During a time when racism was at its peak in America, Jim Crow laws separated blacks from mainstream white society. Where the concept of “separate but equal” was widely accepted in America, blacks faced adversities that they had to overcome in a racially intolerant society. They were forced to face a system that compromised their freedom and rights. Black people knew that equal is never equal and separate is definitely separate (George 8-9). Black people had to fight for their rights because they were not given them. Racism manifested itself on many levels and had to be fought on many levels. This gave rise to influential black leaders in the fight for civil rights. Langston Hughes was one of those black leaders who emerged during the Harlem Renaissance. He gave voice to his people and encouraged pride and hope through his literary work, to overcome racial discrimination. Langston Hughes lived during the time of the Harlem Renaissance, an African-American cultural movement of the early 1920s and 1930s that was centered in the Harlem neighborhood. of New York City. Also known as the New Negro movement, it marked the first time that mainstream publishers and critics took African-American literature seriously, and that African-American literature and arts attracted significant attention from the nation at large. Although it was primarily a literary movement, it was closely related to developments in African American music, theater, art, and politics. This was also the time of the “Great Migration,” in which more and more blacks migrated from the rural South to the urban North, seeking jobs and better lives for their families (George 62). This new black identity wants to gain a new social consciousness and opportunity that was not available... in the center of the card... a famous fifty-seven story historic building in New York. "I was a singer: from Africa to Georgia I brought my songs of pain." There have been many famous black singers who have made a name for themselves. They sing blues songs, gospel songs etc. telling their stories through melodies and soul. “I was a victim: the Belgians cut off my hands in Congo. They still lynch me in Mississippi." Here Hughes shows that blacks were subjected to violent hatred. But at the end of the poem Hughes repeats “I am a negro: black as the night is black, black as the depths of my Africa”. This shows that although black people have been treated in ways that no human should be treated. However, we continued to move forward, without ever giving up hope and faith that a change would come. We have accomplished many things in our past and we can use it to motivate our future.