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Louis Armstrong and his wife Lucille pose in front of the Sphinx near Cairo, Egypt in 1961.

The Jazz Ambassadors

The Jazz Ambassadors

The Cold War and civil rights collide in this remarkable story of music, diplomacy and race. Beginning in 1955, when America asked its greatest jazz artists to travel the world as cultural ambassadors, Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington and their racially diverse band members faced a painful dilemma: How could they represent a country that still practiced Jim Crow segregation?
The Jazz Ambassadors - Trailer
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The Jazz Ambassadors - Trailer

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The Jazz Ambassadors - Trailer
3:00
The Jazz Ambassadors - Trailer
Discover how the Cold War and Civil Rights movement collided in a music story of diplomacy
America Combats Soviet Propaganda About Racism & Segregation
2:34
America Combats Soviet Propaganda About Racism & Segregation
America combats Soviet propaganda about racism and segregation.
Louis Armstrong: America’s Cultural Ambassador
2:30
Louis Armstrong: America’s Cultural Ambassador
The Voice of America radio show gave American jazz a worldwide stage.
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Teams Up with Dizzy Gillespie
2:15
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Teams Up with Dizzy Gillespie
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. teams up with Dizzy Gillespie.
Duke Ellington on "American music".
1:27
Duke Ellington on "American music".
Duke Ellington on the Plight of African Americans and “the American music”.
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