Aime Cesaire was born on June 26, 1913, in Martinique.

He was raised in a small town

called Basse-Pointe. In 1931, he won a scholarship to study in Paris, France. There he
became friends with the poet, surrealist, and novelist, Rene Depestre. Cesaire also met the
author, Leon Damas. Together they started the literary review, L'Etudiant noir (The Black
Student). This was the first literary magazine by and for black people. In 1939, Cesaire
returned to Martinique. He became a schoolteacher and later the director of the Lycee
Schoelcher, a high school named after Victor Schoelcher, a white Frenchman who fought for
the abolition of slavery. In 1945, Cesaire co-founded the Parti Progressiste Martiniquais
(PPM), a political party that fought for the autonomy of Martinique within the French
Republic. He also co-founded the newspaper, Le Progressiste. In 1946, Cesaire published
his most famous work, Notebook of a Return to the Native Land. This poem is a cry for the
decolonization of Martinique and other French colonies. In 1947, Cesaire was elected mayor
of Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique. He held this position for almost 40 years. In
1983, Cesaire founded the University of the French West Indies and Guiana in Martinique.
He served as its first president. Cesaire died on April 17, 2008, at the age of 94.