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Be An Anti-Racist Like Frank Sinatra
End bystanderism and use your white voice to speak up
After the release of his first album in the late 1940s, but before he was famous, Frank Sinatra performed in a theatre in New York. After the show, he headed to Harlem to see the up-and-coming Will Mastin Trio led by a young Sammy Davis, Jr.
Sinatra was blown away by Sammy’s performance, as were most in the audience, and the young singer eagerly invited Sammy to come see him at his next show.
Sammy happily agreed, but when Sinatra performed next there was no Sammy.
Sinatra returned to Harlem to see Sammy perform again and wanted to know why Sammy never came.
“I went to the show, but they wouldn’t let me in,” Sammy told Frank. The theatre wasn’t allowing negroes in.
Sinatra, who was making decent money at these performances, rushed back to the theatre and ripped up his contract in front of the owner. Sinatra never performed there again.
