Last Friday, renowned singer Tony Bennett passed away at 96. In the 1950s, Bennett was disturbed by the discrimination that Black musicians like Duke Ellington and Nat King Cole faced compared to the experience he had as a white musician and the injustice that he saw sparked his desire to engage in civil rights activism. Due to this, in 1965, when he was invited to Martin Luther King Jr.'s voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, he accepted immediately. During the march, the atmosphere he experienced was violent and hostile which reminded him of the time he served in the army, specifically about how his friendship with a Black serviceman was looked down upon.
He did not walk the whole march, but he did sing for all of those who marched alongside fellow artists. Even after the march, he continued to support Black artists throughout his life through his commitment to racial equality, supporting the boycott of South Africa during the apartheid, and advocated for Black artists. In the civil rights movement, he established himself as a supportive and inclusive figure.
The work that Bennett did for the civil rights movement resulted in his induction into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame and an award from the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change. Bennett was inspired by work from his friend Harry Belafonte, specifically how he fought injustice. Bennett will be remembered fondly.