A Dancer in the Revolution
Author | : Howard Eugene Johnson |
Publisher | : Empire State Editions |
Total Pages | : 191 |
Release | : 2014 |
ISBN-10 | : 0823256537 |
ISBN-13 | : 9780823256532 |
Rating | : 4/5 (532 Downloads) |
Download or read book A Dancer in the Revolution written by Howard Eugene Johnson and published by Empire State Editions. This book was released on 2014 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Dancer in the Revolution explores Johnson's twenty-plus years in the Communist Party and illuminates in compelling detail how the Harlem branch functioned and flourished in the 1930s and '40s. Johnson thrived as a charismatic leader, using the connections he built up as an athlete and dancer to create alliances between communist organizations and a cross-section of the Black community. In his memoir, Johnson also exposes the homoerotic tourism that was a feature of Harlem's nightlife in the 1930s. Some of America's leading white literary, musical, and artistic figures were attracted to Harlem not only for the community's artistic creativity but to engage in illicit sex--gay and straight--with their Black counterparts. A Dancer in the Revolution is an invaluable contribution to the literature on Black political thought and pragmatism. It reveals the unique place that Black dancers and artists hold in civil rights pursuits and anti-racism campaigns in the United States and beyond.