Claude McKay

There are various theories in Black or Africana Studies. An Africana study is a “critical and systematic” study of the African people. Under this consists of theories that are an explanation of facts that are acknowledged. Kawaida Philosophy is one of the main theories and it is also used as in a theoretical way and how it implies in the Africana Studies. Kawaida is a philosophy first developed by Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chair of Africana Studies at California State University, which…

A divided country. A battered race. A talented poet. Racism in the early to mid 1900s was obviously a major issue in the United States. Although it still is today, the differences in cultures caused races to be isolated from each other. After the Great War, also known as World War I, the African American people in the United States were still being discriminated. In Harlem, New York, a movement emerged, called the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural, musical, artical, and…

The Harlem Renaissance was created for the simple purpose of letting African Americans express themselves through music, art, and poetry. At the time, African Americans weren’t violent in any nature, as they were prone to use art and music as their weapon to stand their ground and show the world the beautiful things they can create to overcome the hatred. But how did music and art keep the Harlem Renaissance alive for so long? Was it the culture and foundation? Or was it leading the world into a…

as a sign that her dream is coming true. Little does she know that she is being viewed as a prostitute dancer, rather than a Harlem dancer. From the poem, “Luxuriant fell; and tossing coins in praise…devoured her shape with eager, passionate gaze” (McKay, The Harlem Dancer (1922)). “Double consciousness” from the selected part of the poem occurs when the girl thinks that she is being praised for doing a wonderful job on stage as a Harlem dancer. However, on the other hand, the Whites are…

During the early 1900s, many black Americans began to move up north due to the industrial boom, and the need for a larger work force. World War one also made it necessary to ensure all military needs were met. Because of the Great Migration, many northern cities were flooded with black migrants looking for a better way of life. However, once the war ended, and soldiers returned home, competition for jobs and housing became fierce as the economy took a turn. Discrimination and segregation was…

written to expose the discrimination against Blacks. Some of the well-known works from established magazines during this period were “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes which appeared in the magazine Crisis, and “If We Must Die” by Claude McKay which was published in the magazine The Messenger (Rhodes,…

Dating back since 1863 when Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which was supposed to free slaves in the United States. The country went under turmoil and civil war when it came to the freedom of black lives. The 1900s was a time African Americans were victims of Jim Crow laws which did not allow them to be treated as equals. This included segregation and prejudice actions toward black people. In the 1960s black people in the United States led the Civil Rights movement which…

were happening such as World War 1, which was from 1914 until 1918, the Great Migration which started in 1916, and the Great Depression which started in 1929. Involved in this movement were the African-Americans, including famous figures such as Claude McKay, Zora Neale Hurston, Bessie Smith, Paul Robeson, Langston Hughes, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington. The Harlem Renaissance took place and centered…

First semester was was filled with the essentials of writing. The things you need to know how to do like using transition words or how to mimic your introduction in your conclusion. Using transition words is a skill we all learn in elementary school, but during first semester we revisited the idea. We improved our vocabulary of transitions and learn the importance of them. So in second semester I knew this was a important thing to use in my writing. One of the pieces that I used them in was my…

An individual almost cannot exist outside government in the society of modern day, meaning that government plays a large part in the lives of the vast majority of people. But what should the government do for the people, and what should the people do for the government? This question stretches to ancient times, when people would rule for the sake of being of “sacred blood”, a monarchy, a king would rule over a land and the people would do whatever the king said, simply because he was the “king”.…