Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How did the NAACP and the National Urban League support the Harlem Renaissance?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Harlem Renaissance
Dust jacket designed by the Mexican illustrator and writer Miguel Covarrubias for Langston Hughes's The Weary Blues (1926), a book of experimental poetry.
The NAACP and the National Urban League were instrumental in supporting the Harlem Renaissance by providing essential platforms for African American writers and artists to publish their work and reach a national audience.123
Literary Magazines as Catalysts
The primary way these organizations fostered the movement was through their influential magazines, which served as the leading publishers for young Black authors:4
- The Crisis: Published by the NAACP and edited for many years by W.E.B. Du Bois, this magazine was a vital medium for the movement. Under the literary guidance of Jessie Redmon Fauset, it discovered and encouraged prominent figures such as Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, and Jean Toomer.45
- Opportunity: Published by the National Urban League, this magazine was edited by Charles S. Johnson, who actively sought to give a voice to Black culture. To encourage new talent, Johnson sponsored literary contests that helped launch the careers of writers like Zora Neale Hurston, Hughes, and Cullen.6
By offering these spaces for artistic expression, both organizations helped legitimize and popularize the "New Negro" movement, ensuring that Black intellectuals and artists had the visibility necessary to challenge racial prejudices and define their own cultural identity.423