danielle legros georges was a writer, translator, editor, scholar, and author several collections of poetry, including three leaves, three roots: poems on the haiti–congo story (beacon press, 2025); the dear remote nearness of you (barrow street press, 2016), winner of the new england poetry club’s 2016 sheila margaret motton book prize; and maroon (curbstone books, 2001).  she was the translator of the anthology blue flare: three haitian poets: évelyne trouillot, marie-célie agnant, maggy de coster (zephyr press, 2024) and of island heart: the poems of ida faubert (subpress collective, 2021).  she was the coeditor, with artress bethany white, of wheatley at 250: black women poets re-imagine the verse of phillis wheatley peters  (Pangyrus, 2023) and editor of city of notions: an anthology of contemporary boston poems (boston mayor’s office of arts and culture, 2017). her poetry appeared in many literary journals and has been widely anthologized, including in new daughters of africa (edited by margaret busby, 2019).

her honors and awards included fellowships and grants from various organizations, including the american antiquarian society, the massachusetts cultural council, the boston foundation, the black metropolis research consortium, the pen/heim translation fund, and the massachusetts museum of contemporary art. In 2016, she was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of humane letters by emerson college, and in 2024, she was inducted into the american antiquarian society and named a chevalier de l’ordre des arts et des lettres by france’s ministry of culture.

she was professor emerita of creative writing in the mfa program at lesley university, and taught in the joiner institute for the study of war and social consequences writer’s workshop, at the university of massachusetts, boston, for more than a decade. she was appointed the second poet laureate of the city of boston, serving in the role from 2015 to 2019.

danielle legros georges was born in gonaïves, haiti, and raised in boston. she earned an undergraduate degree from emerson college before joining the dark room collective. she later received an mfa in poetry from new york university.  she lived in boston until her passing on february 11, 2025.