Africans in Harlem - by Boukary Sawadogo (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The untold story of African-born migrants and their vibrant African influence in Harlem. From the 1920s to the early 1960s, Harlem was the intellectual and cultural center of the Black world. The Harlem Renaissance movement brought together Black writers, artists, and musicians from different backgrounds who helped rethink the place of Black people in American society at a time of segregation and lack of recognition of their civil rights. But where is the story of African immigrants in Harlem's most recent renaissance? Africans in Harlem examines the intellectual, artistic, and creative exchanges between Africa and New York dating back to the 1910s, a story that has not been fully told until now. From Little Senegal, along 116th Street between Lenox Avenue and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, to the African street vendors on 125th Street, to African stores, restaurants, and businesses throughout the neighborhood, the African presence in Harlem has never been more active and visible than it is today. In Africans in Harlem, author, scholar, writer, and filmmaker Boukary Sawadogo explores Harlem's African presence and influence from his own perspective as an African-born immigrant. Sawadogo captures the experiences, challenges, and problems African âemigrâes have faced in Harlem since the 1980s, notably work, interaction, diversity, identity, religion, and education. With a keen focus on the history of Africans through the lens of media, theater, the arts, and politics, this historical overview features compelling character-driven narratives and interviews of longtime residents as well as community and religious leaders. A blend of self-examination as an immigrant member in Harlem and research on diasporic community building in New York City, Africans in Harlem reveals how African immigrants have transformed Harlem economically and culturally as they too have been transformed. It is also a story about New York City and its self-renewal by the contributions of new human capital, creative energies, dreams nurtured and fulfilled, and good neighbors by drawing parallels between the history of the African presence in Harlem with those of other ethnic immigrants in the most storied neighborhood in America"--

Book Synopsis

The untold story of African-born migrants and their vibrant African influence in Harlem.

From the 1920s to the early 1960s, Harlem was the intellectual and cultural center of the Black world. The Harlem Renaissance movement brought together Black writers, artists, and musicians from different backgrounds who helped rethink the place of Black people in American society at a time of segregation and lack of recognition of their civil rights. But where is the story of African immigrants in Harlem's most recent renaissance? Africans in Harlem examines the intellectual, artistic, and creative exchanges between Africa and New York dating back to the 1910s, a story that has not been fully told until now.

From Little Senegal, along 116th Street between Lenox Avenue and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, to the African street vendors on 125th Street, to African stores, restaurants, and businesses throughout the neighborhood, the African presence in Harlem has never been more active and visible than it is today. In Africans in Harlem, author, scholar, writer, and filmmaker Boukary Sawadogo explores Harlem's African presence and influence from his own perspective as an African-born immigrant. Sawadogo captures the experiences, challenges, and problems African émigrés have faced in Harlem since the 1980s, notably work, interaction, diversity, identity, religion, and education. With a keen focus on the history of Africans through the lens of media, theater, the arts, and politics, this historical overview features compelling character-driven narratives and interviews of longtime residents as well as community and religious leaders.

A blend of self-examination as an immigrant member in Harlem and research on diasporic community building in New York City, Africans in Harlem reveals how African immigrants have transformed Harlem economically and culturally as they too have been transformed. It is also a story about New York City and its self-renewal by the contributions of new human capital, creative energies, dreams nurtured and fulfilled, and good neighbors by drawing parallels between the history of the African presence in Harlem with those of other ethnic immigrants in the most storied neighborhood in America.

Review Quotes

Africans in Harlem is a powerful and timely book that deserves a place on every business leader's bookshelf who is interested in issues of diversity and inclusion. As well as the historical roots of diverse urbans spaces like New York. Its rich historical tapestry, insightful observations, and timeless lessons on community, resilience, and the power of diversity offer invaluable guidance for navigating the complexities of our globalized world.-- "Forbes"

Using a multimedia approach, Sawadogo reflects on the African diaspora, viewing Harlem as a mecca and launching pad for propelling Africa to a prominent place on the world stage. . . Highly recommended.-- "Choice Reviews"

. . . Africans in Harlem is about the neighborhood/community lifecycle; the birth, growth, decline, and renewal of an urban neighborhood through the injection of new blood and immigration. Harlem's transformation thus provides an interesting case study of the decline and revitalization of an inner-city community. Urban scholars, students of African and African American studies, and the general public will find the book fascinating.-- "Journal of Urban Affairs"

Africans in Harlem is a unique and timely book on African-born migrants in Harlem that goes beyond the slavery/diaspora debate, capturing not only the ever-changing complexity of Harlem but also a narrative that is not constructed primarily around African Americans.---Isaie Dougnon, Fordham University

About the Author

Boukary Sawadogo is an Associate Professor of Cinema Studies and Black Studies at City College-City University of New York. He is the author of West African Screen: Comedy, TV Series, and Transnationalization; African Film Studies: An Introduction; and Les cinémas francophones ouest-africains, 1990-2005.