Harlem Week has been a staple event in the community for decades. It’s a heart-warming and raucous occasion that Harlem natives look forward to and newbies in the neighborhood have come to appreciate. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the celebration.
“Harlem was heaven,” recalled former Harlem resident Theda Pinkney, 103. Born in Philadelphia, Pinkney moved to Harlem in 1925 “on the block with Sammy Davis Jr.” Fresh from the Harlem Renaissance, Pinkney fondly remembers the buzzing parades, Freemason clubs, dancing, political figures, and Apollo Theater shows that built the foundational spirit of the community—a time before Harlem Week was even conceived.
Now a week-long event, it was initially just Harlem Day, a one-time event organized by the late Manhattan Borough President Percy Sutton in 1974. Sutton chaired what was the Uptown Chamber of Commerce, known today as the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce (GHCC). The event was also produced by Blackfrica Promotions, an organization that included Lloyd Williams, the current president and CEO of GHCC.
“The theme for Harlem Week’s 50th anniversary is ‘Celebrate the Journey,’” Williams said. “It’s an invitation to our annual participants and first-time visitors to salute a half-century of Harlem Week and its many contributions to Harlem, and the ‘Harlems of the world.”
Harlem’s greatest minds and talents from the 1920s and ’30s, like poet Maya Angelou, writer James Baldwin, actor Sidney Poitier, singer/actor/activist Harry Belafonte, boxer Sugar Ray Robinson, Amsterdam News publisher Bill Tatum, and U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel, contributed to the vision for the celebration. This year’s anniversary will honor Sutton, as well as pay tribute to the original founders and celebrity supporters who were present 50 years ago.
“It never entered my mind back in 1974 that Harlem Week would be a national and historic occasion, and at the same time, provide so many economic opportunities for a countless number of people,” said Rangel, 94, in a recent interview with AmNews. “And Harlem Week is just one of the extraordinary accomplishments of Lloyd Williams. I remember when Percy Sutton and I thought about such an event as little more than a block party. I have learned so much from the people who have been a part of the celebration—their talents and entrepreneurship have been indispensable to the community’s development. The Chamber has done a great job with superb staff and leadership. I don’t think anything like Harlem Week has been done anywhere in the country.”
The intention behind the original event was to uphold Harlem’s thriving businesses and religious, educational, arts, and cultural institutions during a time of economic hardships. It was considered by actor and producer Ossie Davis as the beginning of Harlem’s “second Renaissance.” It was first held on West 138th Street and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Boulevard with a concert on the plaza of the state office building featuring musical artists like Tito Puente and Chuck Jackson.
The spirit of the first Harlem Week celebrations has carried through to the present day with a focus on moving Black art, music, and culture forward. The week honors seniors and Black figures both past and present. The event also highlights issues of racial injustice, education, technology, the impact of climate change on communities of color, legislative policies, banking and finance, and improving health outcomes in Black and Brown communities.
Harlem Week has been a beloved time for Assemblymember-elect Jordan J. G. Wright, 29, a Harlem native who grew up in Riverdale on 135th Street, and not just because his birthday is also in August. His father, Keith Wright, was the assemblymember for the district he was just elected to serve.
“I remember my mother was the special events coordinator at the Studio Museum in Harlem, so she had a booth. I would always be there helping people — I’d do work myself. My dad would come around and I’d walk around with him,” said Wright, recalling his earliest memories of the event. “It was really, really always a well-known part of the summer for me. Right around my birthday. An integral part of my upbringing, Harlem Week.”
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Wright has enjoyed the children’s village, the tennis tournament, and seeing concerts with popular performers over the last 20 years, as well as spending time with electeds who came to visit the Frederick E. Samuel Community Democratic Club on West 135th Street during the week-long celebration.
“Harlem Week is when the whole city comes to Harlem, and they indulge in everything that we have.,” said Wright about this year’s anniversary. “From the vendors to our restaurants, it’s just a great opportunity for the neighborhood.”
From August 3–18, this year’s celebration will feature more than 100 family-friendly events, culminating along 135th Street with four stages of live entertainment, international food vendors, and exhibitors at the “Summer in the City” and “Harlem Day” events, said Williams. On the last day, GHCC will recognize Tony Award-winning Broadway star Kara Young, from Broadway’s “Purlie Victorious”; Tony Award-nominated “Purlie” director Kenny Leon; and Ruben Santiago-Hudson, who captured a Tony Award for his performance in the Broadway play “Seven Guitars.”
“I’m excited about Harlem’s evolution, and how far the neighborhood has come since the economically depressed 1970s when we started Harlem Week with the first Harlem Day,” said Williams. “I’m proud to say that for 50 years, Harlem Week has continually uplifted the spirits of uptown residents; supported the growth of small businesses, [and] residential and commercial construction; and encouraged the expansion of higher education institutions and medical facilities. Importantly, Harlem Week has been responsible for many improvements in infrastructure, transportation, and other areas that have directly benefited Harlemites and neighborhood visitors.”For more information and a schedule of events, visit www.harlemweek.com.