THE END… OR NAW?
The fall of the Harlem Renaissance began when the stock market crashed on October 29, 1929, marking the start of the Great Depression. Though the Renaissance continued until the late 1930s, the decline of the economy hit many once-rising-star artists hard. Various musicians lost their jobs and fame, as people could not afford to waste their time or money on such frivolities too often, anymore. Of course, there were many other musicians, writers, and painters whose careers continued to rise, such as Langston Hughes and Louis Armstrong.
Nevertheless, the Renaissance proved the worth of African Americans to society. It showed people of all races, even blacks themselves, that blacks could make it in America– that they were capable of freeing themselves from oppression and making something of themselves. Black pride stayed in society, inspiring people such as Martin Luther King Jr. to speak for equality; black nationalism would later become a philosophy of the Black Panthers. While the Great Depression might have ended the Renaissance, the ideals from the rebirth did not die.
Nevertheless, the Renaissance proved the worth of African Americans to society. It showed people of all races, even blacks themselves, that blacks could make it in America– that they were capable of freeing themselves from oppression and making something of themselves. Black pride stayed in society, inspiring people such as Martin Luther King Jr. to speak for equality; black nationalism would later become a philosophy of the Black Panthers. While the Great Depression might have ended the Renaissance, the ideals from the rebirth did not die.