Entertainer and activist Harry Belafonte turns 95. A New Yorker with Caribbean roots, Harry Belafonte spoke out against racism and injustice before the civil rights movement. As a musician, he sold millions of records. Belafonte turns 95 on March 1. Singer, actor and entertainer — but also an activist for peace and human rights, Harry Belafonte isn’t only known for his light calypso sound that conquered the pop music world in the 1950s, but also for his commitment to the struggle against racial discrimination, marginalization, hunger, and poverty. He was born in the New York district of Harlem to a sailor from the Caribbean island of Martinique and an unskilled worker from Jamaica. His father, who used to drink a lot, often beat his children — at times so badly that they ended up in the hospital. Finally, his father left the family, and his mother returned to the Caribbean with Harry and his siblings. Harry was given into the care of his grandmother with the following words: “Don’t let a single day pass by without making use of opportunities to fight for justice.”
