Marian Anderson’s My Lord, What a Morning 1956

Table of Contents

Marian Anderson’s My Lord, What a Morning
Overview
Context
About the Author
Explanation and Analysis of the Document
Audience
Impact
Document Text

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Abstract

“Easter Sunday,” an excerpt from Marian Anderson’s autobiography, My Lord, What a Morning (1956) details the world-renowned contralto’s recollections of her most famous performance. A landmark in African American history and a prelude to the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Anderson’s 1939 Easter Sunday concert at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., developed when the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) denied her the opportunity to perform at Constitution Hall because of her race. Led by Walter White, executive secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), an interracial coalition of influential individuals and organizations turned Anderson’s plight into a national cause célèbre.

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