In the early 1900s, Black Americans searched for a new identity during the Great Migration. This period of time marked African Americans moving from the south to Harlem, New York City. Harlem was originally designed to be an upper-class white neighborhood 20 years prior to the Great Migration, which led to certain white residents fighting to keep African Americans out. The origins of this unique section of Manhattan are significant because of the neighborhood’s transformation from Dutch to Irish to Jewish to African descendant. The Great Migration proceeded what was known as the golden age of artistic culture, thriving literature, music and stage performances called the Harlem Renaissance. This era, which lasted between the 1910s through the mid-1930s, facilitated a way for Black people to create their own identity.

According to Explaining Black Conservatives: Racial Uplift or Racial Resentment by Byron D’Andra Orey, racial uplift is defined as a philosophy or ideology of self-help applied to Black conservatives. This ideology of educated African Americans bettering themselves relates directly to the Harlem Renaissance as Black American pursued assert artistic and social freedom. In my three blog posts, “New Chosen Identity,” “The Making of Black Excellence,” and “Worthy Black Contributions,” I explore the theme of Black excellence and Black resistance as it oozes throughout literature of the Harlem Renaissance. What makes Black excellence? What makes Black contributions worthy of being read? Is there any relevance to white people’s influences and opinions on Black people in the U.S.?  Should their influences and opinions be eliminated, and replaced under the category of irrelevancy? This blog site, “Black Excellence Thrives On,” will answer these questions with supporting examples from literature created during the golden age of Black creativity in Harlem.

This blog site is designed to explain and demonstrate Black excellence and worthy Black contributions to society as it directly relates to Black humanity. I define Black excellence as a mindset of ways where Black people excel and succeed in their blackness within their community. Black resilience was built throughout the decades of the unfortunate mistreatment of Africans and African descendants in the United States. The significance of my chosen theme is to emphasis the role lost Black Literature plays in recovering Black humanity. African Americans were seen as nothing more than property and exploited or surplus labor. Dispossession was unfairly thrown onto Black people predominately by the white community.

Harlem Renaissance literature serves as evidence of worthy Black contributions into society, which are ignored and often misconstrued as if Black people are burdens to the world. This is an issue because European colonizers have forced themselves to sustain the power of information, power over what’s considered valuable information and valuable literature. Humanity seems to only exist for Black people on digital platforms through archives. Recovering past contributions of Black people, such as Black literature, is important for reminding members of the white community that Black people are worthy beyond physical labors and the white community’s person gain.

Bringing my selected posts, “New Chosen Identity,” “The Making of Black Excellence,” and “Worthy Black Contributions,” together, it can be recognized Black creativity in Harlem flourished because of the artistic and social freedoms Black people experienced throughout the 1920s.