February 27
MARIAN ANDERSON DAY
In the 1960s, folk-rock singer Joan Baez was exposed to the prejudices of the Daughters of the American Revolution when she was refused permission to use their hall for a concert. Similarly, the D.A.R. prevented opera singer Marian Anderson from performing at Washington’s Constitution Hall in 1939. The former was based on political prejudice, the latter on racial prejudice. Negative reactions to both incidents were directed at the D.A.R. and ironically, helped to promote the success of the singers.
Anderson did sing in Washington, D.C., on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. It was Easter Sunday, 1939. 75,000 people showed up to hear her sing. Thousands more heard her sensational voice on a simultaneous radio broadcast.
Marian Anderson, who was born in Philadelphia on this day in 1897, was destined to become one of the world’s finest contraltos. She began her singing career as a member of the Union Baptist Church choir. However, even a performance with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra could not dispel the racial hate that would prevent her from having a successful career in the United States. And so, Marian Anderson moved to Europe where she was accepted for her color and her magnificent voice and versatility.
Marian Anderson was the first African-American to perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera [1955]. In 1958 she became an alternate U.S. delegate to the United Nations. In 1961, she came full circle. This time, she was invited to sing in Washington, D.C. -- at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy. She was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963, a Congressional Gold Medal in 1978, the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award in 1984 and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991.
Marian Anderson died on April 8, 1993; but the sound of her voice will live forever.
Those Were the Days, the Today in History service from 440 International
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