George Wilson Becton
Encyclopedia
George Wilson Becton was the "first of the colorful cult leaders in Harlem
." He began charismatic preaching in about 1930, after the decline of Marcus Garvey
, and continued until he was mysteriously murdered in 1933.
Becton's sermons were formal and presented in a dignified setting, with orchestral music and liveried pages. He was kidnapped and shot to death on May 21, 1933. He died without describing his attackers or explaining why anybody might have wanted him killed.
Claude McKay
wrote about Becton in his book Harlem, Negro Metropolis.
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
." He began charismatic preaching in about 1930, after the decline of Marcus Garvey
Marcus Garvey
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., ONH was a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League...
, and continued until he was mysteriously murdered in 1933.
Becton's sermons were formal and presented in a dignified setting, with orchestral music and liveried pages. He was kidnapped and shot to death on May 21, 1933. He died without describing his attackers or explaining why anybody might have wanted him killed.
Claude McKay
Claude McKay
Claude McKay was a Jamaican-American writer and poet. He was a seminal figure in the Harlem Renaissance and wrote three novels: Home to Harlem , a best-seller which won the Harmon Gold Award for Literature, Banjo , and Banana Bottom...
wrote about Becton in his book Harlem, Negro Metropolis.