May Miller

May Miller was an African American poet and playwright known as the most-published female playwright of the Harlem Renaissance. Born in 1899 in Washington, DC, Miller emerged as a talented writer and artist in an era marked by cultural and social upheaval for African Americans.

Miller’s work often explored themes of racial identity, equality, and the struggles faced by African Americans in the racially segregated United States. Her work was known for its lyrical beauty and poignant social commentary.

Miller’s works include Collected Poems (Lotus Press, 1989); The Ransomed Wait (Lotus Press, 1983); Halfway to the Sun (Washington Writers Publishing House, 1981); Dust of Uncertain Journey (Lotus Press, 1975); The Clearing and Beyond (Charioteer Press, 1974); Not That Far (Solo Press, 1973); Lyrics of Three Women, coauthored with Katie Lyle and Maude Rubin (Linden Press, 1964); Poems (Cricket Press, 1962); and Into the Clearing (Charioteer Press, 1959). With Willis Richardson, she coedited Negro History in Thirteen Plays (The Associated Publishers, 1935). 

Miller started writing poetry while attending Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Washington, DC, under the tutelage of Mary P. Burrill and Angelina Weld Grimké. At age 16, Miller began studying at Howard University, where she graduated in 1920. Later, she pursued studies in poetry and drama at American University and Columbia University. For two decades, she taught English and speech at Frederick Douglass High School in Baltimore. She also lectured at various institutions, including Monmouth College, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Phillips Exeter Academy. 

She was an active member of the S Street Salon in Washington, DC, where Black artists and writers gathered for four decades to connect, discuss their work, and share ideas. In the 1970s, Miller recited her poetry at significant events, including President Jimmy Carter’s inauguration in 1977.