Lorraine Hansberry Biography

Lorraine Hansberry was born on May 19, 1930, in Illinois, to Carl Augustus Hansberry and Nannie Louise Perry. Her father was a real estate broker. She grew up in the Woodlawn neighborhood, before the family moved into a neighborhood that was 'all-white'. The phase ushered in exposure to racial discrimination and segregation. Lorraine attended a 'white' public school and witnessed the harsh reality of racial restrictions, while her father battled the law that prohibited African-Americans from owning homes in 'white' areas.

The legal struggle that took the shape of 'Hansberry v. Lee, 311 U.S. 32' in 1940, saw the Hansberry family victorious and Lorraine all perked to pen 'A Raisin in the Sun'. Hansberry opted out of University of Wisconsin-Madison, to pursue a writing career in New York City, in 1950. She initially worked with the 'Freedom' team, as she began a simultaneous attempt at play writing. The play was not only the first to be written by an African-American woman, but also a runaway success. At 29, she became the youngest American to receive the Critics Circle Award for 'Best Play'.

Lorraine Hansberry moved on to inspirational essay writing projects and articles that were published in SNCC's 'The Movement'. She penned another play, 'The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window' that closed on Broadway the night she died. She was married to Robert Nemiroff, who also executed the release and changes to a number of plays and unfinished writings. 'Les Blancs', 'To Be Young, Gifted and Black', 'The Drinking Gourd', 'The Movement: Documentary of a Struggle for Equality' and 'What Use Are Flowers?' are some of her expressions that spotlight and expose the slavery, racial discrimination and the future of the black community.

'Raisin', a beautiful adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun, won the NAACP 'Image' award and 'Best Musical' award in 1973. Lorraine battled cancer and died in 1965. By this time, she had successfully described many sociopolitical issues through her literature. She is considered the 'Foremother of Modern African-American Drama'. Her essays and articles debated and deliberated on issues such as abortion, racial discrimination, homophobia and feminism.

Today, Lorraine Hansberry Theater in San Francisco, specializes in revivals of original African-American theater. The song penned by Lorraine, 'To Be Young, Gifted and Black', a civil-rights theme, made it to the R&B Top 10. The song was promoted by her friend, Nina Simone and Weldon Irvine. Actress Taye Hansberry, her niece has kept the artistic flame alive on the celluloid and is a strong reminder of Lorraine's spirit.

Posthumous Honors

• Listing among Molefi Kete Asante's 100 Greatest African Americans in 2002.
• A female dormitory at Lincoln University is named Lorraine Hansberry Hall.
• Lorraine Hansberry Academy adds quality to the Bronx and St. Albans, New York.
• 'A Raisin in the Sun', along with 'A Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window' are discussed and deliberated content in most English classrooms.

Lorraine Hansberry has set the benchmark for many an African-American writers. Her simple language and heart-wrenching accounts of all that she and the family were subjected to initially, under racial segregation practices. Her biography stirs even the most passive onlooker. She is a source of inspiration to many fledgling authors who endeavor to address sociopolitical issues through their works. Lorraine Hansberry may have succumbed physically to cancer, but she left the whole world a legacy of lessons in humanity to live and swear by. Her works are synonymous with the struggle for acceptance of the 'black' community and establishment of social and political equality in America.