As we are nearing the last week of Women's History Month, I am posting a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald. She was known as "The First Lady of Song" and had a long and storied career. She also was a groundbreaker in civil rights and an advocate for children, the disadvantaged and the needy.
Read her biography and I think you will be surprised by some of the things you learn. I was and I summed up my feelings in the following poem:
The Unheard Ella
You’ve heard Ella sing and
you’ve heard Ella swing.
You’ve heard her scat and
her tisket a tasket.
But, do you know
Ella was the first African-American
to do a show at the Mocambo?
That she sued the airline
that said her ticket was declined?
That she helped children galore
and today her foundation
continues to do more?
We will always remember
Ella for her songs,
but let’s not forget
that she was a woman
who helped to right wrongs.
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Great tribute, Michelle. Thanks for reminding us.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sabra. She was never one of the first people I thought of as an activist. Now, she is. Great sidebar about the role Mariyn Monroe played.
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