The Great Migration Essay PDF

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The Great Migration: A Flee from Confinement, A Journey Towards Success

HIST 225 March 10, 2018

The Great Migration was an influx of African American people to the North in search of a more promising life. Up until a certain point in history, Black Americans faced immense discrimination and torture. Those unlucky enough to be born into slavery or even captured, faced an entire life of abuse and hardships. White slave-owners degraded Blacks and refused to respect them, yet still made them partake in their laboring jobs. In 1865, slavery was finally abolished. However, that was not the end of Black suffering. In years to come, obstacles such as Jim Crow Laws would inhibit Black success in the South and ultimately undo the progress that was strived for during Reconstruction. Technological advancements in agriculture also proved to be a significant impediment as sharecroppers and farmers felt obsolete. Suddenly, in the 1900’s a booming demand for employment and rumors of opportunities in the North sparked millions of Blacks to board trains and abandon their agriculturally-driven lives for a chance to thrive in an urban setting. The apparent racial harmony of the North, along with clearly detrimental facets of Southern society, drove the Great Migration. Prejudice and racism negated the few things Blacks valued in the South. While the North eventually began to shed its unmitigated racist perspectives, the South continued to discriminate and ostracize Blacks even decades after the abolishment of slavery. Subsequent to the period of reconstruction, a caste system known as Jim Crow was incorporated into southern ideals. Jim Crow Laws were founded on complete White supremacy and acted as a warden for Blacks who had now found themselves living in a southern societal prison. Under these laws all public facilities and transportation were segregated and Blacks were prohibited from specific actions. Some of those actions being, dining with Whites, sitting in the front of a vehicle while a white is driving, showing public affection ― as it was rude and offensive to non colored citizens, and shaking the hands of White men because that implied they were equal, which they were not.1 1 " What Was Jim Crow," Jim Crow Museum: Origins of Jim Crow. Accessed April 25, 2016,

Laws such as these took over society and made life in the South immensely challenging for Blacks. As shown by these predominant laws listed above, Jim Crow was solely composed to prevent Blacks from ever having a life or say that was equal to those of Whites. That undeniable inequality made Negro residents of the South realize that nothing may ever come of them if they continue to reside there. Surprisingly, these laws were not the worst of racism in the South. Hughsey Child's a man who grew up on a farm in Greenwood County, South Carolina divulges into the racism he encountered growing up. In an interview Child’s shares how he carried a weapon to protect his sisters due to the fact that white men would hide in the woods and rape colored women on their way to church.2 The brutality and lack of morality conveyed by that description perfectly illustrates the cruelty of the South, and how it was not a safe and comfortable place for Blacks. Evidently those of a darker race were not respected, which strongly swayed Black’s decision when opportunities were presented to possibly leave that all behind and migrate to the North. In a southern cartoon called The Crisis, March 1920 by Albert A Smith, Smith illustrates “A southern migrant on his way North, looking back over his shoulder at a lynch victim and a white southerner.”3 This cartoon spectacularly portrays the recurring point that Whites showed no mercy or sympathy towards colored people. To avoid death, harassment, and a life of misery, Blacks had no choice but to leave the South in order to preserve what little self worth they had left. With continuous racist incidents digging at their strength and determination Blacks eventually felt helpless and pinned to this demeaning lifestyle. Luckily with tolerance said to be spreading throughout the North, Blacks felt they may finally be allowed

http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/what.htm. 2 "Interview with Hughsey Childs,” Interview by Charles Hardy. Oral History Interview with Hughsey Childs, October 23, 1984 (audio blog), Accessed February 20, 2016, https://oralhistory.uky.edu/oh/render.php?cachefile=2014oh157_gn009_childs_ohm.xml. 3 Nell Irvin Painter. "The New Negro," In Creating Black Americans: African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006,)

a chance to earn their place in society. The prospect of avoiding being degraded by the color of their skin enticed Blacks to disperse into the North. From the old world to the new world, farming held a strong place in both society and economy, until progression changed the foundation of cultivation and in turn the status of Blacks in the South. In America, farming was an umbrella for economic success that continually carried the United States through changing times. Trade, Sustenance Factory development, employment, and business growth, all fall under the lucrative heading of agriculture. A majority of Blacks in the South relied on these specific branches and achievements of farming to live suitable lives. As the North began to progress technologically, farmers in the South eventually reinvented common farming and expanded outside of rudimentary tools. Machinery such as steam tractors were designed and discussed toward the late 1800’s, but large scale production of these machines only began after the dawn of the twentieth century. Around 1920, more than 160 tractor companies were selling hundreds of different models, with that number still growing as years went on. As a result of using tractors and other more advanced tools, farmers could now plow, plant, and harvest more acres of land using fewer workers. As the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported, “it took 40-50 labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on five acres with a gang plow, seeder, harrow, binder, thresher, wagons, and horses in the 1890s. By 1930, it took 15-20 labor hours to produce 100 bushels of wheat on 5 acres with a three-bottom gang plow, tractor, 10-foot tandem disk, harrow, 12-foot combine, and trucks.”4 This fact conveys how labor changes prompted insecurity to spread amongst many laborers. Low ranked Black farmers questioned their future employment standings and realized that with growing advancements such as this they would soon be an outdated form of labor. Childs, the southern migrant worker, revealed that he

4"1920s Machines - Introduction," 1920s Machines - Introduction, Accessed April 25, 2016, http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe20s/machines_01.htm.

believed that southern laws (such as the ones previously addressed) contributed to the ignorance of Blacks.5 This indicates that because Blacks were so limited, they were never given the tools they needed to function in American society. Deprivation heavily disabled them and did not prepare them for life, therefore attempting to move on to other job fields in the South would be a challenging task due to lack of education, and limited knowledge beyond agriculture. According to an excerpt on African American workers, jobs also decreased due to the Boll weevil beetle infesting and devastating cotton crops during the early twentieth century.6 Such reports relayed that because thousands and thousands of Blacks worked in cotton fields during the 1900’s, it would not be necessary for them to pick the cotton if it was damaged which was their main place of employment. There was still cotton that was good to pick, however it was significantly less than the usual amount which forced Black workers to seek new forms of income. The South had evidently become a completely non prosperous location for Blacks. Prejudice had not gone away so the decline of farming was simply another hard hit to the lifestyle of many Blacks. Fortunately, the North at this time was developing hundreds of factories and employment rates were constantly increasing. This made it an attractive location to try and find suitable employment that pertained to the limited skill sets of Blacks. Discontented by lack of employment and specific decline in farming, Black southerners packed up their lives and moved to the North to take advantage of growing available job positions. Due to the immense opportunities brought forth by World War I, Blacks saw much promise in Northern life. In 1917, the United States officially declared its involvement in the ongoing war throughout Europe. The United States had still been providing weapons and 5 "Interview with Hughsey Childs," Interview by Charles Hardy, Oral History Interview with Hughsey Childs, October 23, 1984 (audio blog), Accessed February 20, 2016, https://oralhistory.uky.edu/oh/render.php?cachefile=2014oh157_gn009_childs_ohm.xml. 6 John Charles Stoner, and Alice L. George, "African American Workers' Gains and Losse," In Social History of the United States, 24-35, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2009,

packaging crops and supplies prior to becoming an allied power; however once their involvement was concrete, factories, plants, and other industries sprouted in order to efficiently package supplies and create weapons and artillery. Factory positions were not the most glamorous or high end jobs in the northern region, yet they were perfect for migrant Black workers. These jobs consisted of hands on tasks, simple responsibilities, and provided a significantly less discriminatory working environment. In the beginning of the 1900’s a few hundred Blacks slowly made their way North. With promising and successful results, those that had traveled reached out to friends and family encouraging them to flee the limitations of the South. Hughsey Childs discussed in his interview how his brother wrote him a letter advocating for the North and explaining that there were many job opportunities in Philadelphia. Childs also acknowledged that the war did in fact prompt millions of Blacks to make the thousand mile journey.7 Childs was swayed and eventually followed his brother there, where he claimed a factory position and settled down with his wife. Such success showcased how glowing the North appeared to southern Blacks in comparison to the South and how that made it such an inviting region. As the war brought in around 700,000 blacks to the North, circumstances changed for migrants. According to Organization of American Historians Magazine of History, Blacks made more money in the eight hour work day, got better education, health plans, more creative freedom etc., and Black women began to secure more jobs and roles. 8 Workers in the North made what those in the South made in a week, in a day. Additionally, they were able to incorporate their cultures into their work which finally allowed job diversity to be probable. This

7 "Interview with Hughsey Childs," Interview by Charles Hardy, Oral History Interview with Hughsey Childs, October 23, 1984 (audio blog), Accessed February 20, 2016, https://oralhistory.uky.edu/oh/render.php?cachefile=2014oh157_gn009_childs_ohm.xml. 8 OAH Magazine of History, Vol. 17, No. 1, World War I (Oct., 2002), pp. 31-33 Oxford University Press on behalf of Organization of American Historians http://www.jstor.org/stable/25163561

growth ultimately led to the rise of prominent Black painters, musicians, etc.9 The positive juxtaposition between the North & South prompted appreciation from migrants. Thanks to the war encouraging vast migration, Blacks lives distinctly improved which is indicated through these documented facts. The promised land perspective Blacks developed from these war-created options convinced even more to make the journey, which continued the 55 year long Great Migration. Although a tumultuous journey, The Great Migration was a historical victory. Without the hardships and success dealt with during that era, America would not be the tolerant, melting pot it is today. The foundation of the Great Migration was inarguably negative; however, the great strides that were made by Black migrants outlined this time period as an iconic age of social change. Therefore, despite the racist, unsuccessful premise of the Great Migration, it triumphantly propelled America into a new age.

Bibliography "Infobase Learning - Login." Infobase Learning - Login. Accessed February 19, 2016. http://online.infobase.com/HRC/Search/Details/160423?q=the+great+migration. "Interview with Hughsey Childs." Interview by Charles Hardy. Oral History Interview with Hughsey Childs, October 23, 1984 (audio blog). Accessed February 20, 2016. https://oralhistory.uky.edu/oh/render.php?cachefile=2014oh157_gn009_childs_ohm.xml. 1920s Machines - Introduction." 1920s Machines - Introduction. Accessed April 20, 2016. http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe20s/machines_01.htm. OAH Magazine of History, Vol. 17, No. 1, World War I (Oct., 2002), pp. 31-33 Oxford University Press on behalf of Organization of American Historians http://www.jstor.org/stable/25163561

9 "Infobase Learning - Login," Infobase Learning - Login, Accessed February 19, 2016, http://online.infobase.com/HRC/Search/Details/160423?q=the+great+migration.

Painter, Nell Irvin. "The New Negro." In Creating Black Americans: African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. "What Was Jim Crow." Jim Crow Museum: Origins of Jim Crow. Accessed April 17, 2016. http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/what.htm. Stoner, John Charles., and Alice L. George. "African American Workers' Gains and Losses." In Social History of the United States, 24-35. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2009....