JOSEPHINE BAKER

HERO IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

INTRODUCTION

• Josephine Baker was a legendary singer, dancer, and actress. She was also a campaigner in her later years for the civil rights movement. Josephine has an interesting heroic story that began on June 3, 1906. She was a great person and a hero for all.

HER YEARS YOUNG

• Freda Josephine McDonald was born in St. Louis Missouri, 1906. Her mother is Carrie McDonald. Her father is still a mystery. When Josephine was 8 years old she was sent to work in service. If she did one of her chores wrong her employers would abuse her. She finally decided enough was enough and left her work. Josephine had suffered from racism. She was eleven when she left her home for good. She slept on the streets and scavenged for food. She danced on the street to earn money for food. She was soon found and was hired to perform.

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HER STAR YEARS

• By the time Josephine was fifteen she had found her way to New York and was performing on Broadway. In 1925 she had the chance to tour Europe. Josephine went to France and fell in love with it after a performance she had to do called "Theater des Champs Elysees". Because of all the abuse back in her home she had decided to make France her home. In the 1930s she had become a singer too. When she was doing this she recorded many songs. Josephine had some movie success but left to tour the Americas also in the 1930s. She received no abuse, just love of her performances.

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JOSEPHINE'S WAR YEARS

• During World War 2 Josephine felt like she should help her adopted home country. So she went to be a Resistance Spy and a "honorable correspondent". Josephine had a role to gather information that she might overhear in theaters or at parties in her role as a host or entertainer, and passing the information on to the authorities. She was still a dancer and entertainer so she had more reasons to move around the country of Europe so no one would question her. Josephine also had to sneak in secret codes and messages to France without getting caught. This was done on the sheets of music she used for her performances. She also helped people in France escape from being hurt by the Nazis, again risking her safety to do it.

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JOSEPHINE'S CAMPAIGN FOR CIVIL RIGHTS

• Although Josephine gave up her U.S citizenship in 1937, she still wanted to help. In 1950 she was a fierce campaigner. Many people were calling her names but that only added more fuel to her fire. Josephine refused to perform for segregated audiences. But later Josephine performed for people who had removed racism from their state.

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HER YEARS MIDDLE

• Josephine was not able to give birth so she adopted 12 children that were all different races to prove that all races can live together in peace. In 1963 she spoke in favor of Martin Luther King. She was the only woman to speak there. Her speech was: “I have walked in the palaces of Kings and Queens and in the houses of Presidents. But I could not walk into a hotel in America and get a cup of coffee, and that made me mad. And when I get mad, you know, I open my big mouth. And then you know, look out, ‘cos when Josephine opens her big mouth they hear it all over the world. I am not a young woman now, friends. My life is behind me. There is too much fire burning inside me. Before it goes out I want you to use what is left to light the fire inside of you…". Josephine spoke again in the following year in New York. Mrs. Baker encouraged families to come listen. Her speech was all about how everyone should be treated equal.

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JOSEPHINE'S FINAL ACTS

• Josephine worked the rest of her life, never slowing down and losing the pace. She did change the dancing acts to slower songs. In 1975 she went to the "Bobino" in Paris to celebrate the fifty years of being a performer. On the 4th night she had gone to bed but when Josephine woke up she saw newspapers surrounding her for the reviews of her performances. Mrs. Baker had sadly suffered from a stroke and had passed away later that day at age 65, on August 12, 1975. Josephine Baker was an amazing person and did many amazing things.

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JOSEPHINE'S HEROISM

• Josephine was a hero because she helped more than one country. She helped her adopted home country in World War 2 and helped campaign for civil rights in her home country.

WHY I CHOSE HER

• Josephine Baker helped numerous countries even though her home country (America) was horrible to her in childhood. She had thought that segregation was horrible and wanted to help stop it. She also helped her adopted home (France) in World War 2. She lived a full life and danced through all the bad.

CONCLUSION

• Josephine Baker had a full life. She did many amazing things in her 65 years of life. Josephine was helping her country with war, she was a legendary entertainer, and she adopted 12 children to prove that all races can be together. She was an amazing person and did everything she could to help.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

• Google provided pictures.

• greatblackheroes.org provided the information.