that Opportunityeditor CHARLESS. JOHNSONpro-
duced in part to represent the evolution and direc-
tion of the African-American literary tradition.
Countee Cullen included six of her poems in CAR-
OLINGDUSK:ANANTHOLOGY OFVERSE,includ-
ing the autobiographical poem “Revelation” about
a young girl who, like Dickinson, took great plea-
sure from walking with crowds in public.
In her open and casual autobiographical com-
mentary that preceded the poems in Caroling Dusk,
Dickinson revealed that her favorite poets were
Countee Cullen, GEORGIA DOUGLASJOHNSON,
and Edna St. Vincent Millay. Her “favorite pas-
time” was “walking along a crowded street,” and
her “favorite exertion” involved efforts to “perfect
[her] technique” as a writer of short stories.
Dickinson’s poems reflect her familiarity with
the Bible, her interest in women’s survival strate-
gies, and her belief in self-assertion.
Bibliography
Roses, Lorraine Elena, and Ruth Elizabeth Randolph.
Harlem Renaissance and Beyond: Literary Biographies
of 100 Black Women Writers, 1900–1945.Boston: G.
K. Hall & Co., 1990.
Dill, Augustus Granville(1881–1956)
A 1908 graduate of HARVARDUNIVERSITYand
member of the NATIONALASSOCIATION FOR THE
ADVANCEMENT OFCOLOREDPEOPLE(NAACP),
whose work as a sociology student was instrumen-
tal to W. E. B. DUBOIS. A native of Ohio, Dill be-
came a vital contributor to the Atlanta Studies
publication series that DuBois produced during his
tenure at ATLANTA UNIVERSITY. Dill, whose
scholarship earned him a rarely bestowed master’s
degree from the university, followed DuBois to
NEWYORKCITY, where he established the official
NAACP magazine, THECRISIS.
Dill was one of the first editorial staff members
of The Crisis. He worked closely with W. E. B.
DuBois, editor and founder of the periodical, and
with JESSIEFAUSET, literary editor and the colleague
with whom he coedited THEBROWNIES’ BOOK,a
children’s magazine. DuBois and Dill founded a
press together, but DuBois made the decision to ter-
minate Dill’s employment at the magazine in the
wake of Dill’s arrest on sexual molestation charges.
Bibliography
Lewis, David Levering. W. E. B. DuBois: Biography of A
Race, 1868–1919.New York: Henry Holt and Com-
pany, 1993.
———. W. E. B. DuBois: The Fight for Equality and the
American Century, 1919–1963.New York: Henry
Holt and Company, 2000.Dismond, Geraldyn (Gerry Major)
(1894–unknown)
A teacher, Red Cross worker during World War I,
and popular Harlem Renaissance–era columnist.
Dismond, who earned her Ph.D. from the UNIVER-
SITY OFCHICAGOin 1915, provided up-to-date so-
cial commentary for the leading African-American
newspapers of the era, including the AMSTERDAM
NEWS,the Chicago Bee,and the Baltimore Afro-
American.She was a pioneering radio personality
who became the first African-American female to
provide announcements for a commercial radio
station. She used the pseudonym Gerry Major
while serving as editor of the INTER-STATETAT-
TLERand was known widely because of her long-
time role as society editor for Jet Magazine.Divine, Father SeeBAKER, GEORGE.Dodge, Mabel(1879–1962)
A wealthy white woman who was determined to
become the patron and love interest of JEAN
TOOMER. Dodge was married to her fourth hus-
band, Tony Luhan, when she discovered Jean
Toomer. She embraced Toomer’s Gurdjieffian be-
liefs, pursued him, and encouraged his attentions
by bestowing large sums of money upon him.Bibliography
Lewis, David Levering. When Harlem Was in Vogue.New
York: Knopf, 1981.Dodson, Owen (Vincent)(1914–1983)
A poet, playwright, and novelist who pursued ca-
reers as a writer and teacher. He graduated from
the YALEUNIVERSITYSchool of Drama with a
master’s of fine arts. He began teaching theater atDodson, Owen (Vincent) 119