/9 FEBRUARY.99

etta S. Neely is an African-
American lesbian. poet. play-
wright, writer, feminist, earth-
keeper and teacher. A native
of lndianapolis. she survived
inner—city bussing and went

on to attend Indiana University.
Among the prizes she‘s collected are
the 1997 Pat Parker Award and a 1995
New York Foundation for the Arts

’ . . Fellowship. She has also won several
a t 0 e  t I poetry slam competitions. including the
1997 Amazon Slam. and the I996 and

9 I998 Outwrite National Slams.
 M a  S  She is also the author of Juba, her
A first full—length collection of poems.

_ published last year by Wildheait Press.
On one of the last days of I998. l

  visited Letta Neely at the home she
‘shares with partner Renita Maitin in

Dorchester. MA. We sat down on an

ll II IN T EB WE W WI T I! [E T 1' ll NEH l’ ‘élf§iif§ll.iIla.fd°l.f§ag3lLC vvLhLitcek)c/atill:
' talk about publishing. politics, poetry.

IIV cathv BGSIIIBT and food_

liflllll-llllflll Illa’!!! H398