Legacy of Harry Belafonte (1927-2023): Civil rights & cultural icon 'elevated substance over style'

The barrier-breaking artist-activist Harry Belafonte passed away in his New York home at the ripe old age of 96. The superstar entertainer introduced a Caribbean flair to mainstream US music and became well known for his deep personal investment in civil rights. Born in Harlem to a Jamaican mother and a father from the French territory of Martinique, the calypso singer and actor spent part of his childhood in Jamaica before returning to New York -- a binational upbringing that shaped his musical talents and political worldview, and saw him campaign tirelessly for racial equality. Belafonte's calypso, the genre of Caribbean music that drew from West African and French influences, saw him skyrocket to fame in the midst of post-World War II prosperity and suburbanization. For more on the passing of the larger-than-life civil rights activist and cultural icon, FRANCE 24 is joined by Dr. Nikki Brown, Professor of American and African-American History at the University of Kentucky. In sharing Belafonte's legacy, Dr. Brown highlights the fact that "he really thought that his purpose in life was to be more than just an entertainer. He liked to say that he wasn't an actor who became an activist, he was an activist who became an actor."