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Exiled Writer Finds Refuge in Neon16 October 2000LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Oct 16, 2000 – As reported by The Associated Press: “Syl Cheney-Coker stepped out onto his porch, lit a pipe and glanced at the sea of neon casinos in the distance. His sixth novel and a book of poems waited on his laptop computer to be finished. “…It seems a bizarre combination -- a Sierra Leone writer seeking asylum and a gambling city whose culture, if there is any, is neon, not literature. But Cheney-Coker has found refuge here in a city longing to expand its identity. “`In an ironic way, because of its presumed tawdriness, it's just the right place for a writer to define what humanity is all about,’ Cheney-Coker, 55, said Friday from his new town house. `It's a fascinating study about humanity.’ “But Las Vegas, City of Asylum? "That's exactly what University of Nevada, Las Vegas, English professor Richard Wiley thought at first. He was having dinner in November with longtime friend Wole Soyinka, a Nigerian author and president of the International Parliament of Writers, when Soyinka mentioned that no U.S. city had expressed interest in hosting persecuted writers. "So, we made a kind of joke about wouldn't it be funny if Las Vegas did it because it's so counterintuitive," Wiley recalled. "It's not what you might think of Las Vegas doing." “…Wiley took the idea to Mandalay Resort Group President Glenn Schaeffer, another longtime friend. He knew Schaeffer, a writer himself, could provide the funding the project needed. “Schaeffer agreed and the city's colorful mayor, Oscar Goodman, a former mob defense attorney, was in, too. “…Cheney-Coker fled Sierra Leone, on the west coast of Africa, in 1997 after rebels tried to smash the gates to his home in suburban Freetown. He has been a critic of military rule. “Terrorist rebels in Sierra Leone have killed tens of thousands of innocent civilians and mutilated many more since the country's civil war began in 1991. “Cheney-Coker arrived in Las Vegas last week with five novels and three books of poetry to his credit, an internationally acclaimed writer. "…Sierra Leone will never be the same again, but as a writer I owe it to my country to go back when it's sane," he said. “…The city's mayor said hosting Cheney-Coker gives Las Vegas a cultural boost. "Neon is our art form, but we're expanding our horizons," Goodman said. "It's a giant step for us." |