Harlem YMCA by D. Bell ©2003
The New York Times published a fantastic history on the Harlem YMCA. Anyone who has read their fair share of Harlem Renaissance literature knows what a pivotal role the Ys in Harlem played in providing housing and other opportunities to our renaissance legends.
This bastion of black history is the Harlem Y.M.C.A., sometimes called the “living room of the Harlem Renaissance.” The 11-story brick building, on 135th Street off Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard, also played a critical role throughout segregation, when blacks were barred from other Y.M.C.A.’s and were similarly unwelcome at many hotels, theaters, restaurants and other public places in the city — including Harlem itself.
Read the rest of the story here.
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Posted in: Community
Posted on October 24, 2008 by D. Bell