Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora announced it has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to receive a Grants for Arts Projects award of $40,000. This grant will support the upcoming Outta Sight!/Sonic Bodies in the Galaxy of Black Listening special issue edited by Duriel E. Harris and Guest Editor Tracie Morris. It is one of 1,251 Grants for Arts Projects awards totaling nearly $28.8 million that were announced by the NEA as part of its first round of fiscal year 2023 grants. 

“The NEA is proud to support arts projects in communities nationwide,” said Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D. “Projects such as this one with Obsidian strengthen arts and cultural ecosystems, provide equitable opportunities for arts participation and practice, and contribute to the health of our communities and our economy.”  

“As Obsidian begins to consider its nearly 50 years of continuous publication, this grant helps us to stay focused on our mission to cultivate Black imagination, innovation, and excellence. We are grateful to the NEA for their support and look forward to the print and online publication of the Black Listening special issue this year,” said Obsidian Managing Editor Tara Reeser.  

For more information on other projects included in the NEA’s grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.  

For more information on Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora, visit https://obsidianlit.org