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Nightmare Begins Responsibility was published in 1975. It not only contains several sections of poems relating to his family, but also a wonderful section dedicated to Howard University Professor Emeritus Sterling A. Brown. Brown was Harper's inspiration, mentor, and friend. "Sterling always accused me of getting him out of his rocking chair when he was quite content to stay there..." (Callaloo, p. 797)
"I began to think about [the anthology that became Chant of Saints] in 1975 with the 50th anniversary of Survey Graphic, the magazine that became The New Negro. [Co-editor Robert Stepto and I] agreed that Sterling [A. Brown] was a seminal figure, a pioneer in black literature; certainly his Negro Caravan is a classic. Stepto culled Sterling's poems and came up with our title, Chant of Saints."(Callaloo, p. 797-99)