Final answer:
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that helped shape African American and broader American cultural values and beliefs in the 20th century, fostering racial pride and setting the stage for the Civil Rights Movement.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Harlem Renaissance was a powerful cultural movement that not only reflected the aspirations and sentiments of African Americans during the 1920s and 1930s but also played a pivotal role in shaping those attitudes and beliefs. This era of cultural flourishing was characterized by remarkable achievements in art, literature, and music that expressed the lived experiences, hopes, and dreams of African Americans. The artists and intellectuals of the Harlem Renaissance contributed to a renewed sense of racial pride and influenced the broader American culture.
Key figures like Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston, through their writings, urged African Americans to take pride in their heritage. Other luminaries included musicians like Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday, who brought jazz into the mainstream. Such creative output not only affirmed African American identity but also confronted the prevailing racial stereotypes and social injustices, laying intellectual groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement that would emerge in the mid-20th century.
Through its celebration of Black culture and insistence on civil rights, the Harlem Renaissance challenged the status quo, creating new public perceptions of African Americans and new opportunities for social and political activism.