Episode 54: James Weldon Johnson

In this episode, we discuss the life and legacy of James Weldon Johnson. A leader of the Harlem Renaissance, he wrote fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. He also wrote lyrics for many songs, including “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing,” popularly regarded as the Black National Anthem. Johnson raised public awareness of lynching and fought Jim Crow laws through his activist work with the NAACP, of which he was President during the 1920s. He was also a lawyer, diplomat, newspaperman, opera libretto translator, and creative literature professor at Fisk University. Johnson celebrated the artistry and diversity of African-American culture—most of it overlooked, [...]