About
Senegalese author and film director whose masterpiece novel, God's Bits of Wood, was inspired by real-life events. His later, politically-themed works include The Last of the Empire and Niiwam and Taaw.
Before Fame
He was drafted into the Senegalese corps of the French Army, and he fought in World War II.
Trivia
He received a prestigious award at the 1979 Moscow International Film Festival.
Family Life
The son of a fisherman, he was raised primarily by his maternal grandmother.
Associated With
He and civil rights leader Dorothy Day were both committed to social change.
