Jerome Smith: Man of the People

Contributors to the forthcoming book "Jerome Smith: Man of the People" reflect on the life of the legendary civil rights leader.

Words & Music presents a preview of the forthcoming book Jerome Smith: Man of the People. The book is a collection of essays that discusses Smith’s contributions to the civil rights movement and the city of New Orleans via his co-creation of the Tambourine & Fan organization. Edited by Freddi Williams with a foreword by Kalamu ya Salaam, contributing essayists include Raphael Cassimere, Ph.D., Jarvis DeBerry, Freddye Hill, Ph.D., Joyce Jackson, Ph.D., Randal Maurice Jelks, Ph.D., and Zada Johnson, Ph.D.

Drawing from over sixty years of archival documents, media sources, and interviews with members of New Orleans Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and Tambourine & Fan, writers discuss Smith’s civil rights activism in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Mississippi, and New York City as well as his community-based, youth-centered activism in New Orleans. Of most significance is Smith’s direct contribution to the book. His numerous interviews with writers from 2021 to 2025 provide clarity and insight that otherwise would have been lost. As one of the longest living activists from the civil rights era, Smith’s participation in this book project proved rare and priceless.

Free and open to the public; donations gratefully accepted. Donations support One Book One New Orleans' year-round work.The Andre Cailloux Center for Performing Arts and Cultural Justice is accessible to community members who require mobility-related ADA accommodations. Parking near the venue is free, though somewhat limited. The nearest RTA stop is at N. Broad and Columbus.