Cicely Tyson was born in Harlem, Manhattan, to Caribbean immigrant parents from Nevis, one of three children in a working-class family.
Cicely Tyson was born on December 19, 1924, in the Harlem section of Manhattan, New York City, to William and Theodosia Tyson, immigrants from the Caribbean island of Nevis.
Raised in a strict, religious household, Tyson grew up amid the cultural ferment of Harlem, though her family struggled financially after her parents separated. Her mother worked as a domestic worker and instilled in her children a deep sense of faith and discipline, while forbidding involvement with theater or entertainment, which she considered sinful.
Tyson attended Charles Evans Hughes High School and initially worked as a secretary for the American Red Cross before being discovered as a model, which opened the door to acting. Her humble beginnings in Harlem would stand in stark contrast to the trailblazing career she built over the following seven decades, during which she became one of the most respected and honored Black actresses in American history.
Her birth in this vibrant, culturally rich Black community during the era of the Harlem Renaissance's waning years would later inform her lifelong commitment to portraying dignified, complex Black characters on stage and screen.
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