Fredi Washington

Fredi Washington
Washington in Imitation of Life, 1934
Born	Fredericka Carolyn Washington (1903-12-23)December 23, 1903 Savannah, Georgia, U.S.
Died	June 28, 1994(1994-06-28) (aged 90) Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.
Education	Julia Richman High School
Occupations	Actress activist writer
Years active	1922–1950
Known for	Imitation of Life The Emperor Jones Black and Tan
Spouses	Lawrence Brown ​ ​ (m. 1933; div. 1951)​ Hugh Bell ​ ​ (m. 1952; died 1970)​

Fredericka Carolyn^{[citation needed]} "Fredi" Washington (December 23, 1903 – June 28, 1994) was an American stage and film actress, civil rights activist, performer, and writer. Washington was of African American descent. She was one of the first Black Americans to gain recognition for film and stage work in the 1920s and 1930s.

Washington was active in the Harlem Renaissance (1920s–1930s). Her best- known film role was as Peola in Imitation of Life (1934). She plays a young light-skinned Black woman who decides to pass as white. Her last film role was in One Mile from Heaven (1937). After that she left Hollywood and returned to New York to work in theatre and civil rights activism.