James Weldon Johnson
James Weldon Johnson | |
---|---|
Executive Secretary of the NAACP | |
In office 1920–1929 | |
Preceded by | John Shillady |
Succeeded by | Walter White |
In office 1917–1918 | |
Preceded by | Royal Freeman Nash |
Succeeded by | John Shillady |
Personal details | |
Born | (1927) | June 17, 1871
James Weldon Johnson (June 17, 1871 – June 26, 1938) was an American writer and
Johnson was appointed under President Theodore Roosevelt as U.S. consul in Venezuela and Nicaragua for most of the period from 1906 to 1913. In 1934, he was the first African American professor to be hired at New York University.[2] Later in life, he was a professor of creative literature and writing at Fisk University, a historically Black university.
Life
Johnson was born in 1871 in Jacksonville, Florida, the son of James Johnson, a mulatto headwaiter and Helen Louise Dillet, a native of Nassau in the Bahamas. His maternal great-grandmother, Hester Argo, had escaped from Saint-Domingue (today Haiti) during the revolutionary upheaval in 1802, along with her three young children, including James' grandfather Stephen Dillet (1797–1880). Although originally headed to Cuba, their boat was intercepted by privateers and they were taken to Nassau, where they permanently settled. In 1833, Stephen Dillet became the first man of color to win election to the Bahamian legislature.[3][4]
James' brother
The achievement of his father, a preacher and the headwaiter at the
Johnson and his brother Rosamond moved to New York City as young men, joining the Great Migration out of the South in the first half of the 20th century. They collaborated on songwriting and achieved some success on Broadway in the early 1900s. Over the next 40 years, Johnson served in several public capacities, working in education, the diplomatic corps, and civil rights activism. In 1904, he participated in Theodore Roosevelt's successful presidential campaign. After becoming president, Roosevelt appointed Johnson as United States consul at Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, where he served from 1906 to 1908, and then to Nicaragua, where he served from 1909 to 1913.
In 1910 Johnson married Grace Nail, whom he had met in New York City several years earlier while he was working as a songwriter. A cultured, well-educated New Yorker, Grace Nail Johnson later collaborated with her husband on a screenwriting project.[6] After their return to New York from Nicaragua, Johnson became increasingly involved in the Harlem Renaissance, a great flourishing of art and writing. He wrote his own poetry and supported work by others, also compiling and publishing anthologies of spirituals and poetry. Owing to his influence and his innovative poetry, Johnson became a leading voice in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s.[7]
Civil rights activism
Johnson became involved in civil rights activism, especially the campaign to pass the federal
Appointed in 1920 as the first executive secretary of the NAACP, Johnson helped increase membership and extended the movement's reach by organizing numerous new chapters in the South.
While attending Atlanta University, Johnson became known as an influential campus speaker. In 1892, he won the Quiz Club Contest in English Composition and Oratory. He founded and edited the Daily American newspaper in 1895. At a time when Southern legislatures were passing laws and constitutions that
In 1904 he accepted a position as the treasurer of the
In 1916, Johnson started working as a field secretary and organizer for the
Social tensions erupted after veterans returned from the First World War, and tried to find work. In 1919, Johnson coined the term "
Johnson traveled to
In 1920, Johnson was chosen as the first black executive secretary of the NAACP, effectively the operating officer position.[1] He served in this role through 1930. He lobbied for the Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill of 1921, which was passed easily by the House, but repeatedly defeated by the white Southern bloc in the Senate.
Throughout the 1920s, Johnson supported and promoted the
Education and law careers
In the summer of 1891, following his freshman year at
After graduation, he returned to Jacksonville, where he taught at Stanton, a school for African-American students (the public schools were segregated) that was the largest of all the schools in the city. In 1906, at the young age of 35, he was promoted to principal. In the segregated system, Johnson was paid less than half of what white colleagues earned. He improved black education by adding the ninth and tenth grades to the school, to extend the years of schooling. He later resigned from this job to pursue other goals.[12]
While working as a teacher, Johnson also read the law to prepare for the bar. In 1897, he was the first African American admitted to the
In 1930, at the age of 59, Johnson returned to education after his many years leading the NAACP. He accepted the Spence Chair of Creative Literature at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. The university created the position for him in recognition of his achievements as a poet, editor and critic during the Harlem Renaissance. In addition to discussing literature, he lectured on a wide range of issues related to the lives and civil rights of black Americans. He held this position until his death. In 1934, he also was appointed as the first African-American professor at New York University, where he taught several classes in literature and culture.[2]
Music
As noted above, in 1901 Johnson had moved to
Lift ev'ry voice and sing, 'Til earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise, high as the list'ning skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on 'til victory is won.
"Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" had influenced other artistic works, inspiring art such as Gwendolyn Ann Magee's quilted mosaics.[18] "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" contrasted with W.E.B. Du Bois's exploration in Souls of Black Folk of the fears of post-emancipation generations of African Americans.
After some successes, the brothers worked on Broadway and collaborated with producer and director Bob Cole. Johnson also collaborated on the opera Tolosa with his brother, who wrote the music; it satirized the U.S. annexation of the Pacific islands.[19] Thanks to his success as a Broadway songwriter, Johnson moved in the upper echelons of African-American society in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Diplomacy
In 1906, Johnson was appointed by the Roosevelt Administration as
His positions also provided time and stimulation to pursue his literary career. He wrote substantial portions of his novel, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, and his poetry collection, Fifty Years, during this period.[20] His poetry was published in major journals such as The Century Magazine and in The Independent.[21]
Literary writing
Johnson's first success as a writer was the poem "
In this period, he also published his first poetry collection, Fifty Years and Other Poems (1917). It showed his increasing politicization and adoption of the
Johnson returned to New York, where he was involved in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. He had a broad appreciation for black artists, musicians and writers, and worked to heighten awareness in the wider society of their creativity. In 1922, he published a landmark anthology The Book of American Negro Poetry, with a "Preface" that celebrated the power of black expressive culture. He compiled and edited the anthology The Book of American Negro Spirituals, which was published in 1925.
He continued to publish his own poetry as well. Johnson's collection
Following the flourishing of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s, Johnson reissued his anthology of poetry by black writers, The Book of American Negro Poetry, in 1931, including many new poets. This established the African-American poetic tradition for a much wider audience and also inspired younger poets.
In 1930, he published a sociological study, Black Manhattan (1930). His Negro Americans, What Now? (1934) was a book-length address advocating fuller civil rights for African Americans. By this time, tens of thousands of African Americans had left the South for Northern and Midwestern cities in the Great Migration, but the majority still lived in the South. There they were politically disenfranchised and subject to Jim Crow laws and white supremacy. Outside the South, many faced discrimination but had more political rights and chances for education and work.
Johnson assisted playwright Annie Nathan Meyer in crafting the Broadway play Black Souls (1924) by editing the work for authenticity of language. The work is credited as "one of the earliest known 'lynching dramas' written by a white woman.[24]
Film
At least one of Mr. Johnson's works was credited as leading to a movie.
- "Forward: This Story of Love and Simple Faith and Triumph of Good Over Evil was inspired by the Poem "GO DOWN, DEATH!" from the Pen of the Celebrated Negro Author James Weldon Johnson, Now of Sainted Memory."
The film featured an all African-American cast, including Myra D. Hemings, Samuel H. James, Eddie L. Houston, Spencer Williams and Amos Droughan, among others. It also included a dancing and band sequence, depicting a fun-looking, middle-class oriented club with drinks and gambling, as its opening backdrop.
Death
Johnson died in 1938 while vacationing in Wiscasset, Maine, when the car his wife was driving was hit by a train. His funeral in Harlem was attended by more than 1,000 people.[7] Johnson's ashes are interred at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
Legacy and honors
- 1904: Honorary master's degree from Atlanta University.[12]
- 1925: Spingarn Medal from the NAACP for outstanding achievement by an American Negro.[25]
- 1928: Harmon Gold Award for God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse (1927).[25]
- 1929: Julius Rosenwald Fund Grant.[25]
- 1933: W. E. B. Du Bois Prize for Negro Literature.[25]
- 2007: Emory University in Atlanta established the James Weldon Johnson Institute for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies in his honor, later renamed the James Weldon Johnson Institute for the Study of Race and Difference.[26]
- The James Weldon Johnson building at Baltimore, Maryland, is named in his honor.
- The James Weldon Johnson Middle School in Jacksonville, Florida, the city of his birth, is named in his honor.
- The James Weldon Johnson Community Library in St. Petersburg, Florida, is named in his honor and to commemorate his birth in nearby Jacksonville.
- On February 2, 1988, the United States Postal Service issued a 22-cent postage stamp in his honor.[27]
- On August 11, 2020, the Jacksonville, Florida City Council renamed Hemming Park to James Weldon Johnson Park.[28]
- In 2021, the Maine Legislature designated June 17 James Weldon Johnson Annual Observance Day. The bill also created a task force of civil society organizations and Wiscasset residents to "develop methods to educate the public on James Weldon Johnson's life and legacy in order to continue his work to end systemic racism."[29]
Books
Poetry
- Fifty Years and Other Poems (1917)
- God's Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse(1927)
- Saint Peter Relates an Incident: Selected Poems (1935)
Anthologies
- The Book of American Negro Poetry (1922, editor), anthology (Link via HathiTrust)
- The Book of Negro Spirituals (1925, editor), anthology
- The Second Book of Negro Spirituals (1926, editor)
Other works
- The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (1912/1927, novel)
- Black Manhattan (1930, study)
- Negro Americans, What Now? (1934, essay)
- Johnson, James Weldon (1968) [1933]. Along This Way: The Autobiography of James Weldon Johnson (Viking Compass ed.). New York: Viking Press.
See also
- African American musical theater
- Harlem Renaissance
- Red Summer of 1919
- List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Florida
References
- ^ a b c d Gates, Henry Louis Jr.; McKay, Nellie Y., eds. (2004). The Norton Anthology of African American Literature (2nd ed.). New York: Norton. pp. 791–792.
- ^ a b "175 Facts about NYU: James Weldon Johnson". New York University. Archived from the original on April 21, 2016.
- ^ Johnson 1968.
- ISBN 978-1539030966.
- ^ "James Weldon Johnson". Harmon Collection. Smithsonian Institution.
- ^ a b "James Weldon Johnson, 1871–1938". University of South Carolina.
- ^ a b c Andrews, William L.; Foster, Frances Smith; Harris, Trudier, eds. (1997). The Oxford Companion to African American Literature. New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 404 ff.
- ^ Southern Hollows, Broad Daylight: A City Suspends Law Enforcement in 1917 to Execute a Harrowing Display of Vengeance Retrieved October 18, 2017.
- ^ "Memphis" (PDF). Supplement to The Crisis. July 1917.
- ^ NAACP Memphis website, Memphis Branch History Retrieved October 18, 2017.
- ^ Byrd, Brandon (2015). ""To Start Something to Help These People:" African American Women and the Occupation of Haiti, 1915–1934". The Journal of Haitian Studies. 21 (2). Retrieved February 2, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g "James Weldon Johnson". The Literary Encyclopedia.
- ^ Erickson, Alana J. (1960). "Red Summer". Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. New York: Macmillan. pp. 2293–2294.
- ^ Cunningham, George P. (1960). "James Weldon Johnson". Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. New York: Macmillan. pp. 1459–1461.
- ^ "The story behind the Black national anthem". Black Excellence. September 27, 2018.
- ISBN 978-1414379722.
- ^ "NAACP History: Lift Every Voice and Sing". NAACP. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
- doi:10.18737/M7102M. Archived from the originalon March 4, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
- ^ Stecopoulos, Harilaos (October 12, 2006). "A Hot Time At Santiago, James Weldon Johnson, Popular Music, and U.S. Expansion". All Academic.
- ISBN 978-0813933689.
- ^ "James Weldon Johnson". The Academy of America Poets.
- ISBN 978-0813933696.
- S2CID 161443261.
- ISBN 9780253211637.
- ^ a b c d e Reuben, Paul P. "Chapter 9: James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938)". PAL: Perspectives in American Literature: A Research and Reference Guide. California State University, Stanislaus. Archived from the original on March 2, 2014.
- ^ "Mission, History and Governance". James Weldon Johnson Institute. Emory University.
- Scott catalog# 2371.
- ^ "City Council renames Hemming Park after James Weldon Johnson".
- ^ O'Brien, Kathleen (February 24, 2022). "Memorial to Black poet, civil rights activist may come to Wiscasset". Press Herald. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
Bibliography
- Fleming, Robert E. James Weldon Johnson. Twayne United States Authors Series. Boston: Twayne, 1987.
- Hester, Elizabeth J. "James Weldon Johnson: A Bibliography of Dissertations and Theses 1939–2009."
- Johnson, James Weldon. Writings. Ed. William L. Andrews. The Library of America, 2004.
- Kishimoto, Hisao (March 1988). "The Eve of the Harlem Renaissance James Weldon Johnson (II)" (PDF). Soka University English Literary Society (創価大学英文学会). 12 (2). Soka University: 1–16. Archived from the original(PDF) on October 20, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
- Levy, Eugene. James Weldon Johnson: Black Leader, Black Voice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1973.
- Morrissette, Noelle. James Weldon Johnson's Modern Soundscapes. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2013.
- Price, Kenneth M., and Lawrence J. Oliver. Critical Essays on James Weldon Johnson. New York: G. K. Hall, 1997.
- Manning, Patrick. The African Diaspora: A History Through Culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 2010.
External links
- Digital collections
- Works by James Weldon Johnson in eBook form at Standard Ebooks
- Works by James Weldon Johnson at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about James Weldon Johnson at Internet Archive
- Free scores by James Weldon Johnson at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)
- Works by James Weldon Johnson at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
- Physical collections
- Images and archive Archived August 7, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at the Smithsonian Institution.
- James Weldon Johnson and Grace Nail Johnson Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
- Profile, images, texts At University of South Carolina. University Libraries rare books and special collections.
- Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library, Emory University: James Weldon Johnson collection, circa 1886–1980
- Other links
- Grace and James Weldon Johnson Website Archived April 9, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
- Profile at Modern American Poets
- James Weldon Johnson: Profile and Poems at Poets.org
- Profile at Poetry Foundation
- "Harold Weldon Johnson, recorded on December 24, 1935". The Speech Lab Recordings, edited by Chris Mustazza; PennSound (upenn.eud). (online audio from recordings made by W. Cabell Greet and George W. Hibbitt)
- His life is retold in the 1948 radio drama "Poet in Pine Mill", a presentation from Destination Freedom, written by Richard Durham
- James Weldon Johnson at IMDb
- James Weldon Johnson discography at Discogs