Speech On Josephine Baker

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Josephine Baker “Ladies and gentlemen, believe when I say that it makes me profoundly happy...it makes my heart swell with pride to see in this beautiful audience tonight, salt and pepper...I mean that by colored and white brothers mingling. This brings tears to my eyes and I...I want to get on my knees to thank God for letting me see this sight today. Friends and brothers, God is good...powerful...understanding” (Baker 1). In 1951, the NAACP declared May 20 to be Josephine Baker Day. Josephine Baker was an icon. Known as the first black woman to become a world-class entertainer, she charmed the hearts of her audience members in Paris and eventually America, too. However, most of the time, entertainers are not taken seriously; celebrities …show more content…
“Her exotic, sensual act reinforced the creative images coming out of the Harlem Renaissance in America” (Johnson-Lewis 1). She had won the hearts of the people in France. She became a revolution in Europe, so much so that she took a break to focus on her real passion: others. Her passion for others stemmed from her desire for racial equality. During World War II, she helped the French Resistance by smuggling notes hidden in her sheet music. She worked for the Red Cross and became sub-lieutenant in the Women’s Air Force (Griffith 1). After her work was accomplished, Josephine Baker decided to return to America and she found her voice. In America, she was as appreciated and valued as she was in France. People were more judgemental of her skin color and as talented as she was, Americans could not see past her race. At this point, Josephine Baker was fed up with the discrimination she had faced for many years, however, it was only by the people in her native country. She refused to perform for …show more content…
She did not think she could fail, even in accomplishing things ahead of her time. She had many lives. She was a perfect combination of charisma, determination, performance, and humility; a visionary, a trailblazer, and an artist (Griffith 1). Josephine Baker was sweet in her performances, but feisty and fierce in her passions. She showed to her fans and to those who did not like her that all races and all individuals should be equal, no matter what. A prime example of this was her “Rainbow Tribe,” the twelve adopted children she had of different ethnicities. Baker was a revolution. “From her early days to the day she died, she created a path for the rest of us to follow. And I, for one, am so glad she did” (Griffith
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