Josephine Baker was at the peak of her fame in 1939—she had risen from a teenage vaudeville performer in America to the brightest star in Paris. But then, the Nazi regime began its stranglehold on Europe, and with it came the offer that changed her life. #BlackHistoryMonth (1/7) 
A French intelligence officer, Jacques Abtey, visited Josephine and asked her to become part of his network. “The Parisians gave me their hearts,” she responded, “and I am ready to give them my life.” (2/7)
She attended events at the Italian and Japanese embassies and parties among Paris’s elite, all the while eavesdropping and looking for connections between people. She even took notes on her arms and hands, risking discovery, to make sure she remembered everything. (3/7)
When the Germans occupied Paris, Josephine was banned from performing because she was black. But, her career in espionage was just beginning. She and Jacques hid information in her sheet music and inside her dress, then smuggled it into Portugal to give to the British. (4/7)
For months, Josephine toured Portugal and Spain, eavesdropping and smuggling information in her sheet music and in her clothes, while Jacques was stationed in Casablanca, Morocco. Every time she made the trip to bring intelligence to him, she risked her life. (5/7)
Even when she became grievously ill for two years, Josephine allowed the Free French to use her hospital room in Casablanca as a rendezvous point. When she recovered, she embarked on a tour for the Allied troops in North Africa to lift their spirits. (6/7)
For her courageous service, the women’s auxiliary of the French air force made her an officer. After the war, France awarded Josephine the Medal of Resistance. She wore her air force uniform at appearances for the rest of her life—including the 1963 March on Washington. (7/7)
