Henry Lee Moon facts for kids

Henry Lee Moon (born in 1901, died in 1985) was an important American journalist and writer. He was also a strong activist who worked for civil rights. This means he fought for equal rights and fairness for all people.

Henry Lee Moon's Early Life and Work

Henry Lee Moon was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1901. His father, Roddy K. Moon, helped start the Cleveland branch of the NAACP in 1912. The NAACP is a group that works for civil rights.

Moon went to Howard University and was the editor of the school's University Journal. He then earned a master's degree in journalism from Ohio State University. At that time, Moon wanted to be the first Black journalist to work for a newspaper owned by white people. However, in 1925, he started working in public relations at the Tuskegee Institute instead.

Becoming a Newspaperman

In 1931, Moon achieved his dream of becoming a newspaperman. He got a job at The Amsterdam News, an African-American weekly newspaper. He moved to New York City and began writing book reviews and essays for the paper.

That same year, he worked with another News journalist, Ted Poston. They wrote a series of articles about serious crimes. The two men became roommates and stayed best friends for their whole lives.

Travel to the Soviet Union

In 1932, Moon, Ted Poston, Langston Hughes, and Moon's future wife Mollie Lewis traveled to the Soviet Union. They planned to make a film called Black and White that would speak out against segregation. Segregation was when people of different races were kept apart.

However, the film was canceled at the last minute by the Mezhrabpomfilm studio. This made Moon feel disappointed with the Communists for the rest of his life. He didn't know that an engineer named Hugh Lincoln Cooper had threatened to stop work on a big project, the Dnieper Dam. Cooper said he would stop if the Soviet government didn't stop the film, which he thought was against American values.

Work After Returning to the U.S.

After returning to the U.S., Moon got a job with the Public Works Administration. He worked under Harold L. Ickes and kept writing for The Amsterdam News. Moon was later fired from the paper because he encouraged the staff to join a union called The Newspaper Guild.

He then worked for the Federal Writers' Project until its funding ended in 1939. Moon applied to the New York Times but was not hired. He found work in Washington, D.C., helping Robert C. Weaver in Franklin D. Roosevelt's Black Cabinet. This group advised the president on issues affecting Black Americans. After World War II, Moon worked as an organizer for the PAC of the CIO trade union.

Working for the NAACP

In 1948, Moon started working for the NAACP as their public relations director. He held this important job until 1974. During his time at the NAACP, he worked hard to promote voting rights. He also encouraged the organization to work harder to help elect politicians who supported their goals.

While at the NAACP, Moon also wrote a book called Balance of Power. He also edited a collection of writings by W. E. B. Du Bois, another important civil rights leader.

Henry Lee Moon's Later Years and Legacy

Henry Lee Moon passed away on June 7, 1985, at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. In 1988, the library at the NAACP's main office in Baltimore was named in his honor. This was done to remember his important contributions.

Henry Lee Moon's Family Life

Moon married Mollie Lewis on August 13, 1938. The couple became well-known for hosting parties where Black and white New Yorkers could meet and connect. Their parties were unique because they brought people of different races together during a time of segregation. Their reputation was even mentioned in Chester Himes' 1961 novel Pinktoes.

Henry Lee Moon's Published Works

• 1948 Balance of Power: The Negro Vote (Doubleday)
• 1957 The New Subversion of the Fifteenth Amendment (Howard University)
• 1972 The Emerging Thought of W.E.B. DuBois, editor (Simon & Schuster)