Amina Baraka (born Sylvia Robinson; December 5, 1942) is an American poet, actress, author, community organizer, singer, dancer, and activist. Her poetic themes are about social justice, family, and women. Her poetry has been featured in anthologies including Unsettling America (1994). She was active in the 1960s Black Arts Movement, as an artist.
Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and raised in Newark, New Jersey, she graduated in 1960 from Newark Arts High School. After graduating, she became a dancer, actress, and poet. As an artist, she became a part of the Black Arts Movement in Newark. She performed at the Cellar located at the Jazz Arts Society.
Amina's mother had her at sixteen because she did not believe in abortion. And she was mostly raiseed by her grandparents. Amina grew up viewing her familyâÂÂs community involvement as a form of âÂÂcultural work,â which later shaped her own engagement in political and cultural organizing. By the 1940s, her mother and grandfather were already among NewarkâÂÂs first African American labor organizers, turning their apartment into an important gathering place for neighbors. This space was used not only for meetings but also for music, as her grandparents played a variety of instruments, including the guitar, harmonica, and piano. Her grandmother played a key role in caring for the community by preparing meals, providing clothing, and ensuring that the children were clean and well-cared-for.
In 1959, when she was in high school, she became pregnant at sixteen and had to drop out of school. The next year, she married Walter Wilson with whom she had two daughters. She divorced him five years later. Then she married Amiri Baraka in 1966, and together they had five children, including Ras Baraka who is the 40th and the current mayor of Newark, New Jersey.
Baraka was the founder of the African Free School in Newark, New Jersey, which was a liberation school (a concept by the Black activists of creating an alternative medium for students unable to attend regular educational institutions due to the school boycotts after Brown v. Board) for community children. She is one of the founding members of the Newark Art Society in 1963. She performed at the Cellar which was a place where artists from everywhere came to perfom for a short time. It was the center for Jazz and Art in Newark. There, Amina Baraka wrote and performed dance dramas. She also opened with her husband, Amiri Baraka, the Spirit House in Newark, a facility in which there was a combination of playhouse and artist's residence.
As an activist, Amina Baraka was one of the leader of the Congress of Afrikan People (CAP) previously called the Committee for a United Newark, which was founded by Amiri Baraka in 1970. She managed the Women's Division, using her competence as an activist and a cultural artist.
She performed in many stage productions produced by Amiri Baraka.