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Harlem

Harlem is Manhattan’s iconic African American neighborhood. It is famous for Jazz, Lindy Hop Swing dancing, Rhythm and Blues, and good food. A lot of history was made here. The Harlem Renaissance was in the 1920s and 1930s.

Spanish Harlem is “El Barrio” East Harlem.

Harlem NYC

This is about Central Harlem from 110th St (Central Park) to 155th St between Morningside/St Nicholas and Fifth Avenue.

  • The main African American street is 125th St, anchored by the Apollo Theater. 125th is a long sidewalk market.
  • The main West African street is 116th St west of Malcolm X/Lenox Blvd. It’s anchored by the Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market.
  • The main Latin street is 116th St east of Malcolm X/Lenox Blvd.

Art

Studio Museum studiomuseum.org

Dance

Dance Theatre of Harlem

Film

Maysles Documentary Center maysles.org

Music

Abyssinian Baptist Church abyssinian.org

Apollo Theater

Minton’s Playhouse

National Jazz Museum jmih.org

Libraries

Schomburg Center 🇵🇷

Markets

Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market is a great West African market.

Festivals

African American Day Parade (Sep 2021)

Harlem International Film Festival (May 2021)

Harlem Week (Aug 2021)

Parks

Marcus Garvey Park

Morningside Park

St Nicholas Park

Restaurants

Red Rooster is Chef Marcus Samuelsson’s restaurant and home of Ginny’s Supper Club. redroosterharlem.com

Sylvia’s sylviasrestaurant.com

Cultural Venues

Harlem Festivals

Harlem

Harlem is not just Manhattan’s African neighborhood, it is a major center of African American culture in the United States.

The Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s was an intellectual flowering of African American thought and culture that remains significant today.

Bebop jazz or modern jazz, and swing dancing come from Harlem. Latin jazz comes from East Harlem, but the Latin musicians were sneaking out at night to listen to jazz in Harlem, so Latin jazz has Harlem in it too.

The neighborhood is dealing with gentrification like all New York City neighborhoods, but at its core, Harlem is a community. It’s the only neighborhood in Manhattan where if you are laying on the ground, someone will come ask if you are okay. Everywhere else people will just step over your body. Harlem is special.

Harlem rooftops (Maciej Bledowski/Dreamstime)
Harlem rooftops (Maciej Bledowski/Dreamstime)

“There is a rose in Black and Spanish Harlem”

Ben E. King and then Aretha Franklin by Jerry Lieber (1960)

If home is where the heart is, Harlem is home.

Upper Manhattan

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