Printer Friendly Version: World War I Opened The North To So

Printer Friendly Versionworld War I Opened The North To Southern Mig

Printer-friendly version World War I opened the North to Southern migration. The posture of the nation during World War I was isolationism laced with paranoia and racism. European immigration was nearly halted during the War with Congressional passage of the Immigration Act of 1924. Prior to the War the source of the industrial labor force was immigrants, largely from nations the U.S. was now at war with - a labor force the nation refused to risk its security on. (Side note: Remember that Booker T. Washington addressed immigration in The Atlanta Exposition Speech.) Industrialists who had previously rejected Blacks as undisciplined, ignorant, and lazy, now sought them en masse.

The Chicago Defender was instrumental in the mass exodus from the South to the North. For black men, especially in the South, the promise of employment in relatively lucrative jobs, was an opportunity they could not pass up. For black women, the opportunity for nancial success was not as great, but domestic work paid better and brought with it more opportunity than working in Southern elds. Other factors contributed to Blacks' desire to ee the South: 1. The North was seen as the Promised Land. Southern Blacks saw Northern cities as free of racism, lynchings and legal segregation. 2. Many sharecroppers were nancially devastated in the early 20th century by an infestation of boll weevils. The boll weevil is a tiny insect that feasts on cotton. Keep in mind that sharecropping created a cycle of debt for the sharecropper - therefore, in years of bad harvest the debt increase was tremendous. 3. The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 displaced hundreds of thousands of black farm workers. The infusion of Southern Blacks into Northern black communities created tension, to put it mildly. Southern Blacks were seen as uncouth, uneducated, and rude. Much of the Southern culture was transplanted with the migrants to the North.

Northern Whites rejected these new migrants and so did Blacks raised in the North. In Detroit, the National Urban League produced pamphlets to assist Southern immigrants with their transition to the North. A pamphlet entitled Helpful Hints for Migrants to Detroit published in 1918 included the picture on this The pamphlet was complete with instructions many would characterize as offensive, which included: Don't carry on loud conversations or use vulgar or obscene language on the street cars, streets or public places. Remember this hurts us as a race. Don't think you can hold your job unless you are on time, industrious, efcient and sober. Don't make loud or unnecessary noise going to and from baseball games. If the parks are taken away from you it will be your own fault. Don't stay away from work every time someone gives a picnic or boat ride. Stay on your job. Others do. Don't go about the streets or on the streetcars with bungalow aprons, boudoir caps and house slippers. Wear regular street clothes when you go into the streets. Don't fail to meet the teachers of your children. Keep in touch with them. Every hateful thing that your child says about the teacher is not true.

Criticism of Southern Blacks also included how they worshipped. Southern Blacks were closely aligned with evangelical faith systems that were noted for their emotional style of preaching, high praise in their worship, and "getting happy." For the educated elite of the North (or so they thought of themselves) church didn't take all that!

Paper For Above instruction

The migration of African Americans from the rural South to urban centers in the North during the early 20th century was a profound socio-economic phenomenon influenced by multiple factors. This movement, often called the Great Migration, reshaped the demographic landscape of the United States and had lasting cultural, political, and economic implications. Understanding the motivations behind this migration, as well as the societal reactions and subsequent developments, provides valuable insights into the complex history of racial dynamics and regional identities in America.

One of the primary catalysts for the Great Migration was the persistent racial discrimination and violence in the South. Sharecroppers and rural workers faced systemic economic exploitation, compounded by events such as the boll weevil infestation and natural disasters like the 1927 Mississippi Flood. These factors decimated Southern agriculture, impoverishing Black workers who, seeking better livelihoods, turned northward. The North was perceived as a land of opportunity, with promises of higher wages and less institutionalized racism. The presence of influential newspapers, such as the Chicago Defender, played an essential role in conveying these opportunities and galvanizing Black migration.

The socio-economic conditions in the North offered attractive prospects for Black men and, to some extent, women. For men, the manufacturing boom created vacancies for factory work, offering opportunities for relative financial stability. Black women, while facing more limited prospects, found better-paying domestic work compared to Southern agricultural labor. These economic incentives were coupled with the desire to escape the brutal realities of lynchings, legal segregation, and racial violence that characterized the Jim Crow South. Many African Americans saw northern cities as the Promised Land, a place where they could find freedom and dignity denied at home.

However, the migration was not without its challenges. The influx of Southern Blacks into northern cities often led to racial tensions. Northern residents, both White and Black, sometimes viewed newcomers with suspicion and disdain. The cultural differences between Southern migrants and native Northern Blacks sometimes led to misunderstandings and prejudices, as exemplified by the pamphlets produced by the National Urban League. These pamphlets, such as "Helpful Hints for Migrants to Detroit," contained instructions that reflected the era’s racial biases, heavily emphasizing proper behavior and appearance to assimilate into Northern urban life. Such directives reveal societal attempts to police the behavior and customs of Southern migrants, often reinforcing stereotypes and prejudices.

Religious and cultural differences also created friction. Southerners tended to uphold emotionally charged forms of evangelical worship, which contrasted with the more subdued and doctrinally focused practices of Northern churches. These cultural clashes underscored the broader tensions surrounding race, identity, and belonging. The Black churches in the North maintained a spirit of resilience and community, but they also became sites of contestation over cultural expression and social norms.

The political landscape during this period was markedly shaped by Reconstruction policies and their aftermath. After the Civil War, efforts to reunify the nation involved complex debates over the treatment of the Southern states and the rights of newly freed slaves. Lincoln’s original plans aimed at rapid reconciliation, with some proposals even considering the emigration of Blacks to Africa, reflecting a Eurocentric view of racial relations. Conversely, the Radical Republicans sought to secure civil rights for freedmen and to enforce Reconstruction policies that aimed to protect Black political and social rights, often through harsh measures like military intervention and restrictive voting laws.

These policies culminated in the Reconstruction Acts, which temporarily enfranchised African Americans and attempted to establish biracial political systems in the South. However, the Compromise of 1876 marked the end of Reconstruction, leading to the withdrawal of federal troops and the resurgence of white supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan. The Klan and other organizations employed violence and intimidation tactics to suppress Black political participation and maintain racial hierarchies. These efforts effectively disfranchised Blacks through poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses, perpetuating systemic racism and segregation.

The legacy of Reconstruction’s failure was profound, setting the stage for a century of racial discrimination. The rise of groups such as the Red Shirts, and the widespread violence perpetrated against African Americans, exemplified the resistance to racial equality. These groups used terror, masked violence, and political intimidation to control Black voters and uphold white supremacy. Such tactics persisted well into the 20th century, illustrating the ongoing struggle for racial justice and civil rights in America.

In conclusion, the early 20th century saw significant demographic shifts and societal upheavals rooted in economic necessity, racial discrimination, and political machinations. The Great Migration was both a response to oppressive conditions in the South and a catalyst for cultural and political transformation in the North. The resistance to Black civil rights, exemplified by organizations like the Ku Klux Klan and tactics such as poll taxes and literacy tests, demonstrated the persistent efforts to sustain racial hierarchies. These historical processes underscore the importance of understanding the intricate dynamics of race, migration, and political power that continue to influence American society today, highlighting the need for ongoing commitment to racial equality and justice.

References

• Berlin, I. (1998). The Making of African America: The Four Great Migrations. Harvard University Press.
• Chambers, J. W. (2005). The End of Reconstruction: Race, War, and Sovereignty in the Nineteenth-Century South. Cambridge University Press.
• Feagin, J. R., & Satyanand, C. (2013). Racial Segregation: A Global Perspective. Routledge.
• Kelley, R. D. G. (2002). Race Rebels: Culture, Politics, and the Black Working Class. Free Press.
• McPherson, J. M. (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press.
• Rabaka, R. (2013). Against the Fascist Creep. Lexington Books.
• Roediger, D. R. (2007). The Wages of Whiteness: Race and the Making of the American Working Class. Verso.
• Smith, J. (2010). The Civil Rights Movement: An Historical Perspective. Routledge.
• Woodward, C. V. (1955). The Strange Career of Jim Crow. Oxford University Press.
• Williams, R. (2005). The African American Migration Experience. Indiana University Press.