{"id":50,"date":"2015-07-12T19:30:03","date_gmt":"2015-07-12T19:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/abealfreader2\/?post_type=chapter&p=50"},"modified":"2022-07-22T19:55:39","modified_gmt":"2022-07-22T19:55:39","slug":"chapter-7","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/abealfreader2\/chapter\/chapter-7\/","title":{"raw":"Chapter 7","rendered":"Chapter 7"},"content":{"raw":"

Click play on the following audio player to listen along as you read this section.<\/p>\r\nhttps:\/\/media.bccampus.ca\/id\/0_6hnsup3o?width=608&height=70&playerId=23449753\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_64\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"350\"]\"a<\/a> Langston Hughes[\/caption]\r\n\r\nDid Langston ever fall in love? It is hard to say. Many people who have read his books and poems say that he was gay. He wrote some love poems to a man. These poems were never put in books or magazines. He also wrote a story that may tell of his own life. It is the story of a father who is mad because his son is \"queer\" and acts like a girl. At that time, it was harder to be open about being gay. What would happen if Langston told people he was gay? Would people still pay him to write his poems? Would people still read his poems?\r\n\r\nLangston may not have found love. But he won many prizes for his poems. He became a famous poet. He helped many young black writers. He helped them feel pride. He helped them not to worry about the racism of other people. He told them to hold on to their dreams. He wrote a poem about this called \u201cDreams.\u201d\r\n

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Hold fast to dreams<\/p>\r\n

For if dreams die<\/p>\r\n

Life is a broken-winged bird<\/p>\r\n

That cannot fly.<\/p>\r\n

-\u00a0from \"Dreams\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

See Chapter 7<\/a>\u00a0<\/a>in BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English - Course Pack 2<\/a><\/em>.<\/div>","rendered":"

Click play on the following audio player to listen along as you read this section.<\/p>\n