The trailblazing U.S.-born star and civil rights activist was given France's highest honor on Tuesday when she was inducted into the Pantheon. She first achieved fame in Paris in the 1920s.
France is inducting Josephine Baker Missouri-born cabaret dancer, French World War II spy and civil rights activist into its Pantheon, the first Black.
A Black woman will, for the first time, join other luminaries interred in France's Pantheon. That woman is entertainer Josephine Baker, and the honor will take place Tuesday. But critics in France say that by focusing on an American-born figure, France is continuing a long tradition of decrying racism abroad while failing to face up to it at home.