The Langston Hughes Festival has been in existence since 1978.  Its mission is to celebrate and expand upon the literary legacy of the poet laureate of Harlem, James Langston Hughes .  We award the Langston Hughes Medal to the most distinguished writers associated with the African diaspora.  The medal is presented as the culmination of a day of salons, scholarly conferences and symposia in celebration of the legacy of Langston Hughes, as well as a creative performance in tribute to the honoree and an interview of and reading by the honoree.