LEXINGTON, KY - It was 30 years ago that the University of Kentucky held the first Women Writers Conference. An anniversary celebration was held on Friday, September 11, when women from across the Commonwealth and beyond gathered at Portofino's to recognize Sallie Bingham for her support over the years.
Former director of the Women Writers Conference, Betty Gabehart, spoke of a magic thread that has helped hold the conference together, that thread being Louisvillian Bingham. "In the early days, Sallie's financial contributions made it possible to bring top writing talent to Lexington, including Alice Walker and Maya Angelou. Sallie Bingham has been a donor, a conference participant, a presenter and an inspiration for many women writers." Gabehart, director from 1985-1993, established much of the reputation the conference enjoys today.
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Bingham spoke of her years at Harvard in the late '50's, where, she says, she never had a female professor and never read women writers. One of her first short stories, , published in Harvard's literary magazine, , caused an enormous uproar in Cambridge because of its focus on a couple caught in a dependent but unhappy affair. One of the Deans admonished Bingham that "her writing was threatening alumni giving andÖbenefactors did not want to know about students' sexual lives," she told the sold-out luncheon crowd. The Dean further insisted that all references to Cambridge be removed before the article was published in . "Women writers were so marginalized at that time; there were no female editors or publishers or mentors."
"Now the longest running literary festival of women in the nation, the Kentucky Women Writers Conference," according to Executive Director Julie Wrinn, "has become a premier destination for the celebration of women's arts and letters." More than 300 women and men attended the 30th Anniversary Conference held over September 10 - 12 at the Downtown Public Library and The Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning. Participating writers included Nikky Finney, Susan Vreeland, Elizabeth Alexander and Honoree Fanonne Jeffers.
Funding for this annual event is provided by the University of Kentucky, foundations, corporations and individual contributions.