Asha Bandele
Revson Fellow 2004-2005
Feature Editor
ESSENCE Magazine
Asha Bandele began her work as an organizer while attending Hunter College. There, she fought to maintain a policy of open admissions and joined the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, primarily working to raise awareness about political prisoners in the United States. As her work as an organizer evolved, Ms. bandele decided that she could make her greatest contribution to the fight for human rights through her writing. She has since published three books: Absence in the Palms of My Hands (Harlem River Press, 1996), a collection of poems that speaks to social, political, and personal injustices; The Prisoner’s Wife (Scribner,1999) an award-winning memoir about her marriage to an incarcerated man; and Daughter (Scribner, 2003), a novel about the impact of police brutality on one family. From 2000-2004, she served as Features Editor and as a writer for ESSENCE Magazine, where she edited numerous pieces on the criminal justice system and interviewed a range of people including Kofi Annan, Kadiatou Diallo, Harry Belafonte and Winne Madikizela-Mandela. Ms. bandele holds a B.A. from the New School for Social Research and an M.F.A. from Bennington College. Born in the Bronx, she now lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her daughter. During her Revson year, she completed another volume of poems, The Subtle Art Of Breathing (Moore Black Press, 2005) and made a career shift, accepting the position as Deputy Director of Policy for the Drug Policy Alliance.
(The Revson Fellow’s biography that appears above was last updated in 2004. Revson Fellows may update their biographies on this site by sending email to: revson@columbia.edu)
The program helped not only by enhancing my skills as an advocate, but also by plugging me into a dynamic community for social change. Sitting on the Revson selection committee, I have had a unique perspective. I know the incredible quality of the people applying to be Revsons and what they are contributing to the city. A generation of activists has been refreshed and energized and sharpened by the Program.
