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Looking Back: A Celebration of the Life of Toni Morrison

Filmed on November 21, 2019 at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine

Thousands gathered at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City on November 21, 2019 for a ceremony held in remembrance of author Toni Morrison. Ms. Morrison, who died on August 5, 2019, received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. Her fifth novel, Beloved, earned her the Pulitzer Prize in fiction in 1988 and a decade later was adapted into an Academy Award-nominated film.

Featured speakers:

  • The Right Reverend Clifton Daniel III 0:00:05
  • Erroll McDonald 0:02:45
  • David Remnick 0:05:12
  • David Murray 0:15:00
  • Angela Davis 0:20:50
  • Fran Lebowitz 0:28:46
  • Michael Ondaatje 0:33:02
  • Toshi Reagon 0:40:10
  • Jesmyn Ward 0:45:57
  • Kevin Young 0:53:45
  • Brandee Younger 1:01:33
  • Edwidge Danticat 1:05:10
  • Ta-Nehisi Coates 1:12:05
  • Oprah Winfrey 1:17:31
  • Andy Bey 1:28:16

Organist: Raymond Nagem