Education as a Part of the Harlem Renaissance Essay -- Harlem Renaissa

Education as a Part of the Harlem Renaissance In 1917, the United States found itself buried in a conflict with many different nations. Labeled as World War I, the United States goal was to support the fight for democracy across the world. As the war progressed, there was a need to fulfill many jobs due to the labor shortages that the North had been experiencing. To be more exact, the North received a major labor blow, due to the large enlistment of men into the Army. The draft also helped to cripple the labor supply of the North. The fact that the North was primarily industry based, caused many jobs to become vacant, and created an extremely high demand for an immediate labor force. Large numbers of African Americans migrated from the South to the North in response to the need for a steady labor force, and in hopes of finding economic growth. As World War I ended, many more African Americans migrated from the south to the north due to an overwhelmingly large amount racial tension in the aftermath of the war. This great mig ration of African Americans, from the south to the north led to black settlements in some of the larger northern industrial cities, such as Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and New York. In about 1920, many of the African Americans who had moved to the north from the south were beginning to embrace the concept of the â€Å"New Negro†, which was a movement that was not only a social revolt against racism, but also served as a literary movement, as well as redefined African American expression. This movement better known as the Harlem Renaissance was a key contributor to African Americans, and the way that their roles changed in the United States, on the road to equal rights as well as economic equality. The Harlem Renaissance will forever be remembered as the turning point in African American culture, as well as their place in America today. Harlem Renaissance An era of written and artistic creativity among African Americans that occurred after World War I, and lasted until the middle of the 1930’s depression; This is the definition that you would probably get for the Harlem Renaissance if you looked it up in a book, but the Harlem Renaissance was much more than that. The Harlem Renaissance was an expression of redefined African Americans who felt a sense of self-pride, and promoted the celebration of their African American herita... ...erature was written with such intricate writing methods, and complex undertones. The works of the period were a tough read. Many black felt the nee to be informed on what was going on in their communities. Many black journals, and magazines published and owned by black intellectuals kept blacks abreast on what was going on in the cities. Another influence of Education was an influx of black immigration from the West Indies during the 1920's. This immigration was in result of many of the Caribbean people thinking that there was a chance of greater prosperity, as well as opportunity in the United States, than in their country. New York soon began to become a center for immigration into the United States. Unlike many of the southern blacks that migrated to the north after World War I, there was almost no illiteracy amongst the immigrants. They were described as being sober-minded, and having a genius for business enterprise.† Furthermore it was mentioned that, â€Å"one-third of the city's Negro professionals, physicians, dentists, and lawyers were foreign born." Education made the Harlem renaissance a learning experience, and paved the way for other black intellectuals to emerge.