Dr. Mark Anthony Neal: Soul Train and the Desire for Black Power
Dr. Mark Anthony Neal, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African and African American Studies
Dr. Mark Anthony Neal writes on "Soul Train and the Desire for Black Power" in The Nation. See excerpts below. View here for the full article.
Don Cornelius’s faith that Black culture would attract a mass audience—and his devout belief that Black culture should be in the hands of Black people—make the program he created a radical touchstone 50 years after its debut.
There’s likely no single Black-owned brand that elicits a collective smile more than Soul Train, the nationally syndicated dance show that premiered 50 years ago this fall. Host and founder Don Cornelius’s adage of “Love, Peace, and Soul” resonated for generations, unleashing what Nelson George has called the civil rights movement’s secret power: “Black Joy.” Yet embedded within the funky rhythms, ethereal harmonies, and Day-Glo body suits was a desire for something more elusive: Black Power.