HIST 221 Chapter Notes - Chapter reading: Red Summer (1919)
19 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Overview
The American press was focused on WWI
-
Few people notices Southern black men being
brought to the North by the Pennsylvania
railroad company to work on the rail lines
-
Between 1916 and 1918 500 arrived each day
-
The migration of African Americans lessened
the concentration in the south, opened up
industrial jobs
-
Leaving the South
In 1898 the boll weevil invaded Texas and
destroyed crops and the reign of King Cotton as
the economic backbone was finally over
-
With WWI more than a million immigrants were
settling in the US every year
-
The stopping of immigration resulted in labour
shortages when workers needed to gear up the
arms and war supply industries
-
The war created an economic boom and a
supply of labour that was used to meet the
increased demand
-
The South was behind the rest of the country at
the start of Reconstruction and the
disadvantage grew over time
There were less schools, lower literacy
levels
○
Rural areas had bad communication with
the outside world
○
-
Between 1890 and 1910, most African
Americans did not have the right to vote
anymore because of requirements
-
Intimidation and violence was used to
disenfranchise the black community to control
it
-
Migration Fever
Workers hear promises about jobs up North
-
There were methods used to draw the black
labour supply from the South and this sparked a
migration fever
-
Young men between 18 and 35 were usually the
first to migrate, it was too expensive for families
to migrate together
-
Migrants headed to large industrial centers -
Detroit, Pittsburgh, NYC and Chicago
-
The Journey North
The journey was made by train, boat, bus, car
and horse-drawn cart
-
Travellers confronted segregation in all public
spaces
-
Fares were expensive and this stopped many
people from making the trip
-
Networks and Media
People financed the trip by selling their
belongings
-
Black press was becoming a more effective
weapon for the community in its struggle
against racism
50 new periodicals were created
○
-
A New Industrial Landscape
New York's black population grew by 66%,
Chicago's by 148% and Philadelphia's by 500%,
Detroit by 611%
-
Henry Ford employed many black workers to
help with the assembly line
-
By 1910, 1/4 of the work force was foreign born
-
Migrants became scapegoats
-
Wages varied by city, industry and skill level
-
There was a lack of opportunity for
advancement
-
Low wages paid to black men forced women to
enter the workplace and in 1920 over 85% of
African American women were working
-
Hard Life in the North
There was competition for black-white working
space
-
Black neighbourhoods were very overcrowded
because landlords divided their units to put
multiple families to live in
-
There was poor access to medical treatment
and African American death rates were higher
than whites and children were at higher risk
-
The church was the cornerstone of the
community and provided guidance
-
The Red Summer
There were waves of mob violence that swept
the nation
Red Summer started in 1917 and it was
battles directly linked to racial conflict in
the work place and the white workers'
fear of job competition
○
It started after African American workers
were hired to break a strike at an
aluminum plant
○
There was a rumour started that a white
woman was shot so there was mass
violence against blacks
○
-
One summer at a beach black children drifted
into white only waters so rocks were thrown at
them, one child drowned
-
The Quest for Political Power
Many black people registered to vote right as
they arrived in the North
-
They waned political representation,
Republicans were more likely to field strong
black candidates in predominantly African
American districts
Migrants believed that electing these
candidates was the key to getting power
○
Chicago was one of the first cities where
African Americans achieved political
influence
○
-
Legacies
They faced discrimination, exclusion, violence
but they never stopped moving forward
-
Many people discovered their talents as store
owners and the large number of migrants
resulted in the formation of new institutions
such as hospitals and schools
-
Under the banner of black self-help several
social service agencies were founded to help
immigrants and uplift the black community
from inside
-
In the 1920s there was the Harlem Renaissance
where writers, poets, painters, musicians and
sculptors took their inspiration from the life and
struggles of newcomers to the North
This was a reflection of racial
consciousness and pride the people felt in
the North
○
-
Reading: The Great Migration
Friday, February 2, 2018
4:02 PM
Document Summary
Few people notices southern black men being brought to the north by the pennsylvania railroad company to work on the rail lines. Between 1916 and 1918 500 arrived each day. The migration of african americans lessened the concentration in the south, opened up industrial jobs. In 1898 the boll weevil invaded texas and destroyed crops and the reign of king cotton as the economic backbone was finally over. With wwi more than a million immigrants were settling in the us every year. The stopping of immigration resulted in labour shortages when workers needed to gear up the arms and war supply industries. The war created an economic boom and a supply of labour that was used to meet the increased demand. The south was behind the rest of the country at the start of reconstruction and the disadvantage grew over time. Rural areas had bad communication with the outside world.
