Harry Belafonte: Singer used his platform in entertainment to help break down racial barriers

"Get them to sing your song and they will want to know who you are, and if they've made that first step, we can find a solution to hate."

He was also the founder of Sankofa, a US social justice charity which focuses on issues of injustice that disproportionately affect the"disenfranchised, the oppressed, the underserved".

At the same time, Belafonte pursued his love of jazz music - making his first professional appearance with none other than Charlie Parker, Max Roach, Tommy Potter and Al Haig as his"back-up band".Embracing the New York folk scene in the 1950s, Belafonte"created a new repertoire of folk songs, work songs, and calypsos, providing an authentic and dignified look at black life", according to his Hall Of Fame induction.

Throughout his career in entertainment, Belafonte worked across numerous fields. According to his Sankofa profile, he was the first black producer in television, winning an Emmy for his CBS production of Tonight With Belafonte.

Writing in the Guardian in 2013 to mark the 50th anniversary of King's famous"I Have A Dream speech", Belafonte said:"One of my abiding memories of the day was something I will probably never experience again: such a tide of people leaving with such a sense of satisfaction and hope. That was America at its greatest."

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