Honest Stu and Angry Andy: character study and conflict dynamics

African-Americans: Harlem Renaissance and the Black Power Movement

History does show that America has been a nation that has been seeing itself do some changes that have been happening over and over again. Also, America is recognized as being the home of the free and the brave. However, this nation that is considered to be beautiful has not at all times been this way. America has had to gone through a lot of ups and many downs to become the beauty that many look at today. Racial discrimination had a very strong part in American society. Although today, there are still racial dissimilarities. These racial dissimilarities are not as bad as they were in the back in the days of slavery and afterwards. Two of the main explanations that positive steps have been made in the direction of removing racial disparity is the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Power Movement. It is quite obvious that these two events assisted in shaping who Americans are at the moment. Even though these two events did not completely eradicate racial discrimination, they were huge rolls in making it less. These two events have many things in common, but then again also numerous differences. Without the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Power Movement, America would not be where we are these days.

Although African-Americans were appreciating the new land in the United States, they could tell that there was still something lost. Most did everything they could just to keep racial discrimination at bay. They made up new culture and then made sure they went out of their ways to be looked at as the typical American. They started looking at themselves as "New Negro's" for the motive that they defined themselves by an appreciation of some kind of ethnic difference. Likewise, they had this belief that they were living a thoroughly life that is diverse and a whole culture that is all the way new. Discrimination went on so the African-Americans left the south to head to bigger and better cities that had more chance. A lot of African-Americans went all the way to New York and mostly Harlem. Even though here the "New Negro's" begin an upheaval of their culture called the Harlem Renaissance (Huggins, 2009). This occurrence started in Harlem, the upper part of Manhattan. Also, the happening changed Harlem in to a center of creativity and art. It was at this point that the Harlem Renaissance gave birth to a new era.

How is the renaissance defined? A renaissance is considered to be a movement or era of that involves vigorous artistic and intellectual activity (Lewis, 2011). Also, in Europe, there was a famous renaissance all through the transition from medieval times to modern times that is still trained these days. There was, likewise, a not so well recognized renaissance that happened in the 1920's to the 1930's in United States that sparked in Manhattan. This occurrence was called "The New Negro Movement" but was later on down the road called the Harlem Renaissance.

All through this time, there was an unparalleled outpouring of creative activity among African-Americans that occurred in every field of art. The renaissance began as a series of fictional deliberations in lower part of Manhattan (Greenwich Village) and then the upper Manhattan (Harlem). A lot of the African-Americans had a substantial influence on modern day arts for the duration of this renaissance.

the leader and chief interpreter of the Harlem Renaissance was a mane named Alain LeRoy Locke. LeRoy determinations to uncover race-based myths of the characteristic intelligent, societal, and spiritual inferiority of African-Americans that came on the site in the post Reconstruction period are believed to be some of his utmost happenings. He pursued to put an end the usually held myths by means of his writings and by recognizing, choosing and endorsing a talented group of well-educated African-Americans to turn out to be leaders and role models in their communities (Huggins, 2009). To attain better understanding and agreement among the two races, Locke acknowledged that "...there is a rising understanding that in social effort the accommodating foundation must supplant long distance philanthropy." (Lewis, 2011)This is basically making the point that believed that Negro people would have to cultivate self-sufficiency and no longer depend on apparently altruistic efforts of other individuals.

During this time, Langston Hughes was one of the writers who published numerous works of literature. Hughes attained a medal prearranged by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People recognized as the Spingarn Medal in 1960 (Huggins, 2009). Because of this medal, he was able to join the ranks of famous African-Americans who spoke out or presented that racism was incorrect for example Dr. Martin Luther King, George Washington Carver and Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks.

Countee Cullen was another individual who played a part in the Harlem Renaissance. His works attracted critical attention at New York University. COLOR which was his first collection of poems, (1925), was printed before he completed school. Countee was recognized as being a part of the fresh generation of new authors that came out in the renaissance. Countee in 1927, printed two more books of verse - The Ballad of the Brown Girl and Copper Sun - and revised a collection of Negro poetry called Caroling Dusk. By 1928, he was the receiver of the Guggenheim comradeship and made the decision to do some work in Paris. In Paris, Cullen found a way to live for two years and went through fairly any racial discrimination there (Lewis, 2011).