9 April 1939. World-renowned contralto Marian Anderson sang to more than 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial. Her performance came after months of controversy over the concert venue which became a national discussion on discrimination.
Previously, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) rejected her request to sing at Constitution Hall in Washington DC. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, a member of the DAR at the time, resigned her membership and helped to organize the concert.