The Black Arts Movement The Black Arts Movement refers to a period of "furious flowering" of African American creativity that began in the mid-1960s and continued through much of the 1960s 70 (Perceptions of Black). Connected both chronologically and ideologically to the Black Power Movement, the BAM recognized the idea of ​​two cultural Americas: one black and one white. BAM insisted on the creation of a distinctive black aesthetic in which black artists created for a black audience. The movement saw artistic production as the key to revising black Americans' perception of themselves, thus black aesthetics were believed to be an integral component of the economic, political, and cultural emancipation of the black community. The concepts of Black Power, Nationalism, Community, and Performance all influenced the formation of this national movement, which proliferated through community institutions, theater, literature, and music. The symbolic birth of the Black Arts Movement is generally dated to 1965 and coincides with a major transformation in the life of its most prominent leader, Amiri Baraka, formally LeRoi Jones. Early in his career LeRoi Jones gained notoriety and critical acclaim for his works, particularly The Dutchmen, while living in Greenwich Village, in the heart of the Beat scene. However, starting in 1964 he underwent a personal transformation that led him to distance himself from white culture. LeRoi Jones divorced his white wife, moved to Harlem, changed his name, and adopted a black nationalist outlook. Shortly after the assassination of Malcolm The black collegian online. November 28, 2004.http://www.black-collegian.com/african/bam1_200shtmlKalamu ya Salaam. “Historical Context of the Black Arts Movement (BAM) – Part 2” The Black Collegian Online. November 28, 2004.http://www.black-collegian.com/African/bam2_200shtmlModern American Poetry. Ed. Cary Nelson. November 29, 2004. http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/index.htmlNeal, Larry. “The Black Arts Movement.” The black aesthetic. Ed. Addison Gayle, Jr. New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1971. 272 ​​- 290. Perceptions of Blackness: African American Visual Art and the Black Arts Movement. University of Virginia. November 28, 2004.http://xroads.virginia.edu/~UG01/hughes/blackart/htmlSmith, David Lionel. "The Black Arts Movement and Its Critics." American literary history. 3.1 (Spring 1991): 94-109.