The Harlem Renaissance: Civil Rights Movement

The Harlem Renaissance, or the New Negro Movement as it was known at the time, was an intellectual, artistic, and social outpouring that celebrated black culture with themes of what it meant to be black in America. This movement lasted from the 1920s through the 1930s and included artists and intellectuals such as Langston Hughes, W.E.B. DuBois, and Duke Ellington. The Harlem Renaissance went beyond art, literature, and music, there were also political, social, and economic aspects as African-Americans questioned how the United States viewed them and how they viewed themselves. The New Negro and the rise of Harlem came about at a time when African-Americans began to urbanize and form a unique urban culture. These African-Americans defined themselves on their own terms, were proud to be both of African descent and American citizens, and were not afraid to push back against racism.

This gave black people hope for a new better life in the Northern states where those laws weren’t enforced. This renaissance was a cultural party that helped expose black writers, musicians, poets, artists, etc. This changed the culture forever and the talent started to spillover within the black community. Art was pushed to its limits and was a form of a statement and representation.

Have you ever thought of the changes that had to take place for all races to gain equality? The Harlem Renaissance was the revolution in America's history when the black community was being accepted and they were getting closer to equality to all. There were many things that sparked the Harlem Renaissance such as, such as jobs, opportunities for freedom and self-expression. The Harlem Renaissance is considered a Renaissance as it involved a change in the majority of society creating a rebirth type of event. The social change in this Renaissance was caused by the whites and blacks both starting to converge and easing the racial tensions.

Hughes cast off the influences of white poets and and used blues and jazz to write his poems. Claude Mckay urged African Americans to stand up for their rights in his work. Jean Toomer wrote plays,short stories, and poems to capture the spirit of his times. Zora Neale Hurston was noticed quickly with her moving novel, “THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD”.

African Americans lived in a world of racial injustices and cultural restrictions until the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a time where there is an African American literary and art movement in the uptown Manhattan neighborhood. It is the turning point in African American culture, as well as their place in America. The African Americans were starting to become equal in American society. While the Renaissance built on earlier traditions of African American culture, it was greatly affected by the trends of the Europeans and white Americans.

In this piece, McKay talks about how African Americans have been oppressed throughout history and shows the sadness he has for his people, “My heart grows sick with hate, becomes as lead,/ For this my race that has no home on earth(7-8).” He also wants his people to be liberated and be able to live as equals with white people, which they've been denied the right to do. Another poem which shows how the themes of the Harlem Renaissance shaped his writing is If We Must Die. In this piece, McKay talks about how he doesn’t want black people to die in vain like that had been throughout history but rather let them die with honor and dignity because they matter just as much as the white people, or “the murderous, cowardly pack”. In the line, “ If we must die-let it not be like hogs/ Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,/ While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,/ Making their mock at our accursed lot./

This movement inspired a rise in African-American artists and gave them a way to express their feelings in many art forms. Langston Hughes, a popular writer from this point in history, used his magazine to lift young African-American artists on to

During the era of the Harlem Renaissance, a variety of different magnificent poets utilized poetry to express the feelings and pain that was inflicted upon them during that time period. A long time after the African Americans gained freedom and rights they still suffered. The Harlem Renaissance was a very crucial point in American history. People struggled to break down the racial barriers that were commonly associated with the Jim Crow laws. Many African Americans ought to express themselves through art and literature to exercise their rights.

The Harlem Renaissance was given its name because cultural, social, and artistic explosion took place in Harlem between 1918 and mid-1930’s. During this period Harlem was the go to place for black writers, artists, musicians, poets, and many others. A majority of people came from the South, because they were fleeing its caste system to find a place where they could freely express themselves and their talents. Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Walter White and James Weldon Johnson were amongst the many artists who became very well known. Du Bois, editor of THE CRISIS magazine, the journal of the NAACP, published the poems, stories, and visual works of many artists.

The Harlem Renaissance was a phase of a larger New Negro Movement that had arisen in the early 20th century and in some ways ushered in the civil rights movement of the late 1940s and the early 1950s. The social foundations of this movement included the Great Migration of the African Americans, from rural to urban spaces, and the dramatically advancement of literacy. The creation of national organizations dedicated to helping African American civil rights, and “uplifting” the race by developing race pride. The Renaissance was a literary, artistic, and meaningful movement that sparked a new black cultural identity that lasted until the 1920s to the mid 1930s.

So what has this taught America? America has learned that the fight for equality and against discrimination is ongoing. Additionally, the movements fight for equality has become the basis for other progressive movements. Immigration reformation, for example, exudes a myriad of similarities to the protests and legal actions of the 50’s and 60’s.

His beautiful, attention grabbing paintings completely captured culture

The Harlem Renaissance was a period of great cultural growth in the black community. It is accepted that it started in 1918 and lasted throughout the 1930s. Though named the ‘Harlem’ Renaissance, it was a country-wide phenomenon of pride and development among black Americans, the likes of which had never existed in such grand scale. Among the varying political actions and movements for equality, a surge of new art appeared: musical, visual, and even theatre. With said surge, many of the most well-known black authors, poets, musicians and actors rose to prevalence including Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Louis Armstrong, and Eulalie Spence.

The Harlem Renaissance was a burst on African American’s expression of culture, arts, and writings throughout the 1920’s. It was in Harlem, New York, the movement allowed many African American poets, painters, musicians, authors and philosophers to express the beliefs in their people's culture. They wanted to be equal to white people so they showed that through their talents. Louis Armstrong was a key asset to the Harlem Renaissance due to his inspiring music and playing his instruments for African Americans people during this period. Louis Armstrong was a pivotal musician in the twentieth century, but it was his contributions and his role he made during the Harlem Renaissance movement that is most substantial.

The Harlem Renaissance and “The Lottery” The Harlem Renaissance time period and “The Lottery” documentary have many similarities to them. People are attempting to stand up and voice their opinions to make their lives and their children’s lives better. Good educational opportunities in a person’s community is a necessary requirement to improve one’s life situation and to be able to have a positive impact on society, but it was not and still is not offered to everyone in America.