever My Lady” by Jodeci are a few.

Heidi Engelbert's Work