Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance covered many different areas of life. There was no precise beginning or ending point of the Harlem Renaissance. There were a few things that really surprised me about the Harlem Renaissance. One thing that surprised me is what Harlem is. I always thought that Harlem was a separate part of New York City. I did not realize that it was just a small section within Manhattan Island.
Another thing about the Harlem Renaissance that really surprised me was how many people with ties to Kansas were important to the time. I had always heard of Langston Hughes, the poet / author, but I had never heard of Aaron Douglas, Gordon Parks, Sr., or Claude McKay.
Aaron Douglas was born and raised in Topeka, KS. He earned his bachelors degree from the University of Nebraska in 1922. He was an art teacher for a period of two years in Kansas City, Missouri. He was a great African American artist.
Gordon Parks, Sr. was born in a town close to mine, Ft. Scott. He grew up in poverty, as his parents were very poor farmers. When he was a teen his mother died and his father send him to live with some relatives. He got into an argument with one of the relatives and was kicked out to live on the streets. He got a job working on the railway and bought a camera. He was a photographer, novelist, filmmaker, and in he worked for a short time with the FSA.
Claude McKay attended Kansas State University for two year, 1912-1914. He was born in Jamaica and came to the United Stated to attend Tuskegee. He was bright, but not cut out for a Tuskegee student. In Manhattan he says that he was introduced to W.E.B. Du Bois and the socialists. He moved to Harlem in 1914.