Exhibit: Author Lillian Smith
From September 7 to October 26, The Wren’s Nest house museum, presented in partnership with: Southern Literary Trail, Mississippi State University Libraries, and the Lillian E. Smith Center at Piedmont University, will host a traveling exhibit on author Lillian Smith.
One of the most controversial writers of her time, Smith lived and worked in the North Georgia mountains during an era when racist Jim Crow laws were in place across the South. She was unafraid to criticize segregation and openly embraced unpopular positions on matters of race and gender equality. Her books include the best-selling novel Strange Fruit (1944), about an interracial relationship, and Killers of the Dream (1949), a fierce condemnation of racial injustice.
When Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in 1963 and forced into solitary confinement, he composed his famous Letter from the Birmingham Jail. Within the letter, Dr. King expressed his gratitude for white allies, including Lillian Smith, who “have written about our struggles in eloquent and prophetic terms.”
“Every little southern town is a fine stage set for Southern Tradition to use as it teaches its children the twisting turning dance of segregation. Few words are needed for there are signs everywhere.” - Killers of the Dream: Lillian Smith
When it was released in 1949, Killers of the Dream received a hostile reception; today the work is regarded as an important contribution to the narrative of desegregation and civil rights work. In an introduction she wrote, University of Alabama Professor Margaret Rose Gladney called it “the most courageous and insightful critique of the pre-1960s American South.” Gladney notes that despite being scorned by both moderate and conservative southerners, threatened by arsonists, and denied the critical attention she deserved as a writer. Smith continued “to write and speak for improved human relations and social justice throughout her life.”
The Smith exhibit was created by the Southern Literary Trail, the first tri-state literary trail in the United States that celebrates acclaimed 20th-century writers and playwrights of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The display includes panels about Smith’s life that feature photos and examples of her work. She died in 1966 and is buried near Clayton, Ga. “We are excited to showcase Smith and her works at a time when informed conversations about racial and gender inequity are still very relevant and needed,” said Wren’s Nest board co-chair Jim Auchmutey.
As an official trail site, The Wren’s Nest uses its historic museum space to interpret the literary legacy of Joel Chandler Harris alongside traveling exhibits that highlight key voices and topics in Southern literature and history, including Smith.
The exhibit can be viewed during The Wren’s Nest’s hours of operation on Saturdays from 11:00am to 3:00pm, or by private tour arrangement.
The Southern Literary Trail is the first tri-state literary trail in the United States. It celebrates acclaimed 20th-century writers and playwrights of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia and leads you on a journey of discovery to the places that shaped and inspired them. The Trail is a non-stop literary celebration with events, programs, and exhibits taking place at Trail sites throughout the year. For more, visit https://www.southernliterarytrail.org/ and follow them on Facebook @southernliterarytrail.
