How did the Great Migration affect Civil Rights? Flashcards
Overall how would you describe African American civil rights by 1915?
-there rights had rights in law but the reality was completely different->segregation, racism, violence etc->Supreme Court was always going to side with the state laws
-more freedom in the North than the South->legacy of the American Civil war->more fears in the South of AAs taking jobs etc
What was the Great Migration?
-when there was a mass movement of African Americans to the North because of more job opportunities, quadruple the amount of money, sharecropping, poor job opportunities etc
When were the 2 migrations to do with the Great Migration?
-1910-1940
-1940-1970
How many African Americans were in the North in 1900 compared to 1920?
-in 1900 only 911,000 African Americans lived in the North->by the 1920s this had doubled
What social push factors were there for the Great Migration?
-Jim Crow
What economic push factors were there for the Great Migration?
-farming was the only job opportunity in the South
-Sharecropping->trapped
-job opportunities were scarce in the South
-everything in the South was on a small scale
-money issues
-not many food opportunities
-hard to make money->poor wages
What social pull factors were there for the Great Migration?
-less segregation ->could eat in any restaurant etc->could be more equal
-better standard of living
What economic pull factors were there for the Great Migration?
-more options for jobs
-there was more to do in the North->better access to food products etc
-need more factory workers
-jobs->also better paid jobs
-could have quadruple the amount of money in the North than the South
How did World War One pull people to migrate north in the Great Migration?
-WW1 had enabled soldiers to travel and experience non-segregated living->many questioned their old way of life
-they recognised how their lives needed to change so they wanted to change
-war provided economic opportunities
-half were drafted to France->there was no segregated->they saw how their lives could be
Was the North any better?
-there were still negatives
What were the negatives about the North?
-African American civil rights were limited
-development of ghettos->impact on education
-unofficially segregation moves North
-1919 white soldiers return home to find AAs in their jobs
-Chicago Race Riots
-severe workplace discrimination in unionised and skilled trade
-AAs couldn’t be part of unions->whites could strike while blacks had to work
What were the positives about the North?
-lynching was publicly condemned
-blacks with voting rights eligible to be jurors (made trials sometimes more fair/open)
-institutionalised (police, army and education) racism not as prevalent
-segregation encouraged black culture->Jazz clubs
-significant black middle class develops->leads to education/business opportunities
