Existing comment:
Civil Rights and Citizen Artists
Star and Activist:
Harry Belefonte
Harry Belafonte was already a major actor and recording star when he met with Senator Kennedy during the 1960 Democratic primary campaign. Belafonte was also a close confidant of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. and had advanced King’s cause since the 1950s. Struck by how little Kennedy knew about the lives and struggles of Black Americans, Belafonte encouraged him to speak to King directly, and the two met for the first time in June of 1960.
As Belafonte became a trusted voice on these matters, Kennedy appointed him Cultural Advisor to the Peace Corps. Belafonte also organized the actors, musicians, and entertainers who came to the March on Washington. |