The Great Migration

In addition to the work of the labor agents and the black press, an extensive network of family and friends furthered the desire to migrate North. Members of the community would talk in barber shops and grocery stores to learn about transportation, jobs, and housing in the North. Letters, money, and accounts from those who returned to visit the South also gave them an idea of what their future could look like if they choose to migrate to the North. Some formed migration clubs to pool their resources and move in groups to the North while others saved up enough money to send one family member up North, expecting them to make enough money to send the rest of the family up. The dream of moving up North for a better future could not have been so popular, had there not been communication between members of the community and those who had

The change in transportation led to social changes as well. Due to the construction of railroads in the urban areas there was more settlement in places where transportation was available such as New York. Due to the increase in transportation, white plantation owners increased their need for slave labor on the cotton farms as well as stricter slave code policies were increased in the South. Due to the advanced railroad system Americans are able to move westward very easily. All the migrants were in search for a new life and quick riches. In 1848-1855 Americans moved west because of the California Gold Rush. The gold rush attracted Chinese migrants to the western United States. Some migrants planned to take advantage of the public lands that the federal government was selling in order to

The progression of people into and within the United States has had an essential impact on the nation, both intentionally and unintentionally. Progressions such as The Great Migration and the Second Great Migration are examples of movements that impacted the United States greatly. During these movements, African Americans migrated to flee racism and prejudice in the South, as well as to inquire jobs in industrial cities. They were unable to escape racism, but they were able to infuse their culture into American society. During the twentieth century, economic and political problems led to movements such as The Great Migration and The Second Great Migration which impacted the United States significantly.

“Berlin, Ira. The Making of African America The Four Great Migrations. By Ira Berlin. New York: Penguin Group, 2011. Pp 289”

The Great Migration was a relocation of 6-7 million African Americans from the rural south to the cities of the North, Midwest, and West from 1916 to 1930 which had a huge impact on Urban life in the United states. They were driven from their homes by unsatisfactory economic opportunities and harsh segregations laws, many blacks headed North, Where they took advantages of the need for industrial workers that first arose during the first World War. Between 1910 and 1930, The African American population decreased in the South and increased in the Northern states by about forty percent as a result of the migration. This “Great Migration” was on the largest internal movement of people in the history of the United states and it is a shift that impacted culture, politics, and economics as a new African American communities struggled

The Great Migration was a significant movement in history for the United States. The Great Migration was brought about for several reasons, many of them being factors that pushed African Americans out of the South, and pulled them up to the North. The harmless act of moving North was more than complicated and generated a lot of conflict in multiple aspects for both African Americans and White Americans. Despite the trouble and worry, a substantial number of African Americans migrated North to some of the most industrial areas looking for a better life and more opportunities.

Housing and racial discrimination of the 1950's and 1960's can not start without the discussion of the great migration of African Americans. African Americans left the south and moved to the north to large cities like Portland, Detroit, Seattle and topic at hand Chicago. In search of new lives and to avoid tough segregation laws blacks flooded the Chicago area. According to online reports more than 6 million African Americans moved up north from 1916 to 1970. The mistreatment of the southerners and segregation alone was a huge incentive for African Americans to leave the south.

Many African Americans had moved north during the Great Migration to escape conditions in the south, but found that discrimination was still prevalent in northern cities. African Americans not only had difficulties finding jobs, but still felt the stigma of being black. Living within the time of legal discrimination, many African Americans soon realized that though they may have escaped the violence of the south, they still had to deal with the challenges and setbacks of being black in America. The Great Migration began in the 1910s and 1920s during World War I. The second wave of migration of Blacks to the north and west began in the 1940s during and after World War II (Alexander, 1998, p. 352). With the war going on, many black people found jobs due to the numerous openings of those fighting in the war. But once the war ended, white soldiers came back, finding blacks filling their jobs and wanting them back. Black men had particularly difficult times finding jobs; “they were the last to be hired or accepted in the unions and were the first to be let go during the Depression” (Dyer, 2001). Not only did the new immigrants face tension with whites over jobs, but also with Northern blacks, who believed that the migrants “threatened their social, economic and political security” (Tolnay 1997, p.1216).

Spencer R. Crew wanted the readers to understand why the Great Migration happened. Also what the migrants faced in terms of discrimination in south and in the north. He states that “Without the increase in job opportunities caused by World War 1, the Great migration might never have occurred”. Better job opportunities was a big part of why so many migrated to the north along with the freedom that Jim Crow had denied them their whole lives. Though many found jobs in the north they were typically unskilled and least desirable jobs, like in the meat packing companies, on railroads, servants, and janitors. Those jobs paid more than they could get in the south but was offset by the higher cost of living in the north they had to pay higher prices

The Great Wave of immigration in 1900 is not much different than the immigration the U.S. is facing today. Only 15 percent of immigrants that come to the U.S. return to their homelands. That means that 85 percent of immigrants that move to the U.S. stay here to work. During the 1900s 37 percent of the immigrants that came to the U.S. moved back to their homelands. This has led to a rapid increase to the U.S. population due to the large amount of immigrants staying in the U.S. The population rate in the U.S. is 50 percent higher than

At the start of the twentieth century, America was still facing racial inequality post-Civil War and segregation of whites and blacks after the Reconstruction Era. With the blacks being fed up with their current conditions, they participated in the Great Migration, in which they moved from the South to the North for a better life filled with more opportunities; blacks were ready for real reform of American society. Realizing the seriousness of this

This caused the Great Migration, a movement where thousands of African-Americans vacated their homes in the south

Expertise in a profession does not guarantee a job or equality. The same holds true today and the difficulty of finding work due to race and ethnicity in American society is a silent code. During the Great Migration that began in 1915, sent thousands of southern blacks north in hopes of opportunity and to escape southern economic oppression. However, the influx of migrants produced an unfair legal system and lynching, because northern whites felt threatened by African-American presence. Later, when World War I ended in 1918, it created a large demand for workers in northern factories and black southerners were in line for jobs. Although, most factory jobs do not require a degree, consequently one threat is true; there is less employment for whites and extended employment for blacks. As African-Americans make a living financially, the desire to fulfill the American dream placed real estate on the

Numbers, as useful as they are, have no story. Stories, as moving as can be, cannot penetrate the heart of cruel human. In the 21st century world of capitalism, what speaks more truly to an American than consumerism? Throughout Warmth of Other Suns, Wilkerson describes the journeys of migrants and the personal obstacles each character encountered while moving. These challenges and their relevance to the larger narrative of the Great Migration are represented through the items on display. The emotional journey of a migrant is told through their stories, and their physical journey is told through their possessions.

The Great Migration brought about changes that would bring prosperity to most, but little did they know, it would come with a price. That price was endured through various social, economic, and political challenges that occurred during this harsh time in black history. Many opportunities were available for families that would travel far to take advantage of opportunities that would start a new beginning. The Great Migration was a movement of hope that there is a land that is free of oppression and strife. However, black families in the north faced issues that were troubling and contradicting to their belief of the north. Their thoughts of living racism free and gaining economic power was far fetch when they experienced the challenges of the north. The challenges blacks faced during the Great Migration paved the way for numerous opportunities and breakthroughs we have experienced and have not experienced today.