Jesse Owens: An African American Athlete

The Great Depression had a huge impact on African Americans. The Great Depression of the 1930s was catastrophic for all workers. But as usual, African Americans suffered worse, pushed out of unskilled jobs previously scorned by whites before the depression. African Americans faced unemployment of 50 percent or more, compared with about 30 percent for whites. Black wages were at least 30 percent below those of white workers, who themselves were barely at subsistence level. African

The Great depression caused many problems for black people and they were greatly affected by it. Problems of the Great Depression affected every American, however, African Americans were the most affected. By 1932 half of Black Americans were out of work. In some Northern cities, blacks were fired so that a white person could take their job. But yet again, racial violence became more common, especially in the South. Even when President Roosevelt was trying to end the Great Depression there was still a conflict between the blacks and whites in the New Deal Housing and employment projects. This just goes to show that once everything has been set in motion that it can't really become a non-normal thing. Everyone was mostly worrying about themselves and their own people that they didn't bother

As much as Reconstruction had initially tried to help the South, it was the sole goal of this movement to, “undo as much as possible of Reconstruction.” State facilities originally that were supposed to help everyone were closed down, and the gap between black and white expenditures on schooling increased. Due to the depression in the 1890’s this worsened the situation for black families trying to make a living in the South couldn’t keep up their farms or the places that their children would learn. “In 1900, no public high schools for blacks existed in the South. Black elementary schools, one observer reported, occupied buildings “as bad as stables””. New laws about segregation also affected blacks in more ways than just demoralization, it also showed what kind of jobs were considered good work for them. In the instance of segregation on railroads, “many blacks could be found in “whites only” railroad cars. But they entered as servants and nurses, not as paying customers entitled to equal treatment. The rise of lynching also affected the way blacks lived their lives, by controlling the way they vote, how they treated whites, and how they couldn’t rely on the justice system to address their grievances. An example of the reduced number of voters is best seen in Louisiana, where the number of voters dropped from 130, 000 to 1, 342, which is directly linked to the use of violence as a way to intimidate black voters. Blacks also had to be careful how they acted around white, since murder wasn’t a federal crime and was handled by the state, many blacks were lynched without fair trials and accused of crimes like raping white women, murder, and theft. A majority of the accused never when to trial. All in all blacks in the South were largely affected negatively as a result in policy changes, social factors, and widespread violence. This injustice carried on

African Americans lifestyle did not see much change from before the depression and during the depression in the sense of the capital dollar. They assumed the New Deal brought up by president Roosevelt at the time would bring change to their life, but the white public would not stand to be on equal terms with a person of color. “Unemployment was rampant, and many whites felt that any available jobs belonged to the whites first.”i Many white Americans did not want African Americans to be paid minimum wage, but be paid lower than minimum wage. Industry’s also wanted to pay their employers a different wage depending on the color of their skin. “Negro unskilled labor,

African Americans didn’t know that is was a Great Depression. African Americans have always been poor and knew how to survive. By 1932, approximately half of black Americans were unemployed, blacks always felt unemployed and under paid. Whites attempted to keep blacks out of work by not hiring African Americans. They used racial violence, and discrimination tactics to keep an underprivileged population depressed.

In the 1930’s teenagers from across the country were leaving their homes to search for jobs due to the extreme poverty caused by the Great Depression. Whether it was blacks or whites, they were all affected one way or the other by the nation’s economical failure. It became popular for the young men and women to travel by freight trains to arrive to the places with better job opportunities. Around this time blacks were still not treated fairly, even in poverty. In the Scottsboro case in Alabama two white woman prostitutes falsely accused nine African American youths of rape on a freight train car; the boys were convicted in every trial due to the prejudices of an all white jury, and they had an attorney with little to no motivation to put any effort into their defense.

The KKK forced many black americans who were living in the south to migrate north (McNeill). Those who stayed in the south often faced hardship throughout the entirety of the depression. Many were unlawfully imprisoned due to internalized prejudice within the judicial branch as well. Even when World War 2 began and the economy revived, racial minorities were still the last to be given jobs (McNeill). The popular phrase of “no jobs for blacks until every white man has one” sadly rang true. It was incredible difficult for black americans to get back on their feet after the Great Depression. A majority of black youth were killed, forced out, and then denied jobs for the while the depression existed.

Sports played and continue to play a pivotal role in American history and culture. Baseball provided an escape from the stress and frustration of WWII, a beacon of light during hard times and later helped influence integration. Athletes became symbols of what being a true American meant and many sports enhanced American culture. One of the most prolific changes sports brought to our society was the beginning of racial equality on the field. It encouraged and aided the fledgling equal rights movement that evolved in the 1960s. African American athletes were considered second-class citizen until sports provided the first taste of equality. Teams life the Indians, Dodgers and Giants led the way for all teams to accept black players on

The Great Depression. The worst financial crisis to ever hit America. Unemployment rates of over 25%. A 50% decrease in national income. Billions of dollars lost in a single day. (Trotter, pg.8) The Depression affected everyone in America. Young and old, rich and poor, black and white, none were spared. However, for America’s 12 million African Americans (Encyclopedia of Race and Racism) the Depression didn’t just start in 1929.(Africa to America: From the Middle Passage Through the 1930s) African Americans were a subjugated minority. Racism wasn’t only present in America, it was accepted by many. In the South, Democrats fought to keep African Americans under harsh segregation and oppressive laws. (Trotter, pg. 9) Efforts to relieve

With whites being laid off from their jobs they were strongly against that some blacks had jobs and they didn't. If they really wanted to make trouble, to get the blacks to leave they would either hang or shoot the blacks so their was an opening in that job. Blacks were always hired last so if the white man killed the black man they would always be hired first and not have to worry about another black man taking that job position. Even if blacks weren't killed for their jobs they had a higher unemployment rate than whites have ever had.. “Jobs were, no doubt, scarce during the Great Depression (1929-1941). In some cases, whites killed Black employees in order to create jobs for unemployed whites.” (OlI) With the great depression going on the normal jobs that no white man would do before was given to the whites when The Great Depression struck in Utah. Blacks were fired or killed from their jobs so whites could take over to do work for food or a very little amount of money. Even if the blacks wanted to do that job whites always had the option to get hired first. Even if their were only two workers the white man would always receive more, even if there was people from another country they would be treated like the black man. “With the entire nation suffering, white people were given the “Negro jobs” that they had previously deemed inferior”(Oli)“With the entire nation suffering, white people were given the “Negro jobs” that they

One of the most influential events in American history occurred when Jesse Owens won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. This accomplishment and others that he would achieve in his life time, were inspiring given the historical context in which he rose to fame. Jesse Owens created a historic legacy not just because of his record finishes on the track, but also due to the challenging times in which he competed.

The African Americans before World War Two were not treated equal. Before the depression they more and more African Americans began to seek jobs but this lead to many problems. There were rallies against companies hiring African Americans and very prominent wage gaps. “It was exactly what the white defenders called it: a “way of life” that included elements of culture, expectations of behavior, and a political economy that mocked the ideals of a democratic republic wherever Jim Crow ruled” (Moye 15). Even though there were laws in place for less racial segregation, most people still did not like African Americans. Many still worked on farms as sharecroppers or on tenant farms. This also led them to get hit hard and be very affected by the depression.

The depression sank its teeth into America in 1929, from then until 1939 the American society was crippled. This does not help the black communities since they have been suffering through racism for many years, they are at an all time low. Some of their jobs are similar to being slaves, and do not pay well at all. Others are being accused of crimes they did not commit like Tom Robinson from To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The Scottsboro Boys are a prime example of this. Many African Americans do not go to school instead they start working when they are extremely young. During this time racial tension is at an all time high,

Blacks were treated like nothing, no one wanted them, they were only used for work and were treated like trash. During the great depression most of the black farmers lost their job and caused it to tear up their families because of money problems. Most of the money problems were not having enough money for food or to pay their personal needs. Most colored people didn't like going out of their property because people would yell out " niggers go back to the Cottonfield " so they didn't go out as much.

Some might say Jesse Owens is not controversial because he did not change the racism in America. Jesse Owens said “When I came back to my native country, after all the stories about Hitler, I couldn't ride in the front of the bus," Owens said. "I had to go to the back door. I couldn't live where I wanted. I wasn't invited to shake hands with Hitler, but I wasn't invited to the White House to shake hands with the President, either." This quote may be true, but Jesse Owens was influential and was an example that it does not matter the ethnicity or nationality, a hero is a hero.