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HIST 301: African American History > BDC CH. 7 > Flashcards

BDC CH. 7 Flashcards

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1
Q

When did the Scottsboro Affair begin?

A

March 23, 1931

  • during downward plunge of Great Depression
  • people began living in “Hoovervilles” (shantytowns) in run down parts of cities
  • people began roaming land for food/work
  • many traveled on foot/rode rails illegally (jumped on/off moving trains)
    (DPPM)
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2
Q

What was the Scottsboro Boys case?

A
  • black/white boys got into fight on train from Chattanooga to Memphis
  • whites that were thrown off train went to nearest station saying they were attacked unprovoked
  • sheriff searches train + hauls black boys off to Jackson County Jail
  • white women on train falsely claimed black boys raped them
  • punishment was typically death by either execution/lynching
    (BWSWP)
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3
Q

What did Alabama Governor Benjamin Miller do to prevent a mass lynching of the Scottsboro Boys as they headed to Scottsboro?

A

dispatched militiamen units to Scottsboro

  • this type of action had brought sharp decline in lynching since 1920
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4
Q

What was the result of the court trial for the Scottsboro Boys?

A
  • all 9 except 13 year old found guilty

- sentenced the 8 boys to death
AS

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5
Q

What were some factors of the Scottsboro case that lent it to be an unfair trial?

A
  • boys lawyers had no time to prepare a defense
  • Judge showed obvious sympathy for girls
  • trial concluded in only four days
  • guilty verdicts flew in face of forensic evidence (no signs of rape on women)
    (BJTG)
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6
Q

What was NAACP Secretary Walter White’s impression of the Scottsboro Boys case?

A
  • was confused/pessimistic
  • repelled by the status of the Scottsboro Boys
  • NAACP liked to defend educated/well mannered blacks
  • Scottsboro boys bad reputation prevented NAACP support
  • made White cautious to support them
    (WRNSM)
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7
Q

Who would rise to defend the Scottsboro Boys when the NAACP hesitated?

A

The Communist Party

  • persuaded boys/their parents to let them/the Communist ILD represent them
  • launched public agitation campaign to save boys
    (PL)
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8
Q

What was Walter White’s feeling toward the Communist Party becoming involved in the Scottsboro Boys case?

A

appalled

  • case became tug of war between two orgs.
  • argued it would be suicidal to work w/ the Communists
  • believed Communists were more concerned w/ discrediting “capitalist courts” than helping boys
  • visited the boys/families saying not to work w/ Communists
    (CABV)
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9
Q

What did the Scottsboro Boys decide to do after hearing White’s advice w/ the Communists?

A

stick w/ the Communists + ILD anyway

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10
Q

What were the immediate actions taken by the Communists when it came to the Scottsboro Boys?

A
  • organized meetings + marches + petitions
  • sent Scottsboro boys moms on national speaking tours
  • messaged endlessly Alabama public officials
  • movement spread internationally to Communist chapters (London, Berlin, Cuba, Johannesburg etc.)
    (OSSM)
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11
Q

How did the complex nature of he Communist movement amplify its voice?

A
  • controlled many labor unions + defense committees + cultural orgs.
  • made Scottsboro campaign seem far more spontaneous than it actually was
  • party directives controlled most of actions not spontaneous actions by individuals
    (CMP)
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12
Q

Who else came in support of the Scottsboro boys besides the Communists?

A
  • many ordinary citizens attended rallies + donated $$$ + wrote letters to officials
  • artists + intellectuals + writers + scientists + politicians
    (MA)
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13
Q

What was the result of the appeal of the Scottsboro Boys case in the Supreme Court?

A

Powell v. Alabama

  • victorious
  • Court ruled boys had been denied right to “due process” under 14th Amendment
  • rescinded guilty verdicts + granted boys rights to new trials
    (VCR)
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14
Q

Where was the second trial for the Scottsboro Boys supposed to be held?

A

Decatur

  • Judge James Horton
  • one of the most politicized trials in US history
  • southern conservatism vs northern liberalism vs international communism
    (JOS)
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15
Q

What did the Communist Party + the ILD represent to Southern whites?

A

everything that they hated

  • culturally alien + revolutionary + militantly antiracist
  • viewed their involvement as indirect attack on South’s political/economic order
    (CV)
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16
Q

How did the Communists + ILD view the South?

A
  • saw it as a hellhole for oppression
  • dismissed the charges of black rape as a lie
  • wanted black/white masses to overthrow capitalist exploiters
    (SDW)
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17
Q

Besides the political/economic challenge brought by the Communists, what did many Southern Whites feel that the Scottsboro case represented?

A

defense of Southern white womanhood

  • white juries rarely found blacks not guilty in rape of white women
  • made the task for the defense doubly difficult
  • head counsel Liebowitz didn’t help himself by questioning the testimony made by train women
    (WMH)
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18
Q

What was the result of the Decatur trial?

A

found the first boy Haywood Patterson guilty

  • sentenced to death
  • surprisingly Judge Horton set aside conviction
  • Horton deemed white woman’s testimony as unreliable + contradictory to evidence
  • concluded rapes didn’t take place
    (SSHC)
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19
Q

What was the response by Alabama authorities after Judge Horton decided not to uphold conviction of the Scottsboro Boys?

A

didn’t give up

  • persuaded Horton to step down for other 8 trials
  • replaced by Judge William Callahan
  • was bias towards defense + looked for speedy conviction of boys
    (PRW)
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20
Q

What was the result of the court cases handled by Judge Callahan?

A
  • hostile towards Liebowitz
  • didn’t allow questioning regarding train woman’s (Victoria Price) truth in testimony
  • neglected to mention acquittal to jury until prompted by defense
  • declared boys (Patterson + Norris) guilty + sentenced to death
    (HDND)
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21
Q

What happened when the Supreme Court would review Judge Callahan case appeals?

A

Norris v. Alabama

  • Liebowitz argued blacks had been purposely excluded from being on jury
  • Court agreed citing clear evidence of racial discrimination
    (LC)
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22
Q

What did Alabama prosecutors do even after the second ruling by the Supreme Court to drop the charges against four of the boys?

A
  • still tried Patterson a fourth time
  • tried Norris a third time
  • tried three others a second time
  • all found guilty (received different sentences)
    (STTA)
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23
Q

How was the NAACP able to claim some credit for the limited victory of the Scottsboro boys case?

A
  • two ILD lawyers caught trying to bribe Price
  • Liebowitz insisted Communist Party bow out of case
  • Scottsboro Defense Committee (SDC) thereafter organized boys defense (NAACP coalition)
    (TLS)
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24
Q

What happened to the Scottsboro Boys once the SDC/NAACP took control of their case?

A
  • failed to secure pardons for five of the boys

- were able to commute Norris sentence
FW

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25
Q

What did the Communist Party accuse the NAACP of during the Scottsboro Affair?

A
  • bunch of bourgeoise misleaders
  • allies of capitalists + enemies of working class
  • said Supreme Court victories only concessions to uppity blacks (did nothing for majority)
    (BAS)
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26
Q

What did the NAACP accuse the Communist Party/ILD of during the Scottsboro Affair?

A
  • being more concerned w/ discrediting legal system than helping blacks
  • accused of swelling party treasury by promoting case
    (BA)
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27
Q

When did the communism first start to gain some ground in the US?

A

Great Depression

  • class warfare rhetoric unpopular in 20s
  • people began listening as more were bankrupt + starving + unemployed
  • Huey Long became popular for attacking the rich
    (CPH)
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28
Q

What did many black leaders think of the Communist Party in the US?

A
  • not a legitimate party b/c it had no commitment to democracy/the US
  • would stoop low to attract gullible blacks to join
    (NW)
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29
Q

What was the Communist Party’s stance on racial discrimination?

A

highly opposed to it

  • regarded blacks as natural recruits to communism
  • they were already oppressed + largely propertyless
  • recognized the situation of how blacks differed from white workers
  • denounced racism as a capitalist device to divide working class
    (RTRD)
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30
Q

What policies did the Communist Party adopt to attract blacks in the Deep South?

A

policy of national self determination

  • inspired by Garvey + black nationalism in 20s
  • blacks as majority in South have right to national self determination
    (IB)
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31
Q

Why did many write off the policy of national self determination?

A

Stalinist dogma that flew in face of American reality

  • idea that Black Belt could form together a separate black nation was ridiculous
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32
Q

What did the policy of self determination symbolize for blacks?

A

the Communist Party’s commitment to racial equality

  • endowed black struggle w/ unprecedented dignity + importance
  • underlined commitment by promoting blacks to leadership roles
  • selected William Patterson to head the ILD
  • sponsored James Ford for US Vice President (1st party to sponsor black VP)
    (EUSS)
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33
Q

What was so appealing to blacks + idealistic whites about the Communist Party in the 30s?

A

only political party that took racial equality seriously

  • mounted demonstrations
  • formed sharecropper unions in AL + LA
  • helped establish more orgs. like ILD devoted to black rights
    (MFH)
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34
Q

What were some of the organizations established by the Communist Party that were devoted to black rights?

A
  • National Negro Congress (NNC)
  • Student Negro Youth Congress (SNYC)
  • The Southern Conference for Human Welfare (SCHW)
    (NST)
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35
Q

What have been some of the opinions about the establishment of black rights orgs. by the Communist Party?

A
  • some think they were just fronts created in response to COMINTERN call for antifascist forces in 1935
  • some thought they were genuine orgs. not dominated by Communists
    (SS)
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36
Q

What was the campaign launched by the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in 1935?

A

wanted to unionize workers across blue collar industries

  • AFL either relegated blacks to segregated unions/didn’t allow them at all
  • CIO made it cardinal principle to organize blacks/whites together
    (AC)
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37
Q

What reason did the CIO have for adopting an interracial approach?

A
  • opposition of black workers would’ve been impossible to win strikes/bargaining power
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38
Q

What influence did the Communist Party have in the CIO campaign in 1935?

A
  • many CIO unions gave preferable treatment to white members
  • those w/ Communist influence made sure to treat blacks fairly
    (MT)
39
Q

What was the impact of the Scottsboro Affair on the Communist Party in the black community?

A
  • made them a household name in black America
40
Q

What event caused the Communist Party to greatly increase in support in the 30s?

A
  • the COMINTERN doctrines in favor of the popular front (1928-34)
  • # of black members doubled(TN)
41
Q

Why did the Communist Party fail to establish a mass movement for black equality?

A

blacks admired Communist militancy but didn’t want to join them

  • being a Communist in the South was dangerous
  • risked jail + beating + death (AL + LA sharecropper unions met w/ violent repression)
  • few blacks wished to associate too closely
    (BRF)
42
Q

What hampered the Communist Party’s growth in the North?

A

the party’s success in entering political mainstream

  • attained union + non-Communist org. influence
  • done by concealing party membership + watering down policies
  • methods gave it energy/direction but kept its membership small
    (ADM)
43
Q

What were the tactical errors that the Communist Party committed that cost it more support?

A
  • sudden policy shift inspired distrust + cynicism
  • caused credit/support from Scottsboro to fade
  • party endorsement of Nazi-Soviet pact of ‘39 hurt its prestige + moral authority + credibility
  • caused many non-Communists who supported party to become highly anti-Communist
    (SCPC)
44
Q

What was the effect of Roosevelt’s New Deal during the Great Depression on the black community?

A
  • previously federal gov. action seemed to play minimal role in their lives
  • now realized federal action seriously affected them
  • had the most to gain from the New Deal since they were hit worst by the Depression
  • made them start to lean more Democratic
    (PNHM)
45
Q

What did the Great Depression do for the black community?

A

made them become more class conscious

  • had always been people who blamed black oppression on capitalism rather than whites (Socialist opinion)
  • poor whites were making up lynch mobs + white labor unions anti-black
  • white capitalists were ones funding black education + supporting interracial cooperation
  • made blacks rethink Socialist thought
    (HPWM)
46
Q

What role did the Great Depression play in the black/white divide?

A

was the great leveler

  • reduced both blacks/whites to abject poverty
  • many blacks concluded troubles stemmed from failing economic system not merely white prejudice
  • popular among blacks that race problems were mostly economic + all workers shared common interest
    (RMP)
47
Q

How did opinions of the NAACP change during the Great Depression?

A

seemed out of touch w/ new mood

  • acknowledged economic issues but stuck w/ civil rights emphasis
  • relied on tried/true methods of lobbying Congress + using courts
  • courtroom triumphs barely affected the lives of ordinary blacks
  • whites always found ways around NAACP court victories
    (ARCW)
48
Q

What were the accusations made by the Communist Party against the NAACP during the Great Depression?

A
  • were acting as tool for white ruling class
  • were opposing alliance of black/white masses
  • these were absurd accusations
    (WWT)
49
Q

What were the accusations made by some NAACP supporters during the Great Depression about the NAACP?

A
  • seemed to be more interested in black middle class during this time than the majority
  • was not doing very much for those in poverty in the South
  • were urged to adopt an economic program that focused on interracial labor movement
    (SWW)
50
Q

How did the 1930s labor movements make up for the economic shortcomings of the NAACP?

A
  • 1935-45 = CIO created industrial unions on basis of interracial memberships
  • CIO substantially improved wages/conditions for black/white workers
  • gave blacks new leadership/education opportunities
  • provided lessons in mass action
    (NCGP)
51
Q

Why could the 1930s labor movement in of itself bring about racial equality?

A
  1. working class unity rarely extended beyond workplace
    - whites remained hostile to blacks outside of factory gates
  • CIO permitted degree of racial segregation in workplace/union to reach labor compromises
    (WC)
  1. CIO made few inroads in the South
    - South highly anti-union
  • made majority of blacks left out of labor movement
    (SM)
52
Q

What was a growing opinion among blacks entering the 1930s?

A

blacks ought to act for themselves

  • opinion shared by both black nationalists + people like Du Bois
  • DuBois dismissed argument that black advancement should come through black/whites worker bond
  • true situation facing blacks was usually choice between segregated institution vs no institution at all
  • blacks should organize to provide themselves w/ resources
    (ODTB)
53
Q

Why was DuBois opinion blacks should begin establishing their own institutions for advancement clear sighted?

A

blacks had already established their own churches/clubs

  • were sources of community pride/strength

involuntary segregation was inc.

  • racial ghettos growing + New Deal extended segregation to public housing
    (BI)
54
Q

How did DuBois’ campaign for the establishment of black institution formation go?

A

very little support

  • DuBois had an incapacity for popular leadership
  • Crisis editorials arguing for segregation made opinions of him even worse (led to NAACP resignation)
    (DC)
55
Q

What were some examples of how blacks were taking self action in the 30s?

A
  • NAPE = union formed by black postal workers

- New Orleans + Gulf Coast dockworkers joined International Longshoremen’s Association
NN

56
Q

What was the most prominent example of black self action in the 30s?

A

the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP)

  • members were people who waited on luxury passengers of Pullman cars
57
Q

How did the Pullman Company represent authoritarianism in US big business?

A
  • George Pullman saw himself as benevolent paternalist
  • erected a town near Chicago named Pullman to cater to worker needs
  • employees hated company town + regarded Pullman as tyrannical autocrat
    (GEE)
58
Q

What was the makeup of the Pullman Company staff?

A
  • whites built the cars but blacks staffed them

- George Pullman originally hired ex-slaves since they were trained in “serving whites”
WG

59
Q

Why did many blacks see a job as a Pullman worker better than alternatives?

A
  • less physically demanding than most
  • porters enjoyed steady work + had opportunities to earn tips
  • got to travel extensively
  • made up the aristocracy of black workers along w/ postal workers + longshoremen
    (LPGM)
60
Q

What were some of the drawbacks of working as a Pullman Porter?

A
  • many hours away from home
  • a large # of hours were unpaid
  • enjoyed social prestige in black community but little respect from whites
    (MAA)
61
Q

What action did the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters take in 1925?

A

hired A Phillip Randolph as chief organizer

  • began unionizing the porters/wresting contract from company
62
Q

What was the stick/carrot approach adopted by the Pullman Company in the 20s to combat actions by the Brotherhood?

A
  • fired “disloyal” porters + threatened to replace blacks w/ Mexicans/Filipinos
  • set up employee representation plan (company union) to undermine the Brotherhood
    (FS)
63
Q

How did the Pullman Company create the image of a black friendly organization?

A
  • was biggest employer of black labor in US

- quietly spread $$$ among influential black leaders
WQ

64
Q

What was the impact on the Brotherhood from the Pullman Company’s actions of giving $$$ to influential black leaders?

A
  • black ministers labeled Randolph an atheist
  • black newspapers called Randolph a Bolshevik
  • black politicians labeled him unprincipled demagogue
    (BBB)
65
Q

What action did the Brotherhood take in 1929 + what were the results?

A

held a strike vote

  • was a failure
  • yes votes won majority but union still too weak
  • failed to win AFL backing
  • Randolph forced to postpone strike (caused morale to drop in union
    (WYFR)
66
Q

Who was A Phillip Randolph?

A
  • native Floridian
  • ardent socialist
  • hard critic of traditional black leaders
    (NAH)
67
Q

What did Randolph do to build support for the Brotherhood?

A
  • won backing from NAACP + National Urban League

- white church denominations endorsed Brotherhood (destroyed previous black minister opposition
WW)

68
Q

What effect did the New Deal have on the Brotherhood?

A

gave them big push to victory

  • Roosevelt very sympathetic to unionism
69
Q

What was the 1934 Railway Labor Act passed by Congress?

A
  • outlawed company unions

- guaranteed workers right to organize w/o interference
OG

70
Q

What did the Pullman Company do in response to the Railway Labor Act?

A

reformed company union as Pullman Porters + Maid Protective Association (PPMPA)

  • Brotherhood would outvote PPMPA in 1935
  • Pullman Company forced to sign contract w/ Randolph + Brotherhood in 1937
    (BP)
71
Q

What were the effects of the new contract between the Brotherhood + the Pullman Company?

A
  • workers got inc. pay + shorter working month + dec. requirements in miles traveled
  • made Brotherhood national symbol of black solidarity
  • made Randolph a national figure
  • led to Brotherhood becoming first black union to gain full AFL recognition
    (WMML)
72
Q

What was the National Negro Congress (NNC)?

A
  • formed in February 1936
  • elected A Phillip Randolph as president
  • most ambitious effort to coordinate black power yet
  • represented coming together of left wing radicalism + labor militancy + heightened racial consciousness
    (FEMR)
73
Q

What was the first event that led to the creation of the NNC?

A
  • 1935 = blacks outraged by Italy/Mussolini unprovoked attack on Ethiopia
  • black nationalists regarded Ethiopia as model for black power (only independent black nation left in Africa)
  • blacks held pro Ethiopia demonstrations + petitioned League of Nations + raised $$$
    (NBB)
74
Q

What was the second event that led to the creation of the NNC?

A
  • victory of anti-communist Nazis
  • Nazi takeover of Europe promoted divisions in the left (socialists vs communists)
  • forced Soviets to abandon their revolutionary strategy
  • caused the CPUSA to call off fight against NAACP + ceased abuse of middle class
  • instead saw CPUSA + NAACP cooperation for leftist coalition (popular front)
    (VNFCI)
75
Q

What did Randolph call for in his first speech as president of the NNC?

A
  • an integration/coordination between black groups (creating a black United Front)
  • implement a Communist esque strategy
76
Q

Why was the NNC implementing Communist strategies considered dangerous by 1940?

A
  • Communist Party had endorsed pro Hitler-Stalin pact candidate
  • Communist Party had abandoned the Popular Front against fascism
    (CC)
77
Q

What did the NNC do in response to the attacks in Europe by Germany + the USSR?

A
  • passed motion condemning “imperialist war”
  • criticized American partiality to UK/France
  • urged US to stay out
    (PCU)
78
Q

What did Randolph do in response to the WWII motion passed by the NNC?

A

resigned as president

  • believed that the Allies cause should be the Americans as well
  • criticized communist party saying they were taking over the NNC
    (BC)
79
Q

What was the first reason why the NNC failed to organize properly?

A
  • black orgs. guarded own turf too closely for true cooperation
  • NAACP + National Urban League + NNC all suspicious of each other’s motives
    (BN)
80
Q

What was the second reason why the NNC failed to organize properly?

A

their radical agenda of 1935 became dated by 40s

  • included the rejection of the New Deal + support for independent political action
  • Roosevelt 1936 victory + major support among blacks for democrats made third party plan moot
  • blacks now had to work within Roosevelt political landscape
    (IRB)
81
Q

After leaving the NNC what action did Randolph take to try to create a black mass movement in 1941?

A
  • went against Roosevelt rearmament program
  • said national defense set up showed racial prejudice + discrimination
  • wanted to lead a giant all black march on Washington
  • would demand right to work + fight for the country
    (WSWW)
82
Q

What was the significance of the March on Washington (MOW) planned by Randolph?

A

spoke to material conditions of black Americans

  • US economy stimulated by federal defense contracts which dec. white unemployment
  • blacks were completely excluded from high paid skilled jobs in defense industry
  • gov. was terminating New Deal relief programs on top of this (made black situation even worse)

electrified black America

  • enabled ordinary people to strike against oppression
    (SE)
83
Q

Why did Randolph advocating for the MOW to be an all black affair amplify its appeal?

A
  • part of growing belief that the oppressed should work to free themselves
  • not a black nationalist but saw how the Garveyites appealed to those in New York
  • saw how much support the Ethiopia Peace Movement + Bilbo repatriation bill garnered in black community
  • knew all black MOW would attract many blacks who otherwise wouldn’t have trusted it
    (PNSK)
84
Q

What was another reason why Randolph wanted to exclude white involvement in the MOW?

A

determined to minimize Communist influence

  • CPUSA denounced any war preparation + denounced Randolph as a war monger
  • black communists allowed to participate in MOW as individuals
  • excluding white orgs. made it so Communists couldn’t send blocs of delegates to manipulate movement
  • exclusion of communists safeguarded his control over MOW + made it easier for groups like NAACP to back
    (CBEE)
85
Q

What was the Roosevelt administration’s response to the coming MOW?

A

not in support

  • thought mass of black marchers could cause outbreak of racial violence
  • federal gov. has never liked demonstrations in Washington (see them as coercion/insurrection)
  • DC was “southern” city in its social structure (strict segregation + white dominated police force)
    (TFD)
86
Q

What did Roosevelt do to try to get Randolph to call the MOW off?

A

dispatched three liberal delegates to talk to him

  • Eleanor Roosevelt + Aubrey Williams + Fiorello LaGuardia
  • all told Randolph he should call off the march
  • Roosevelt himself highly disliked by blacks for not opposing racial oppression measures
    (EAR)
87
Q

What was Randolph’s response to the delegates sent by Roosevelt?

A
  • refused to call MOW off unless gov. took definite action against discrimination
88
Q

What was the response by Roosevelt to Randolph’s demands for definite action against discrimination?

A

eventually folded

  • passed Executive Order 8802
  • banned employment discrimination in defense industry + Government
  • all gov. contracts must now contain anti-discrimination clauses
  • gov. promised special measures to remove discrimination in defense training
  • created a Fair Employment Practices Committee (FEPC) to investigate complaints of discrimination
    (PBAGC)
89
Q

What were the effects of Executive Order 8802?

A

black excited but whites did everything to work around it

  • white Southerners eventually succeeded in abolishing the FEPC
  • Roosevelt downgraded FEPC + showed little further interest in the issue
  • Randolph still seen as hero at the time of its signing though
    (WRR)
90
Q

What did Randolph do after the success of getting Roosevelt to pass Executive Order 8802?

A

moved to create permanent org. from the march that didn’t happen

  • converted MOW to March on Washington Movement (MOWM)
  • aimed to stage boycotts across institutions
    (MCA)
91
Q

What were the parts of Randolph’s 8 point plan?

A
  • demanded right to vote
  • abolition of poll tax
  • abolition of transportation segregation
  • abolition of armed forced segregation
    (DAAA)
92
Q

What caused the MOWM to fizzle out by 1943?

A

mostly due to WWII

  • Randolph calls for mass movement seemed inappropriate w/ US in struggle w/ Germany/Japan
  • black newspapers began rallying behind war effort
  • drive for national unity overwhelmed Randolph’s movement
    (RBD)
93
Q

What did Randolph’s MOWM expose?

A

his inability to create a practical program out of mass action

  • mass meeting became more about letting off steam than actual change
  • Randolph calls for nonviolent protest were futile in South (seemed like suicide)
  • a lot of nonviolent action confined to the North
  • many saw him as all talk no action by 1943

HIST 301: African American History (14 decks)

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