Running Head: THE NEW NEGRO MOVEMENT 1

The New Negro Movement

Name:
Institution:










THE NEW NEGRO MOVEMENT 2

The New Negro Movement
The Negro word was widely used in many Anglophone countries as a reference to people
of black ancestry. A Negro is referred to as a black in Spanish and so does the same meaning
apply in Portuguese. Negro comes from an old Latin word called Niger. From 1960
onwards, different terms have been used to replace the word negro. Recently the words
African-America, blacks, and Afro-American are being used widely to replace Negro.
A major cultural black movement took place in 1920s, which was referred to as the
Harlem Renaissance or new Negro movement. This movement was synonymous with Locke
after writing his 1925 anthology. Prior to the end of civil war, many blacks living in the south
were enslaved. The end of slavery saw many empowered African-Americans strive for civil
participation, economic and political equity, and cultural self-determination. A few blacks
managed to acquire land after the civil war but most of them were exploited as sharecroppers
(Locke, 1925).
Harlem attracted many immigrants seeking jobs and a better life in America. This
movement was characterized by many black intellectuals and artists who broke free of the false
standards placed upon them by the white majority class.it was this time that black took pride in
themselves through literature, art and music to formulate their own racial and cultural identities.
This movement laid a platform for a different political, self-conscious, and spiritual belief geared
towards establishing a cultural and intellectual rebirth. The movement laid forth prominent
writers like Locke and Langston who showcased the black culture as an origin of literature, art
and identification of blacks heritage.
Alain Locke in his book portrayed that Negroes are intellectual people. He believed that
empowering blacks could be possible when blacks themselves broke free from the mentality of
THE NEW NEGRO MOVEMENT 3

slavery and saw themselves as major players in the movement. He perceived Harlem as a center
where intellectuals could contribute toward the black culture through arts (Favor, 1999).
In conclusion, Locke proved to the world that blacks were people capable of identifying
with literature, their culture and art. This he did by showcasing various great renaissance writers.
He proved that black writers were also equal to their white fellow writers.


















THE NEW NEGRO MOVEMENT 4

References
Locke, A. (1925) the New Negro.New York: touchstone
Favor, M. J. (199).authentic blackens: Folk in the New Negro renaissance. Duke university
press.