Steven G Fullwood

In “Writing and Dying in Harlem,” Steven G. Fullwood offers personal reflections on life, death, and bearing witness in Harlem. The essay begins with a candid journal entry that explores the author's existential musings, rooted in loss and the fear of mortality. Through the lens of writing as both a creative outlet and a mode of self-preservation, Fullwood recounts his journey from his upbringing in Toledo to finding purpose, community and clarity in Harlem. His narrative reflects on the complexity and expansiveness of this iconic neighborhood—its artistic legacy, vibrant community and ongoing struggles with gentrification. The author articulates a connection with Harlem, view it as both a creative sanctuary and a poignant reminder of the past, while asserting that writing enables him to confront mortality and navigate the complexities of identity as a Black queer man. Ultimately, the essay serves as a love letter to Harlem and the redemptive potential of art, emphasizing that the act of writing anchors him amidst the chaos of life and death.

Keywords: Astor Row Houses ; Atlanta ; Blackness ; death ; Georgia ; Harlem ; Harlem Meer ; Ohio ; Pizza Hut ; queer ; queerness ; Ralph Ellison ; Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture ; Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts ; suicide ; The Toledo Blade ; Toledo