Just Buffalo Literary Center to receive $30,000 grant from National Endowment for the Arts

$30,000 grant for Just Buffalo will support literary programming

Just Buffalo Literary Center has been approved for a $30,000 Grants for Arts Projects award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to support literary programming including the BABEL series and the Civil Writes Project.

A press release noted, “BABEL brings four of the world’s most important authors to Buffalo each year, engaging local audiences, attracting guests from across the country and Canada, and creating a global literary conversation right here at home. BABEL is among 1,130 projects across the country, totaling more than $31 million, that were selected during this second round of Grants for Arts Projects fiscal year 2023 funding.”

“The National Endowment for the Arts is pleased to support a wide range of projects, including Just Buffalo Literary’s BABEL series, demonstrating the many ways the arts enrich our lives and contribute to healthy and thriving communities,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D. “These organizations play an important role in advancing the creative vitality of our nation and helping to ensure that all people can benefit from arts, culture and design.”

“Funding for the arts – especially for literature – can so often be precarious,” said Barbara Cole, JBLC’s executive and artistic director. “At Just Buffalo Literary Center, we are so proud to receive support from the National Endowment for the Arts. It’s a testament to the NEA’s unwavering commitment to arts and culture that they consistently provide such crucial support for literary arts programs like the BABEL series.”

The 2023-24 BABEL season kicks off on Friday, Oct. 6, with Pulitzer Prize-winning author and translator Jhumpa Lahiri followed by Japanese Breakfast front woman and author of “Crying in H Mart” Michelle Zauner on Thursday, Nov. 9. In the spring, Just Buffalo will welcome internationally bestselling author John Irving on Thursday, March 21, and Kiese Laymon, author of “Heavy: An American Memoir,” which was named one of the “Best Memoirs of the Past 50 Years” by The New York Times.

Season subscriptions are available through Oct. 6. This includes a ticket for all four BABEL events at Kleinhans Music Hall, as well as virtual links for all four events, offering flexibility for attendees to attend in-person or from home. Season subscriptions are available for purchase at justbuffalo.org.

Just Buffalo Literary Center’s mission is to create and strengthen communities through the literary arts. For more information, visit justbuffalo.org.