Broadside No. 46: A Simple Poem to Mae: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A poem titled "A Simple Poem to Mae" written by Omari Kenyatta Taeajia (Richard C. James III) and published by Broadside Press as Broadside No. 46. The poem is printed on white paper in black ink. Along the right side is a black silhouette figure of a woman wearing a slim gown and holding a single stemmed flower behind her back. A printed signature at the bottom right corner of the silhouette reads “Pat Whitsitt.” The copyright, broadside number, and publisher information is printed at the bottom of the page. The back side of the page is blank.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1971
• Written by: Omari Kenyatta Tarajia
• Published by: Broadside Press, founded 1965
• Illustrated by: Patricia Whitsitt, American, born 1938
• Subject of: Mae Jackson, American
• Subject of: Isaac Hayes, American, 1942 - 2008
• Subject of: Nikki Giovanni, American, 1943 - 2024
• Type: poems
• Medium: ink on paper
• Dimensions: H x W: 11 x 8 1/2 in. (27.9 x 21.6 cm)
• Place printed: Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Black Press
• Topic: Literature
• Topic: Mass media
• Topic: Poetry
• Topic: Women
• Object number: 2013.154.16
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © 1971 by Richard C. James III Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.