The Niggerati was the name used, with deliberate irony, for a group of young African-American artists and intellectuals of the Harlem Renaissance. "Niggerati" is a portmanteau of "nigger" and "literati". The rooming house where writer Wallace Thurman lived, and where that group often met, was similarly christened Niggerati Manor. The group included Zora Neale Hurston, Langston … [Read more...] about Monday Open Thread: The Harlem Renaissance – The Niggerati and the Negrotarians
The Harlem Renaissance
Thursday Open Thread: Miss Anne(s) in Harlem
There were always two Harlems in the 1920s—the one that whites flocked to for pleasure and the one that (mostly) blacks lived and worked in. Guidebooks written for white readers presented Harlem as a “real kick,” “New York’s Playground,” a “place of exotic gaiety . . . the home-town of Jazz . . . a completely exotic world” where “Negroes . . . remind one of the great apes of … [Read more...] about Thursday Open Thread: Miss Anne(s) in Harlem
Monday Open Thread: Miss Anne(s) in Harlem
Good Morning POU! Have you ever wondered how the poets, novelists, artists and intellectual writers of the Harlem Renaissance actually afforded the ability to travel and pursue their passions? Think about it, it's the 1920s and 1930s, African Americans as a whole, were not in an economic position to buy artwork and books of poetry and novels. Many of the gifted thinkers … [Read more...] about Monday Open Thread: Miss Anne(s) in Harlem
Friday Morning Thread: Black and Red – The History of African-Americans and Communism
Howard "Stretch" Johnson, a charismatic Harlemite who graduated from Cotton Club dancer to Communist Party youth leader, once claimed that in late 1930s New York "75% of black cultural figures had Party membership or maintained regular meaningful contact with the Party." He stretched the truth, but barely. The magnetic appeal of communism for African American writers … [Read more...] about Friday Morning Thread: Black and Red – The History of African-Americans and Communism
Sunday Open Thread: The Legendary Art Tatum
Tatum is widely acknowledged as a virtuoso and one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, and was a major influence on later generations of jazz pianists. He was hailed for the technical proficiency of his performances, which set a new standard for jazz piano virtuosity. Critic Scott Yanow wrote, "Tatum's quick reflexes and boundless imagination kept his improvisations … [Read more...] about Sunday Open Thread: The Legendary Art Tatum