Celebration of Women's History Month: Ruby Dee

March is Women’s History Month and every year, Harlem One-Stop pays homage to women who have achieved great things and made valuable contributions to society. This year, we’re honoring Ruby Dee, an actress who has appeared in hundreds of plays, movies, and television shows, the author of several books, and a staunch political activist.

Ruby Dee was born Ruby Ann Wallace in 1922 in Cleveland, 

Ohio, and grew up in Harlem. She fell in love with acting during her teen years studying at both Hunter College and the American Negro Theater in Harlem. Dee began her career as a stage actress making her debut in 1946 in the Broadway production of Anna Lucusta and was married to blues singer Frankie Dee Brown from 1941-1946. In 1948, she married fellow actor Ossie Davis, her best friend and frequent co-star whom she met while starring in Robert Ardrey’s play Jeb about a black soldier who returns home to his family in the south with a broken leg after serving in World War II.  Dee then made her film debut playing Jackie Robinson’s wife Rae Robinson in the 1950 biographical film The Jackie Robinson Story starring Robinson himself. Dee’s next big break came in 1959 when she landed the role of Ruth Younger in a Broadway production of A Raisin in the Sun in 1959, for which she received critical acclaim. Sidney Poitier was her co-star in the playing the role of Ruth’s husband Walter. Dee and Poitier would reprise their roles in a 1961 television version the play.

Dee continued getting more and more honorable roles in film, theater, and television and often collaborated with her husband. She starred in Davis’ 1961 Broadway play Purlie Victorious in which Davis played the title role of preacher Purlie Victorious Judson who tries to save a local Georgia church and Dee played a housemaid. The two would play the same parts in a 1963 film version of the play. In 1965, she became the first black woman to star in lead roles playing Cordelia in King Lear and Kate in The Taming of the Shrew at the American Film Festival in Stratford, Ct., and she was the first black actress to star on an evening soap opera playing Alma Miles on Peyton Place in 1968.

In 1980, Dee and her husband launched a half-hour talk show called Ossie and Ruby that aired on PBS where they presented the work of black artists. They received high praise for their roles in Spike Lee’s 1989 drama Do The Right Thing where Dee won an Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Motion Picture and Davis for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture. In 1998, celebrating 50 years of marriage, the two wrote an autobiography called With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together which is an honest account of their lives as a couple and as individuals as well as the professional and personal challenges they’ve faced and overcame.

  

Ossie Davis’ unexpected death in 2005 was a devastating loss for Dee, but despite her grief, she continued to work receiving a Screen Actors Guild award and an Academy Award nomination for her role as the mother of notorious drug dealer Frank Lucas played by Denzel Washington, and most recently narrated the 2013 biographical television film Betty and Coretta about the widows of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Other notable roles during the later years of Dee’s life include those of Grandmother Baxter in a 1979 television production of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings based on Maya Angelou’s classic novel, prolific author Zora Neale Huston on the 1990 PBS special Zora Is My Name, and Rowena in the 1991 film Decoration Day for which she won an Emmy.

Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis were very active during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s participating in several marches including the 1963 March on Washington where they served as emcees. They spoke out on numerous issues fighting for the rights of African Americans, and were close friends with both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X with Davis delivering the eulogy at the latter’s funeral. Dee was a member of many civil rights groups and organizations including NAACP, Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the Delta Sigma Theta sorority, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

The two have also earned many awards and recognition for their activism and contributions to the arts. Dee won a National Medal of the Arts in 1995 and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild in 2000. In 2004, she and Davis received Kennedy Center Honors. In 2007, Dee and Davis’ memoir With Ossie and Ruby won a Grammy for best spoken word album, a category that includes audio books.

Other books Dee has published include My One Good Nerve which features a collection of short essays, stories, and poems, and the children’s books Two Ways to Count to Ten, and Tower to Heaven.

While Dee has firmly established herself as a successful actress and activist, Dee has never forgotten her roots and credits growing up in Harlem to be a major part of her identity. "I don't know who I would be if I weren't this child from Harlem, this woman from Harlem. It's in me so deep," she has said. 

Ruby Dee passed away on June 11, 2014 at age 91 at her home in New Rochelle, N.Y.

Alison Martin for Harlem One Stop

7 Days to Valentine's Day - A few ideas to get you started..

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and you’re probably thinking about what to get that special someone in your life for this most romantic day of the year. Harlem’s many boutiques and gift shops, including museum gift shops, offer an array of treasures that will surely bring a smile to both your and your loved one’s face. Below is a list of some neighborhood gems and their featured wares.

What would Valentine’s Day be without flowers? Harlem’s premier florist, La Fleur d’Harlem, will be open all day Saturday and Sunday February 13 and 14 for those looking for the traditional

dozen red roses for their sweetheart, or for one of owner Louis Gagliano’s creative custom arrangements. You can get the time-honored dozen long-stemmed beauties (or “two dozen,” says Gagliano), or have your roses arranged in a round bouquet. If you want, he’ll also make up one of his special floral “sculptures” using two types of orchids on a dogwood frame. Tell him what you need, and he’ll try to help. “People use us as consultants,” he says. “They tell us their stories, and want us to give them something that will help their relationship.” At 203 W. 144th St., (646) 850-5973.

The handcrafted, artisanal delights of the Harlem Chocolate Factory will be on sale at a special “Made with LOVE” Valentine’s Day pop-up on Saturday, Feb. 13, from noon to 4 p.m. at Vivrant Beauty, along with the creations of a local jewelry maker and other Harlem artisans. And, of course, Vivrant’s own selection of skincare, hair care and cosmetic products are available too. At 220 St. Nicholas Ave. (at 121st St.) (212) 865-0100.

There’s a Chocolate Day Lecture at the historic Morris Jumel Mansion, on Saturday, Feb. 13, from 2 to 4 p.m., where you can learn more about the food you love the most! MJM Executive Director Carol Ward and Assistant Curator Kelsey Brow will discuss all things chocolate, from the history of its consumption to the ways and means of the chocolate pot. Tastings, of course, will be included. At 65 Jumel Terrace, (212) 923-8008.

Admission: $30, $25 for members. Advanced registration is required.

The Museum of the City of New York’s Gift Shop, in the museum is a Valentine’s Day treasure of love, with bargain gifts ranging from a Floating Hearts Note Card Set for $11.95 and a Guide to New York’s Most Romantic Spots for $24.95, to higher-end handmade jewelry from New York designers like a pair of Double Heart Clip Earrings, signed by the artist in 24-karat green gold over silver alloy for $540. At 1220 Fifth Ave. (at 103rd St.) (212) 534-1672.

At the Gift Shop of The Studio Museum in Harlem,

you’ll find attractive items at reasonable prices such as a trademark Studio Museum Umbrella for $9.99, T-shirts and mugs inscribed with the truism “Black is Beautiful” (T-shirts $25, mugs $12 )and a colorful Stanley Whitney Pocket Tote Bag for $25. At 144 W. 125th St. (212) 864-4500.

 

For that stylish special someone, a chapeau from Flamekeepers Hat Club, might be just the ticket. This unique boutique sources its hats and caps from designers all over the world, and also design its own. Most of their wares are sold to men, but owner Mark Williamson points out that “30 percent of our clientele are women.” Caps start at $45 and hats at $85. At 273 W.121st St., (212) 531-3542.

 

At Nilu, a small but welcoming space that’s a community favorite, you will find simple but creative items from local artisans and designers. The shelves display chic designs alongside homey items, with offerings that include decorated scarves, unique jewelry, purses and totes, and stylish shirts, dresses, sweaters, hats and shoes that will dazzle your special lady. There’s also an assortment of scented candles and some original paintings. At 191 Lenox Ave. (at 120th St.) (917) 806-8635. 

Dress your man up and put a smile on his face with items from Harlem Haberdashery, an upscale men’s clothing store that offers stylish clothing, shoes, hats, and other accessories from the exclusive 5001 Flavors brand popular among celebrities and sports figures. Each piece combines the distinctive style of fashion from the Harlem Renaissance era with the latest, cutting-edge trends in fashion today. The products are designed in the store’s Harlem facility and are not available anywhere else in the world. At 245 Lenox Ave. (bet. 122nd and 123rd St.) (646) 707-0070.

Appealing skin and hair care products for men and women with the most luscious scents imaginable at Carol's Daughter, founded in 1993 by Lisa Price and named for her mother.

Tantalizing scents include Almond Cookie, Black Vanilla, Monoi, Ectasy, and Ocean found in body lotions, colognes and shower gels with prices ranging from $8-$32. Or try some of the limited edition items like Vanilla Truffle Body Cream and the Lavender and Vanilla Body Cream both for $29. At 24 W. 125th St., (212) 828-6567.


Alison Martin, Contributor
Harlem One Stop/Beat on the Street 

Historic Harlem on My Mind, Part 2 - Harlem’s Colored Orphan Asylum

New York City is an always changing landscape. Very few things remained as they were; like fallen snowflakes, they linger for awhile and in the warmth of the spring we cannot remember what they looked like or exactly where they had fallen. Like people, institutions die and fade away from our collective memories. Such a place was Harlem’s Colored Orphan Asylum situated at 143^rd and Amsterdam Avenue from 1867 to 1907. A few blocks away, at 136^th Street,was the Hebrew Orphan Asylum. The COA was founded in 1836 by three remarkable Quaker women: Anna Shotwell, Mary Murray and Hannah Shotwell Murray. Its first location was 6^th Avenue and 12^th  Street but there is nothing there to tell you of its existence. A decade later it was situated at Fifth Avenue between 43^rd and 44^th Streets. 

 

Children of colored-be they orphans, half-orphans (with a parent), neglected or, later, delinquent- were cared for by these “angels of mercy.” The work of the women was aided by financial help from New York’s elite families such as the children of  Supreme Court Chief Justice John Jay, R. H. Macy, John Jacob Astor, the grandparents and parents of Theodore Roosevelt, James Lenox and others. Poor as they were, the black community contributed meager funds, non-perishable goods, and free labor to keep the orphanage in business. One of the nation’s famous abolitionist was connected to the institution for twenty years as a resident physician. James McCune Smith, a product of the African Free School, was educated in Scotland as American prejudice drove him across the ocean. Smith was a radical abolitionist and one who quickly dismiss racist theories of African inferiority. Smith’s death in 1865 was a double blow: It deprived the orphanage of a first rate physician and it eliminated a liaison from the community to the institution. 

The Colored Orphan Asylum cared for about 15,000 children from 1836 until its closing in 1946. Some were enslaved children abandoned by fugitives en route to Canada. A few came from Africa and Cuba. The far west sent some Native American children and some whites were admitted after the passage of a 1944 anti-discrimination law in New York. Nine of the boys served in the Civil War.  One was James Henry Gooding who was born into slavery but was brought to the institution as a young child. He served in the Massachusetts 54^th regiment that was featured in the movie Glory. Gooding’s fame came from writing President Lincoln informing the commander-in-chief that men of color received less pay than their white counterparts even though they had the same responsibilities and faced the same dangerous. Eventually Congress provided funds to rectify the blatant racism. Later, some were enlisted in the 369^th Regiment better known as Harlem Hell Fighters during World War 1. Nearly all the children were indentured at age twelve with boys working in the fields and girls in homes. Unfortunately, few were given assignments in New York City as the managers considered cities to be sources of vices and lost virtues. This meant that young, vulnerable and immature children were often sent hundreds of miles away from their nurturing environment in the orphanage and away from siblings left behind in the institution. Loneliness combined with immaturity caused some to destroy property, maim animals and physically attack members of the host family. In turn, despite background checks, some employers were cruel towards their charges even after the enactment of laws preventing cruelty against children (which came after laws preventing cruelty to animals).

The Colored Orphan Asylum overcame many obstacles including financial distress, fires, wars and ultimately the destruction of their building during the July 1863 Draft Riots as Irish mobs incensed over being forced to fight to end slavery attacked African Americans and their abolitionist supporters in a frenzy of violence that destroyed lives and property. The mob drove out over two hundred children and stole all the furnishings, bedding, utensils and anything they could carry before torching the building. Homeless, the managers had to find temporary shelter for several years until they bought land in Harlem. Their home at present day 143^rd and Amsterdam faced Broadway and remained the training ground for thousands of young people until 1907.  The recent completion of the subway lines through Harlem raised the property value to a level that selling the land made a profit for the orphanage. They moved to Riverdale where they remained until 1946. By then, the institution was an orphanage mainly in name as most of the children were neglected or delinquents sent by the juvenile courts. Indenturing was no longer practice as it was replaced by foster homes. By the 1940s, prominent African Americans such as Marian Anderson, Joe Louis, Duke Ellington, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Roy Wilkins and Audre Delany were associated with the institution.

Over the past 177 years the Colored Orphan Asylum nurtured multitudes who served society as nurses, teachers, doctors, lawyers and businessmen. Former resident and a retired police officer Fitz Harvey described his stay during the early 1940s as a salvation that kept him out of the streets and ultimately prison. After a series of mergers, the spirit of the founding Quaker women is still alive in Harlem Dowling-West Side Center for Children and Family Services, the successor to the Colored Orphan Asylum. 

William Seraile, Ph.D

Source: William Seraile, Angels of Mercy:White Women and the History of New York’s Colored Orphan Asylum.(Fordham University Press)