Chiké Frankie Edozien is a Nigerian-American writer and journalist. He is currently the director of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

Accra Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population of ...

. He directed the New York University Journalism Institute's Ghana based Reporting Africa program from 2008 to 2019. He is a journalist who honed his skills writing about government, health and cultural issues for a variety of publications. He is the author of the 2017 book ''Lives of Great Men'', a

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary Foundation, Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ+ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ+ literatur ...

winner. ''Lives'' was shortlisted for the Randy Shilts Award for Non-Fiction in 2018 by the Publishing Triangle. Edozien has spoken about the themes of freedom, perseverance, and courage expressed in ''Lives'' around the world from India to Australia to New Zealand to South Africa and Nigeria as well as Ghana and the United States. His work has been examined in universities around the world from Yale University to New York University to Manchester Metropolitan University as well as Kristu Jayanti College, Bangalore, University of Delhi, and more. Originally published in the UK and US by

Rikki Beadle-Blair Richard Barrington "Rikki" Beadle-Blair MBE (born 25 July 1961) is a British actor, director, and playwright. He is the artistic director of multi-media production company Team Angelica. Early life Beadle-Blair was born in Camberwell and r ...

and John R. Gordon's Team Angelica Press, in July 2018 it was brought out in South Africa by Jacana Books. ''Lives'' is available in West Africa and East Africa since 2018 on Ouida Books. ''Lives'' is an exploration of the lives of contemporary LGBTQ men and women on the African continent and in the diaspora. Edozien's "Shea Prince" was shortlisted for the 2018 Gerald Kraak Human Rights Award and his "Last Night in Asaba" was shortlisted again in 2019 for the Gerald Kraak and was part of the book ''As You Like It'' earning him a second Lambda award in 2019. His "Forgetting Lamido" was also anthologized in Safe House: ''Exploration in Creative Nonfiction''. In 2018 Edozien wrote the introduction for the New Internationalist Edition of ''Queer Africa: Selected Stories'' a collection of drawn from two ground breaking anthologies from around Africa. His work has appeared in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' (UK), ''

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'', ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'', ''

Transition Magazine ''Transition Magazine'' was established in 1961 by Rajat Neogy as ''Transition Magazine: An International Review''. It was published from 1961 to 1976 in various countries on the African continent, and since 1991 in the United States. In recen ...

'', ''

Out Traveler ''Out Traveler'' is a gay and lesbian travel magazine from the publishers of ''Out'' and ''The Advocate'', combining photography with coverage of LGBT travel topics. Published as a stand-alone title from 2003 to 2008, it was subsequently incorpo ...

'',

Black AIDS Institute The Black AIDS Institute (The Institute), formerly known as the African American AIDS Policy Training Institute, is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1999 by Phill Wilson to promote awareness and prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS b ...

, ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'', ''

Quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...

'', ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', Jalada, ''

Atlas Obscura ''Atlas Obscura'' is an United States, American-based travel and exploration company. It was founded in 2009 by author Joshua Foer and documentary filmmaker/author Dylan Thuras. It catalogs unusual and obscure travel destinations via professiona ...

'' and more. Edozien is a founding member of Afrolit Sans Frontieres Festival, a virtual literary festival founded by South African author and curator

Zukiswa Wanner Zukiswa Wanner (born 1976) is a South African journalist, novelist and editor born in Zambia and now based in Kenya. Since 2006, when she published her first book, her novels have been shortlisted for awards including the South African Literar ...

as a response to the curfews and lockdowns related to the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic. He was awarded

's Martin Luther King, Jr Faculty Award in 2017 for excellence in teaching, community building, social justice advocacy and leadership. While living in New York, Edozien was an award-winning ''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...

'' reporter for 15 years, and its City Hall reporter from 1999 to 2008 where he was the lead writer on legislative affairs. He covered crime, courts, labor issues, human services, public health and politics, reporting from around the country and abroad for the paper. Edozien's work on the shooting death of

Amadou Diallo In the early hours of February 4, 1999, an unarmed 23-year-old Guinean student named Amadou Diallo (born September 2, 1975) was fired upon with 41 rounds and shot a total of 19 times by four New York City Police Department plainclothes office ...

by four New York police officers was featured in episode three of

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

's ''

Trial by Media Trial by media is a phrase popular in the late 20th century and early 21st century to describe the impact of television and newspaper coverage on a person's reputation by creating a widespread perception of guilt or innocence before, or after, a ...

'' ("41 Shots"). He is one of the over 100 African writers to speak out in an unprecedented open letter against police brutality worldwide.

References

External links

*
''Lives of Great Men'': Review by Kanyinsola Olorunnisola
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edozien, Chike Frankie 21st-century Nigerian writers 21st-century American memoirists Nigerian journalists Nigerian memoirists American LGBTQ writers American LGBTQ journalists Nigerian LGBTQ writers LGBTQ memoirists Nigerian emigrants to the United States Living people New York Post people New York University faculty Lambda Literary Award winners 1970 births 21st-century American LGBTQ people