The Importance Of Black Migration To The South

In the beginning of the 20th century, most of the South, geographically, was inhabited by African Americans. African-Americans have been stuck in poverty in the past, and they did not have any job opportunities, due to racial prejudice. They have suffered ever since they were slaves picking up cotton and when the Ku Klux Klan was around. African Americans grew in fear in the South. Because of this, the North needed workers after World War I African-Americans jumped at the chance of moving to the North because the demand of employees had gone down. Blacks thought the only way to leave their oppression was to travel to the North. Many African-Americans moved to places like Chicago, Detroit, and especially Harlem

The New South was mostly about development and growth that started to gradually increase after 1877 on into the 1900s. Iron and steel were the main contributors followed by tobacco and timber. Steel mills were popping up all over the south which provided numerous jobs and a better way of living. The downside was the effect it had on the farm industry due to the fact that cotton was cheap and so was labor. As a result most of the people preferred to work in the factories which paid higher wages.

After the Civil War, people started migrating West and more immigrants started coming. The country went through several major changes between 1865 and 1880 that resulted in significant changes in labor and industrialization. The majority of the country owed war debts and there were money issues that caused people to lose money, but the country was quickly industrializing and urbanizing to improve agricultural life. While the North was thriving from new inventions and methods, the South was trying to recover from the affects of the end of slavery.

In 1879 Thousands of African Americans migrate out of south to escape oppression. There was a better way life and opportunities in the industrialized North and in the West. African American weren’t taught to read so their job opportunities were limited. White people believed teaching blacks to read would hold blacks back. They were forced to be home makers (maids for white people) or

The 1930's was a time of change for the blacks of the United States of America. However, this change was not all for the better. The main change for blacks during this period was that many of them migrated to the North, which in turn, caused many other situations, which included

African Americans participated in the Great migration because they were terrorized and looked down upon in the South. They were lynched, housing situations were terrible, there were no jobs or education accessible to them. Economic inequality was a huge issue, African Americans worked unfair labor practices which made it easy when jobs became available in the North. Floods in Alabama and Mississippi pushed African Americans out of the area, as well as the impact that the boll weevil had on the crops, it took out cotton, the key cash crop (pg. 46-47). The segregation laws in the South were redundant and they led to a great deal of mob violence, particularly in Georgia and South Carolina (pg. 52).

Some of the pull factors that attracted blacks to leave the south were the chance to earn a better education, increasing amount of jobs, the right to vote, black owned companies, and the opportunity for a better economic welfare. These push and pull served as the major factor in blacks migrating from the south to the north. Blacks felt that the north had a better opportunity for them to achieve greatness and was the cause for blacks to look search for the identity of the “New Negro.”

The Great Migration seemed to begin again after a short period of time during the Great Depression. The price of crops fell dramatically during the Great Depression, causing African Americans to leave the South, mostly to the western United States this time, though some still traveled to northern cities. They moved to western cities, particularly in California, for more economic opportunity since the need for farmers had declined thanks to government plans to help stop the Great Depression. Jim Crow Laws were still enforced in the South and African Americans continued to leave to find better race relations. “Although lynching had greatly diminished by 1935 - there were eighteen lynchings that year - violence was still prevalent in the South. People were threatened, beaten, fired from their jobs, and publicly humiliated.” African Americans had to flee from the South and from the violence that was attributed to the region. Another reason for this second Great Migration was because of World War II. Many industries would switch to making wartime goods which called for extra labor. Men would go off to fight, and women and African Americans would be able to fill the job left behind. Family members and newspapers also added to the new movement. Letters would be sent back to families still in the South and explain how much better it was and the economic opportunity. Some newspapers would urge African Americans to move from the South for better relations in regards to race, and for

The Great Migration was a huge relocation of African Americans from the Southern states of the United States to northern and Midwestern cities. This occurred between the years of 1910 and 1970. Over 6 million African Americans traveled to Northern cities during the migration. Some northern city destinations were Richmond, D.C, Baltimore, New York, and Newark. Western and Midwestern destinations were those such as Los Angelos, San Francisco, St. Louis, Chicago, and Detroit. During this time period and previous years, Jim Crow laws in the South were greatly in affect and causing African Americans a rough time due to the racism they faced. After Reconstruction had ended, white supremacy had taken it's toll in the South and Jim Crow had

The Great Migration was the mass movement of millions of African Americans to the Northeast, Midwest, and West around 1910 to1930. African Americans moved away from the South to escape segregation and violence in search of better opportunities. With the U.S. entering into World War I and troops being sent overseas, more job opportunities opened up for African Americans. Blacks enjoyed the unsegregated cities and the benefits that came along with it like better jobs, schools, and homes. African Americans also got more involved in politics and became an important constituency in the North because they were not prevented from voting and some even ran for political offices.

I believe that if the Southern states had been treated any harsher than it would have resulted in a large-scale revolt. Considering that the people of the South had already removed several Republicans from government seats in their states due to their current stringent and hindering laws. Now, if the Republicans started to employ more punishments and fundamental right infringing laws they would leave the South with no choice but to revolt to protect their fundamental civil liberties. Additionally, I feel that if the Republicans would have taken a less abrasive approach towards reconstruction the South's reintegration to the union would have been near seamless.

America was making extreme efforts to unite the country. The South believed that slaves were a necessity for their economy to continue to operate. Because their economy was heavily cotton-based, and cotton was an extremely laborious and monotonous activity, the south used slaves to work their fields and forced them to participate in this hard labor. The North was transforming into a mixed economy where people used their skills to cultivate a job. Many worked in factories or participated in a trade of some fashion. Because of this, slaves were not a necessity to the North. As time progressed, slaves that thought they could successfully make the journey to the North, began running away from their plantation homes. The farther North you could

South Carolina owned more black slaves than other places. South Carolina was called “Negro country”. Children slaves of South Carolina died before reaching the age of 16. White owners would try to erase their black slaves identities so, they would be more productive. Little did we forget we as African-Americans built this country by providing (roads, bridges, factories, farms, towns, and cities). We as blacks even created our own culture that whites could never touch nor take away. Our African-American food created a big influence on food which made food better and flowed through the Atlantic world. Not only food were being spreaded but, ideas about music, dance, religion, and freedom.

There was no reason for them to stay in the south, they were faced with violence and pain, and while in the north they were free. The textbook mentions that the migration is probably one of the most noteworthy moments in African-American history. Although the African-Americans were finding a new life in the North, they were still met with people that were not accepting of them. By the 1920s, black men were given jobs in factories, and were not used for domestic or personal services. Women were also given jobs in factories, and would take jobs that would help them stay out of domestic work. All of these facts are important, because the chapter covers how many African-Americans started their new lives in the North. It is important for people to understand the journey of the people that make up the United

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.