Harlem Renaissance (1917-1935)
Harlem Renaissance is considered to be the brightest and the most influential movement in the history of African-American culture, particularly in literary, musical, theatrical, and visual arts. The main goal of that “New Negro” movement was to reevaluate African-American culture apart from the white stereotypes that had influenced black peoples’ relationship to their cultural heritage and to each other. Starting in 1917 and ending in 1935, Harlem Renaissance would unite all black Americans, strengthen the self-pride of their heritage, and push many black artists to the global recognition.
After the American Civil War in 1865, black American people were given many education and employment opportunities. The first black middle class that was created as a result of new abilities started expecting the same freedom of actions as white Americans. However, the racial equality was not achieved and soon new opportunities were taken away. In 1896 the Plessy Ferguson Court declared racial segregation constitutionally acceptable. This declaration harshened lives of many black people and made them seek for a place where they could freely explore their new identities as an independent nation. They found the Northern United States as a better place to live in, as racism was much less brutal there than it was in the South. For example, in Northern America all men were given the right to vote. Moreover, African-American families were provided better educational advancement. Another reason to prefer the North was that because of the industrial revolution and WWI there were lots of job opportunities. All those reasons summed up together caused the Great Migration of more than seven million African-Americans to the North. The area that they chose to settle in was Harlem, the New York neighborhood abandoned my white middle-class people. As a cause of the migration en masse, between 1900 and 1920 the number of blacks in Harlem, New York, doubled. Harlem became a cultural center, drawing intellectuals, writers, artists, musicians, photographers, and poets of African-American ancestry. Getting inspired by each other, all those people revealed new life ambitions in Harlem and called the area “The Black Mecca.”
Harlem Renaissance: The Black Heritage
Along with the feeling of the strong national unity, the literacy rates of African-American people started dramatically increasing. The emerged black middle-class began advocating for racial equality and unification of all African-Americans not only in New York, but also around the country.
One of the biggest movements was called the “Back to Africa movement.” Ruled by Marcus Garvey, the founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL), the movement encouraged African-Americans to come together, become one community with its own absolute government, and also to be proud of their racial heritage.
Another bright political agenda, The National Urban League (NUL), emerged in the early 20th century. The organization actively advised black migrants from the South, trained black social workers to be able to speak up for the justice, and worked to achieve fair educational and job opportunities to blacks.
All those movements provided blacks with an opportunity to draw the whites’ attention to themselves. As a result, it greatly affected the emergence of new concept later called “pluralism” which inspired different nations of America to develop side by side in harmony rather than be “melted” together or ranked on a scale of evolving “civilization.” The roots for that movement, which then spread throughout the whole America came directly from Black American citizens of New York City.
Important Person: W. E. B. Du Bois
Probably the most important and influential figure of Harlem Renaissance is considered to be the black historian and Harvard scholar W. E. B. Du Bois.
In 1905 he, in collaboration with African-American political activists and white civil rights workers, found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The main goals of the Association involved promoting civil rights and fighting the depreciation of African-Americans.
Instead of using more violent political means to achieve their goals, Du Bois encouraged the artists and writers of his culture to express their feelings and try to achieve the goals of civil rights and equality through art.
Thus, the NAACP started publishing magazine called The Crisis where the poems, stories, and visual works of many black artists of the period would be freely published.
In 1905 he, in collaboration with African-American political activists and white civil rights workers, found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The main goals of the Association involved promoting civil rights and fighting the depreciation of African-Americans.
Instead of using more violent political means to achieve their goals, Du Bois encouraged the artists and writers of his culture to express their feelings and try to achieve the goals of civil rights and equality through art.
Thus, the NAACP started publishing magazine called The Crisis where the poems, stories, and visual works of many black artists of the period would be freely published.
W.E.B. Du Bois’s promotion of freedom of artistic expression and his The Crisis magazine incited publishing more magazines like that: the Opportunity journal started by the National Urban League, A Journal of Negro Life, started by African-American scholar Charles S. Johnson, the Survey Graphic magazine started by black philosopher and Howard University professor, Alain Locke, and many others.
In 1925, Locke collected the best artistic works into an anthology called The New Negro. As he then explained, the book completely revealed the meaning of being a black American.
Many black writers were finally recognized and pushed the to the global literature forefront.
In 1925, Locke collected the best artistic works into an anthology called The New Negro. As he then explained, the book completely revealed the meaning of being a black American.
Many black writers were finally recognized and pushed the to the global literature forefront.