January 1941

Jacob Lawrence completed his landmark 60-panel series depicting the Great Migration of Black Americans from the South to the North. The series, painted in bold geometric forms and rich colors, was simultaneously published in Fortune magazine — making Lawrence the first Black American artist to be featured there — and was acquired jointly by the Museum of Modern Art and the Phillips Collection. It remains one of the most celebrated works in American art history.

Jacob Lawrence exhibited all 60 panels of The Migration of the Negro at Edith Halpert's Downtown Gallery in New York in 1941. Twenty-six panels were simultaneously published in Fortune magazine. The series, depicting the Great Migration of Black Americans northward, was then split between MoMA (even panels) and The Phillips Collection (odd panels) and toured nationally from 1942 to 1944.

Building on his success with the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, A. Philip Randolph began in the late 1930s developing the concept of mass direct action at the national level that would culminate in his 1941 threatened March on Washington, which forced Executive Order 8802 banning defense industry discrimination.

Pittsburgh music educator Mary Cardwell Dawson founded the National Negro Opera Company, the first permanent Black opera company in America, after years of training Black singers who were barred from white opera houses. The company performed in major cities through the 1960s.

The Negro Leagues East-West All-Star Game, held annually at Comiskey Park in Chicago beginning 1933, drew crowds of 45,000-51,000 throughout the early 1940s — larger than many Major League All-Star Games. The event was the premier annual gathering of Black America, demonstrating Black institutional capacity, drawing national Black press coverage, and showcasing players including Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Buck Leonard.

The Negro Leagues East-West All-Star Game, held annually at Comiskey Park in Chicago, drew crowds of 45,000-51,000 throughout the early 1940s — larger than many Major League All-Star Games. The event was the premier annual gathering of Black America, demonstrating Black institutional capacity and showcasing players including Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Buck Leonard.