“A Double Minority”: Black and Jewish Identity in James Van Der Zee’s and Lloyd W. Yearwood’s 20th Century Harlem Photography

• In Event: Visual Arts

Abstract

Twentieth century Harlem was a multicultural New York City neighborhood that served as the city’s center of Black culture and politics and was a place with many different spoken languages, religions, and countries of origin. One cultural group in Harlem that has received little examination from an art historical perspective are Black Jews, whose congregations began in the early 1920s. Black Jews followed Jewish and Talmudic traditions, kept kosher, and participated in the larger Jewish community within the New York region. Yet, they were viewed with skepticism by other Black people and by other Jews, and they considered themselves to be a “double minority.”

Black photographers James Van Der Zee and Lloyd W. Yearwood used their medium to document Black Jews in Harlem, depicting a vibrant and thriving Jewish community, including bar mitzvahs, Passover seders, and Shabbat services, among many other observances and celebrations. This paper uses archival research and art historical analysis to examine Black and Jewish identity through Van Der Zee’s and Yearwood’s 20th century photographs. It is part of a larger project that analyzes how Jewish themes in Black art helped shape the formation of racial identity in America. This paper argues that Black photographers provide a unique perspective on Black Jewish life in Harlem and that their photography yields valuable insights into how this group navigated racial and religious identity in America. Because Blacks and Jews have experienced decades of simultaneous synergies and conflict in the US, understanding the convergence of Black and Jewish identities in 20th century Harlem enhances the visual and historical narratives of this important relationship.

Author

• LaNitra Berger, George Mason University