[1] There he met Randolph and Owen and showed them one of his reviews of the local theater, and these men loved Lewis caustic take on the oft-demeaning roles that white playwrights gave African-American actors.
Lewis had a deep-seated belief that “theater was an essential vehicle through which society could effect and consider social change and cultural development,” and he was especially derisive of the vulgarity and banality that dominated portrayals of African-Americans.
After that magazine folded after a few issues, Lewis convinced Randolph to hire Thurman as an associate editor and writer for The Messenger.
After Randolph and Owen left the editorship of The Messenger to devote their time to unionizing, Schuyler and Lewis took over and shifted the magazine's focus away from socialism toward literature, drama, and the arts of the Harlem Renaissance.
After leaving The Messenger after it folded, Lewis continued to write regularly for publications such as Opportunity, Inter-State Tattler, and Amsterdam News.