As part of 2025’s LGBT+ History Month Celebration, we introduce James Baldwin, the first icon selected by our EDI Programme Manager.

Baldwin was a highly skilled author and influential member of the American Civil Rights Movement over Fifty Years ago. Born on 2nd August 1924 in Harlem, New York, James’ writing style is characterised as one that seeks to engage with the reader in many thought-provoking ways rather than just sharing a story. This was particularly true when analysing complicated social and psychological pressures that emerge when concepts such as  Sexuality, Race, and Class intersect.

So intense were the pressures of these living conditions, which were made far more acute by being a gay black male. James Baldwin, in 1948, famously left New York with no more than $40 to his name and started a 9-year life chapter in the French capital of Paris. The seismic cultural shift of a European lifestyle presented James Baldwin with a much-needed escape from the multiple counts of racial and sexual discrimination encountered by thousands daily in New York.

From a literature standpoint, “Giovanni’s Room” is arguably James Baldwin’s most famous work. It examines Self-Acceptance, Love, and Guilt. The book was and still is banned across various parts of the United States. In contrast, in the late 1970s, there were plans to adapt the book into a movie screenplay, with Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando tipped to play leading roles. However, failure to agree on financial terms and conditions meant the project never commenced. However, BBC Radio 3 dramatised the book in 2010, and last year, BBC Radio 4 broadcast a five-part reading of the novel.

James Baldwin’s intersectional style of writing continued to evolve. His 1953 semi-autobiographical novel “Go Tell It To The Mountain” is an example of this, focusing on an adolescent’s critique of the Pentecostal church’s influence over the African-American Community and how it legitimised acts of domestic violence within his immediate family.

So it wasn’t a massive surprise when James became deeply committed to the Civil Rights Movement in 1957 and developed strong friendships with historical figures such as Lorraine Hansberry, Malcolm X, Marin Luther King Jr., Maya Angelou, and Nina Simone, to name but a few.

He spoke both eloquently and frequently on several issues. Still, his perspective on the societal impact of poverty that children face by not having any choice other than living in under-resourced tower blocks despite being located in one of the World’s most prosperous cities (New York) is a real standout moment. These core messages resonate globally, but images of Grenfell Tower surrounded by some of London’s affluent neighbourhoods vividly come to mind.

In 1963, Dial Press published “The Fire Next Time,” which James Baldwin penned to help the American public better understand the systemic struggle for equal rights experienced nationwide. As an architect of literacy, James Baldwin had many profound thoughts, which led to some classic quotes. A particular favourite is “ Those who say it can’t be done are usually interrupted by those doing it.”

James Baldwin died on December 1st 1987,  from stomach cancer after returning to France (Saint-Paul-de-Vence) in 1971. It’s fair to presume that he never found that elusive sense of peace and acceptance in his birth nation. Yet his contribution to the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion discourse will continue to influence Best Practice Models for many years to come.

You can listen to Radio Four’s special on James Baldwin here: BBC Radio 4 – Front Row, James Baldwin Centenary Special.