Marita Bonner
Marita Bonner (June 16, 1899 – 1971) (also known as Marieta Bonner) was an American writer, essayist, and playwright who is commonly associated with the Harlem Renaissance. She was also known as Marita Occomy, Marita Odette Bonner, Marita Odette Bonner Occomy, Marita Bonner Occomy, Joseph Maree Andrew. On December 29, 1921 along with 15 other women, she chartered the Iota Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
Life
Marita Bonner was born in Boston to Joseph and Anne Noel Bonner. She was one of four children and lived in a middle-class community in Massachusetts. Marita attended Brookline High School, where she contributed to the school magazine, The Sagamore. She excelled in German and Music, and was a very talented pianist. In 1917, she graduated from Brookline High School and in 1918 enrolled in Radcliffe College, where she commuted to campus because many African-American students were denied dormitory accommodation. In college she majored in English and Comparative Literature, while continuing to study German and musical composition. In addition to her studies, Bonner was a charter member of a chapter of the black sorority Delta Sigma Theta, and taught at a high school in Cambridge.