WEB Du Bois * Flashcards
What was the Niagara Movement? How did it end?
WEB Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter, who wrote in the Boston Guardian, established the Niagara movement in 1905 after a meeting in Canada at Niagara Falls where they argued mighty current of change was needed to end discrimination in suffrage and promote rights. However, it was never likely to be a success as Du Bois had an academic approach, and was superceded by the NAACP’s formation. It was well supported by women.
How did the NAACP form and what did they accomplish?
After the 1908 Springfield Riots, Illinois, leading African American Civil Rights campaigners in the NAACP met at the National Conference of the Negro, May 1909, and denounced discrimination against black citizens. At New York, the NAACP was formed.
The NAACP were to use the courts to defend civil rights. In 1915 the grandfather clauses in Maryland and Oklahoma were outlawed at Guinn v US. The NAACP also inspired the formation of the Nation Urban League in 1911 to prevent discrimination in jobs and housing. However, most members of the NAACP were white. Du Bois edited crisis for 20 years.
By 1900 what differences were there to civil rights?
- African Americans no longer as much in government as during Reconstruction, by 1915 none in Congress.
- Voting laws prevented African Americans from serving on juries to represent their race.
- Difficult to challenge white domination.
- Lynching and violent threats.
- Segregation introduced.
- When BT Washington died in 1915 thousands joined the NAACP and challenged their oppression.
Outline the Springfield Riot of 1908.
Mid-August 1908, two reports of assaults on white women within hours. Springfield Police took into custody Joe James, a vagrant, alongside George Richardson, a factory worker. A mob assembled at the Sangamon County Courthouse to lynch the two men in custody. Scott Burton and William Donegan were quickly lynched when the Sheriff announced they had been moved to an undisclosed location.
The mob targeted the homes of black families and businesses, targeting stores which sold guns and ammunition. Scott Burton tried to save his life with a shotgun, while William Donnegan was 84 years old and people were suspicious as he’d been married to a white woman 30 years. 2000 black people driven out of the city.
150 suspected participants were tried by the police, and threats from other participants prevented further persecution. George Richardson was found innocent, and the home of Abraham Lincoln was the first place for a north race riot in over a century. The NAACP formed.
What was Du Bois’ background?
In 1895 WEB Du Bois was the first African American to receive a PhD at Harvard, having studied African American history. In 1903 he wrote a book, The Souls of Black Folk, wishing for civil rights, an end of segregation, extended franchise, and equal opportunity. Support for the Niagara movement was limited, leading to Du Bois founding the NAACP with Oswald Garrison Villard in 1909, establishing Du Bois’ wants.
How did the NAACP support rise? Why did Du Bois lose popularity?
The NAACP gained female support from Jane Addams and Mary McLeod Bethune, and membership rose rapidly. By 1918 44,000 members were across 165 local branches. The Crisis was established by Du Bois in 1910 and had a circulation of 50,000 by 1917. He discussed lynching, suffrage for women, and Jim Crow Laws.
Du Bois lost popularity for supporting WWI and by 1930s was accused of being a Marxist,
What were NAACP successes?
NAACP success: getting cities to refuse to allow Birth of a Nation to be shown, made in 1915 by D W Griffiths. The film was still a box office hit though; the NAACP declared discriminatory laws in the south unconstitutional. In 1917 a law in Louisville ordering segregation for residents was invalid.
How did Du Bois’ opinion on Washington change?
Du Bois at first agreed with Washington, expressing approval of the Atlanta Compromise, but swiftly changing his mind and establishing the Niagara movement. In Crisis, he discussed the talented top tenth.
