The Great Black Migration. The Harlem Renaissance became possible, if not necessary, because of the influx of millions of African-Americans from the South to the North. Many of the key men and women of the Renaissance were such immigrants. The three main reasons for the mass immigration were the failure of the cotton crop, which caused economic devastation in the South; the harsh and discriminatory Jim Crow laws, and the onset of World War I, which caused a shortage of workers in Northern factories. (Clockwise from top left: Southern family migrating to the North; black soldiers in trenches during World War I; segregation sign; editorial cartoon from The Crisis (1920) showing a black man leaving the South and lynching behind.)
The lynching of four unidentified African-Americans, circa 1900. Lynching was a common method of terrorizing the black community into submission, as well as stemming the Great Black Migration from the South. Between 1889 and 1918, 2,522 blacks were lynched, 79% in Southern communities. Causes for being lynched included everything from homicide to theft to “insult to a white person.” Until 1918, not one person in the South was punished for participating in a lynching. This situation spurred more blacks to migrate north. “Every time a lynching takes place in a community down South,” said Chicago’s Urban League President T. Arnold Hall, “you can depend on it that colored people will arrive in Chicago within two weeks.”
The Curse of Blackface. The Harlem Renaissance fought hard to erase the racist image that white Americans had of African-Americans. To a large part, the stereotypes that were so firmly lodged in the white consciousness were the result of the minstrel shows in which whites pretended to be blacks in order to ridicule their behavior. These derogatory attitudes were legitimized when beloved celebrities donned blackface to continue the practice. (Clockwise: A 1900 minstrel show poster; advertisement for the popular Amos ‘n’ Andy Show; Bing Crosby in blackface in Dixie [1943]; Judy Garland in blackface.)
Kareem, ten, towers above his team-mates at St. Jude’s Day Camp, 1958. Although his first love was baseball, Kareem’s height made it inevitable that he would give basketball a chance. At first awkward and clumsy, he began practicing by himself in order to develop the skills he would need.
Kareem, Power Memorial, 1964. Despite his realization that the school offered very little teaching about African-American history or culture, Kareem was an accomplished student, earning high grades.
Kareem, Power Memorial, ca. 1964. With only one black teacher at the Catholic school, Kareem often felt out of place.
High-school journalism student Kareem covering a press conference with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Teenage Kareem riding the subway. As a youth, Kareem was an avid reader, exceptional student, and burgeoning journalist. He spent many hours at the library studying the Harlem Renaissance.
Kareem and friend Michael Bendik playing around, ca. 1964–65.
The 1939 World Championship Rens: (left to right) William “Wee Willie” Smith, Charles “Tarzan” Cooper, John “Boy Wonder” Isaacs, William “Pop” Gates, Clarence “Puggy” Bell, Eyre “Bruiser” Satch, Zach Clayton, Clarence “Fats” Jenkins. The Rens were the first team — black or white — to win the World Championship Professional Basketball Tournament. They were inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1964.
The Rens versus the Original Celtics. Original Celtics center Joe Lapchick with Rens center “Tarzan” Cooper in what is considered the first jump ball between a white man and a black man in professional basketball. The friendly rivalry between the Original Celtics and the Rens brought out the best in both teams as they battled back and forth for years. In order to quell the racism among fans, Lapchick would often embrace Cooper before a game. Lapchick would later refer to the Rens as the best team the Original Celtics ever played.
Abe Saperstein and the Harlem Globetrotters, 1940. Bought by twenty-four-year-old Abe Saperstein in 1927, the Harlem Globetrotters were from Chicago. Saperstein chose to add “Harlem” to their name so patrons would know they were black. The Rens defeated them at the 1939 World Championship Professional Basketball Tournament, but the Globetrotters came back the next year to defeat the Rens and win the 1940 World Championship Professional Basketball Tournament. In 2002, the team was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Kareem’s parents in their apartment. Although he was a transit cop by day, Kareem’s father, a graduate of Juilliard and an accomplished musician, continued to play at night with various jazz bands.
Kareem in Power Memorial school uniform, 1965. Kareem led the high school team to many championships. But when his white coach used a racial epithet to motivate him during a game, Kareem become motivated to learn more about African-American history.
Kareem, 3, holding baseball mitt. Baseball, not basketball, was young Kareem’s first sport of choice. But his growth spurt and bullying from other students drove him to both seek refuge and prove himself on the basketball court.
Kareem playing for Power Memorial, c.1964. Kareem’s ability to leap so high allowed him to perfect the slam dunk. His ability to consistently deliver the slam dunk resulted in the NCAA banning dunking from 1967 to 1976. The ban is popularly known as the “Lew Alcindor Rule,” based on Kareem’s name when he started playing college ball.
Kareem perfects his hook shot while playing for Power Memorial, c. 1964. The shot, later called the “sky hook” because of Kareem’s ability to leap so high while launching it, became nearly unstoppable during his amateur and professional career.
Kareem’s parents watching their son play for Power Memorial.
On the Shoulders of Giants Page 30