Black Quotidian: Everyday History in African-American Newspapers

March 12, 1936

On March 12, 1936, the Philadelphia Tribune reported that contralto Marian Anderson would soon set sail for a European concert tour. By 1936 Anderson had already established herself as an internationally renowned singer, and this brief news item in her hometown paper makes it clear that she was also beloved by a variety of groups in New York. The Tribune noted that the New York chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority was giving a bon voyage party for Anderson at the Y.W.C.A in Harlem, that the Union Baptist church where she was a member hosted a reception for her, and that Anderson entertained a large number of children at her home.  

This European tour came three years before Anderson’s iconic performance at the Lincoln Memorial, where she performed before 75,000 people after being denied access to Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. I like this Tribune piece because it highlights the more intimate communities that had long valued Anderson’s talents.

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