Black woman, star, spy, activist: What do we know about Josephine Baker?

12/14/21 • 31 min

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"You are entering this Panthéon because although you were born American there is no one more French than you". This is what President Emmanuel Macron said when he paid a tribute to Josephine Baker as she was inducted into France's Panthéon in Paris at the end of November. She becomes the first Black woman and just the sixth woman being immortalized there. Baker was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1906. In 20s and 30s, she took over France and Europe with her dance and music performances. After World War II broke out, Baker began to help the French resistance. We still don't know that much about this period of her life, but Professor of French History at Cardiff University Hanna Diamond wants to change this. I talked to her as she is working on a book about Baker's wartime activities. But we have also discussed Baker's celebrity life and how she was involved in the civil rights movement in America. Baker died in 1975 but would she today support Black Lives Matter? Listen to our conversation Black woman, star, spy, activist: What do we know about Josephine Baker? And if you enjoy what I do, please support me on Ko-fi! Thank you. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ko-fi.com/amatisak

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