Paris: A Haven for Escaping Racism

I was browsing NPR's website today after listening to Morning Edition when I came across an older article that caught my eye. It caught my eye with the first word of the title, "Paris". I spent five weeks in Paris this summer taking art history classes, and I take advantage of every opportunity that allows me to reminisce. It wasn't until after I enthusiastically clicked on the article that I read the rest of the title - "Paris Has Been a Haven For African Americans Escaping Racism."
Eleanor Beardsley, the author of this article, emphasizes how Paris has been an escape for African Americans for longer than most of us are aware of. Although there was a mass migration to Paris from the United States during the time of the Harlem Renaissance, the first mass migration was following the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Since then, Paris has been a steady save haven for African Americans. She touches upon what we have talked so much about in class, the fact that black soldiers were fighting in the world war for freedom and democracy, two elements of life that they had not experienced in America. Dissatisfied with the living conditions at home, many African American soldiers stayed in Paris or simply returned to Paris after the war.
Not only was Paris a refuge from racism, but it was a city where black musicians, writers, and artists were celebrated. Coming from America, where their talents were not recognized but mocked in forms such as Minstrel shows, Paris had an outlet from African American artists to advance society. When France discovered African American music, their jazz age was taken to the next level. Clubs would fight over African American jazz bands for their weekend shows. Beardsley references a woman by the name of Josephine Baker, the daughter of a housemaid in St. Louis. Taking her musical gifts very seriously, she knew that she had to move outside of the U.S. to pursue her life as a musician. She moved to Paris in 1925, becoming a star attraction in the nightclub scene. She was also awarded the French Legion of Honor medal for fighting in the Resistance. Life was starkly different for Josephine than it was for any black woman in America who had musical talent or a desire to be a part of war resistance.
Beardsley also interviewed an African American professor, James Emanuel, who moved to Paris from North Carolina in the 1960's. He is a well-known writer in France and his students from North Carolina claim that he has not received the recognition that he should have in America. Beardsley questioned whether or not he should have stayed in the United States despite racism, and she received a very honest answer:
"No way. No, no. Again, it's the tragedy that I never can talk about. It was too evil, too vicious. And any country that would tolerate it is a country I can't put my foot in... At last, if America ever solves its racial problem, it will be the greatest country in the world."
To compare the living conditions of African Americans in the United States and Paris during the 20th century is to further reveal the harm done within our nation. This is not a racism that America fed into and succumbed to along with the rest of the world. It is a racism that America created and perpetuated.

Do you have any reactions to the comparison of living conditions between the American South and somewhere like Paris, France?