WATCH: A panel on the legacy of Pa.’s Black Wall Street

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In the early 20th century, a bustling community of predominantly Black-owned businesses, churches, schools, and residences was nestled between Harrisburg’s North and Forster Streets.

Known as Pennsylvania’s Black Wall Street, this area provided welcoming service and familiar faces to Black residents, leaders, and artists during a time of segregation. By the mid-1900s, however, the area was gone, replaced with what is now the Capitol Complex and other urban developments.

Today, Black-owned businesses remain in the city, but are more scattered.

Spotlight PA held a panel on the history of the street and the people hoping to preserve its legacy and ensure a future for Black-owned businesses. Watch it below.

Our panelists were:

• Tanisha Thomas, newsletter writer, Spotlight PA

• Dimitra Diggs, owner, Urban Snob

• Sharia Benn, artistic director, Sankofa African American Theater Company

• Calobe Jackson Jr., resident historian, Historic Harrisburg Association

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