African American Women and Feminists of the 1920s

Feminist of the 1920’s In the 1920’s, blues was a very popular and dominating genre in the music industry. Generally, the blues was sung by African American women because according to the book entitled, â€Å"Blues Legacies and Black Feminism† by Angela Davis, â€Å"†¦The most widely heard individual purveyors of the blues—were women.† (Davis 4) The blues delivers certain emotions such as sadness, loneliness, love, sex, and feelings about the certain circumstances the artist may be going through at the time. Two women who dominate this style of music are Gertrude â€Å"Ma† Rainey and Bessie Smith. As stated by â€Å"Gay Lesbian Biography†, â€Å"The careers of Rainey and Smith are closely interwoven.† Ma Rainey is a woman who is admired for both her amazing vocals and her ability to entertain. Bessie Smith is a woman who started off as a background dancer for her peer Ma Rainey, but then went on to emulate her by outdoing her success. Both women are ve ry talented musicians who can not only sing and entertain, but they also create an impact as two of the most influential feminists during the 1920’s who helped shape the blues into what it is today. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, â€Å"Feminism is the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.† Today there are millions of feminists, compared to the 1900s, where feminism was very seldom. During the early 1900’s, slavery and the domestication of women (no matter what race they were), was very common. Beginning inShow MoreRelatedEssay on Sula1337 Words   |  6 Pagesare not only women living in a patriarchal world, they are also African American, which further exposes them to mistreatment and pre-determined societal roles. African Americans during the 1920’s were experiencing great social injustices and mistreatment, along with the likes of women who were also experiencing inequality to a lesser degree during this time a s well. 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