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Josephine Baker: Dancer, WWII spy and civil rights activist honoured at France’s Pantheon

Josephine Baker

danishrajput November 30, 2021

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Josephine Baker Wiki

Josephine Baker Biography

Who is Josephine Baker?

Josephine Baker was an American-born French entertainer, French Resistance agent and civil right activist. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in her adopted France. Wikipedia

Born:

June 3, 1906, St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Died:

April 12, 1975, University Hospitals Pitié Salpêtrière – Charles Foix, Paris, France

Children:

Stellina Baker, Akio Bouillon, Jean-Claude Baker, MORE

Spouse:

Jo Bouillon (m. 1947–1961), Jean Lion (m. 1937–1938), MORE

Parents:

Eddie Carson, Carrie McDonald

Siblings:

Willie Mae Martin, Margaret Martin, Richard Martin

Joséphine Baker will be the first black woman to be honored by the French government with a place in the Pantheon.

President Emmanuel Macron has decided that she will be buried in the Parisian building, a monument to France’s national heroes and where some of its most revered historical figures are buried, in response to a significant demand.

Josephine Baker: Dancer, WWII spy and civil rights activist honoured at France’s Pantheon

The cabaret star will be the first black woman to be interred in France’s Pantheon – a historic building in Paris which is a monument to national heroes.

But a coffin carrying land from the United States, France and Monaco – places where Baker made his mark – will be laid inside the Pantheon monument on Tuesday.

In addition to honoring an exceptional figure in French history, this decision aims to send a message against racism and to celebrate American-French ties.

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But critics in France say that by focusing on a figure born in the United States, France is continuing a long tradition of speaking out against racism abroad without facing it at home.

Laurent Kupferman, the author of the petition said: “Above all, she embodies the freedom of women.”