A Harlem Debutante Ball in the 1950s in the 1950s
We don’t often think of debutante balls as being something that people do outside of the WASP community, but in the 1950s prosperous families of all races held these massive coming out parties for their children, and Harlem was the place where many wealthy African-American families in New York could be found.
Often held at the historic The Renaissance Ballroom on the corner of 138th Street at Adam Clayton Powell Blvd., and 7th Avenue in Central Harlem, this shot shows another side of an era that was rife with violence in the black community.
In the 1950s, racists went out of their way to paint people of color as the other, as incredibly foreign, but this proves that their belief couldn’t be farther from the truth. Like most debutante balls, the young women in this photo were from distinguished and well to do families, and they were taking part in an experience that many young people never get. This really is a piece of history that’s gone undocumented and it’s truly fascinating to catch a glimpse.
