Today, we are living in polarizing political times. With President Donald Trump in office, some Black celebrities have started aligning themselves with his right-wing MAGA stances, leaving many fans feeling as if they have betrayed the Black community. Although stars like Nicki Minaj, Snoop Dogg, and Ye (the artist formerly known as Kanye West) have positioned themselves on a side often opposed to DEI, a look back at the golden age of Hollywood reminds us that there were Black stars who stood up for the community.
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Take Fredi Washington, a Black woman with fair skin, green eyes, and the ability to pass as white, who could have become one of Hollywood’s biggest names. Instead, Washington refused to denounce her race, speaking up for Black folks and even becoming a co-founder of the Negro Actors Guild of America. Today, we’re going to tell you all about Washington and the fight she put up so that Black actors can shine today.
Early Life
Born in Savannah, Georgia, to parents Robert T. Washington and Harriet Walker Ward Washington, Fredericka Carolyn Washington was one of nine siblings, according to the Amistad Research Center. Being the oldest girl, she often helped her parents take care of her younger siblings before her mother passed away when she was 11 years old.
After her mother’s death, Washington and her sister Isabel were sent to St. Elizabeth’s Convent for orphaned Black and Indian children in Cornwells Heights, Pennsylvania, per the Amistad Research Center.
Boarding School and Moving To New York
Washington’s time at St. Elizabeth’s would provide the foundation for the outspoken actress and activist she would later become. According to the publication Broadcast 41 by the University of Oregon, St. Elizabeth’s Convent—founded by the Catholic sister and educator Katharine Drexel—had the mission of addressing systemic justice issues of inequality, racism, hatred, violence, greed and prejudice in church and society.
While Washington and her sister were away at school, her dad moved north to Harlem during the Great Migration, and Washington joined him. She transferred to a high school in New York but soon dropped out and began working to help her family financially, per Harlem World Magazine.
Building An Entertainment Career
Washington got her break in the entertainment industry in 1921 while working as a bookkeeper at the W.C. Handy Black Swan Record Company. She overheard talk of a dance audition for the Broadway musical “Shuffle Along” and was hired on the spot by choreographer Alida Webb to be a dancer in the chorus line, per Broadcast 41.
Washington’s talent was undeniable, and her role in the musical launched her dancing career. She went on a two-year tour around Europe, dancing as part of a ballroom dance team. Her success in the world of dance led to Washington capturing the attention of Hollywood.
Becoming a Film Star
By 1929, Fredi Washington got her first film role in “Black and Tan,” a short musical comedy film in which she starred alongside pianist and composer Duke Ellington. However, her big break came with the 1934 film “Imitation of Life,” in which she played the role of Peola, a light-skinned Black woman who rejects her dark-skinned mother to pass in a white society.
The film earned critical acclaim and was nominated for an Academy Award the following year.
Hitting A Wall in Hollywood
Though Washington’s main claim to fame was in a role where she rejected her Black identity, cut off her mother and did all she could to progress in a white society, in real life, Washington was very proud of being a Black woman.
During her time in Hollywood, the actress was often told by studio executives that she could become a star if she would just pass for white. According to IMDb, Washington was told she could be a bigger star than Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Constance Bennett and Greta Garbo. But Washington refused to reject her identity. This meant that Washington often found herself being typecast in roles where her characters would pass for white folks.
Publicly Defending Her Stance
In a 1945 interview with the newspaper the Chicago Defender, Washington made a public statement denouncing a rumor spreading in Hollywood circles that she attempted to pass as a white woman.
“You see, I’m a mighty proud gal and I can’t, for the life of me, find any valid reason why anyone should lie about their origin or anything else for that matter. Frankly, I do not ascribe to the stupid theory of white supremacy and to try to hide the fact that I am a Negro for economic or any other reasons, if I do, I would be agreeing to be a Negro makes me inferior and that I have swallowed whole hog all of the propaganda dished out by our fascist-minded white citizens,” she said.
An Activist
Washington didn’t just talk the talk; she also walked the walk when it came to her stance against white supremacy. Outside of her Hollywood career, Washington spent her time in the 1930s on picket lines boycotting Harlem companies that refused to hire Black workers, according to the New York Public Library Archives & Manuscripts.
These boycotts were often organized by her brother-in-law, Rev. Adam Clayton Powell Jr., who was the first African American to be elected to Congress from New York.
Quitting Hollywood
By 1937, sick of the treatment she was getting in Hollywood, Washington largely retired from acting. Instead, she and a group of African American actors co-founded the Negro Actors Guild of America, according to the Black history site BlackPast. Washington worked as the guild’s executive director and secretary.
The Negro Actors Guild of America worked to break barriers for Black actors in the United States, push for better roles that weren’t based on stereotypes and raise funding for Black actors. Famous members included stars such as Hattie McDaniel, Bert Williams and Lena Horne, per BlackPast.
Working in Journalism
By 1942, Washington made her transition from the silver screen to the printing press and took up a role as a columnist for Adam Clayton Powell Jr.’s African American paper, The People’s Voice. During her time there, Washington commented on the film and theater scene, unafraid of sharing her criticisms.
According to Broadcast 41, Washington criticized Hattie McDaniel for her defense of the Walt Disney film “The Song of the South,” which the NAACP organized a campaign against due to its racial stereotypes. In the column, Washington wrote, “Wake up, Hattie. No one is riding you for the mammy roles you must play, but I, for one, am riding you for your defense of the overall picture these roles create in the minds of the movie-going public.”
Going Back To Broadway
Although Washington quit her film career, she still did many stints on Broadway during the 1940s and remained on stage for another decade, working in productions that embraced Black art rather than shunned it.
She starred in the adaptation of DuBose Heyward’s novel “Mamba’s Daughters” alongside Broadway actress Ethel Waters, an all-Black version of “Lysistrata” and the drama production “How Long Till Summer?”
Watched By The FBI
Washington’s vocal political stance in her columns earned her a spot on the FBI’s watchlist at the time. In 1944, Washington wrote a piece stating she wasn’t a member of the Communist Party, but at the same time didn’t support the anti-communist party, as it was being funded by white supremacist movements, according to Broadcast 41. The FBI also viewed The People’s Voice newspaper as a pro-communist publication, per Broadcast 41.
Moving to Connecticut
Being surveilled by the FBI put a strain on Washington’s journalism career, and by 1947, she left her post at The People’s Voice. Life after that was relatively quiet and simple for Washington, who moved with her second husband, Hugh Anthony Bell, and retired from entertainment altogether. Instead, according to IMDb, Washington worked at a Bloomingdale’s branch in Stamford, Connecticut, from 1954 until 1980, before passing away from pneumonia at 90 on June 28, 1994.
Her Legacy
Today, Washington is largely remembered for her role as Peola in “Imitation of Life,” but few people know the battle she endured to push for better on-screen representation for Black folks in America. While we live in an era where some Black celebrities are waving MAGA flags, it is more important than ever that we recognize the work of Black icons like Washington.
She refused to denounce her race, and her efforts to create networks for Black entertainers are part of the reason why Black folks can be celebrated on world stages today.
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