Poet Aimé Césaire, 94
Posted: Friday, April 18th, 2008 12:29 amThe esteemed Martinique poet and politician Aimé Césaire, a leading figure in the movement for black consciousness, died Thursday, the French president’s office and a hospital said. He was 94.
Césaire died in Fort-de-France on the French Caribbean island of Martinique, the hospital that was treating him said.
Césaire was involved in the fight for French West Indian rights, and he also served as a lawmaker in the lower house of France’s parliament for nearly 50 years. French President Nicolas Sarkozy successfully led a campaign last year to change the name of Martinique’s airport in honor of Césaire. …
Césaire’s 1950 “Discourse on Colonialism” has become a classic of French political literature and helped develop the concept of negritude, which urges blacks to cultivate pride in their heritage. … Read full obituary
