Harlem Conditions

Conditions in Harlem Revisited: From the 1936 Harlem Report to Today

Newsreel footage of Harlem from the morning of March 20, 1935. Courtesy Footage Farm.

Drawing of segregated line
Artist interpretation of segregated line in Harlem
"Students writing, 1935.” Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library.
"Students writing, 1935.” Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library.
Harlem Tenement in Summer, 1939. Sid Grossman, WPA Federal Art Project. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library.
Harlem Tenement in Summer, 1939. Sid Grossman, WPA Federal Art Project. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library.

Conference

Missed the Conference? Watch it here.

Original Report

The Original Report March 19, 1935

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Infographics

"Then and Now" statistics on conditions in Harlem

The Report on Conditions in Harlem was written in 1936.  It discusses sensitive topics and uses language from that time that is outmoded and insensitive today. The organizers of the 2022 convening aim to have the materials provided on the website shine a light on the social and economic conditions present in Harlem  both in 1935 and the present.

For consistency only, the website uses direct quotes from the report. We retain historical integrity by preserving the cultural and historical themes of the period. Some information and text on this website might be disturbing; your discretion is advised in viewing it.

The graphics scattered throughout are a visual representation of moments depicted in the report. The photographs of Harlem connect to the events described in the report or were taken in the same time period and help add context to the topics.

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