1. Events and Ideas #4
U.S. History
Unit 3

2. Must be in PowerPoint mode for these slides

3. Explain the effect the Harlem Renaissance had on African Americans
Essential Question:
Explain the effect the Harlem Renaissance had on African Americans

4. After WWI
The French recognized the 369th “Hell Fighters” for their courage and skill in battle
The U.S. downplayed their role and even tried to convince the French to do the same
“…We must not eat with them…shake hands or seek to talk or meet with them outside of the requirements of military duty…We must not commend too highly the [black] troops…” excerpts from a memorandum entitled Secret Information Concerning the Black American Troops.”

5. The Great Migration
After WWI, hundreds of thousands of Blacks move from the South to the North
Industrial North held more economic opportunities than the rural South
Page 427
After WWI, hundreds of thousands of blacks move from the South to the North.
Blacks were looking to escape the segregated life of the South.
Industrial North held more economic opportunities than the rural South.
Chicago and Harlem became centers of black music, literature, and art.
i. After WWI hundreds of thousands of American Americans joined in what was called the Great Migration.
ii. It was an exodus from the Southern states in the US to the Northern states in the US.
iii. African Americans could not catch a break from segregation in the South.
iv. Many African Americans – having experienced real man hood in the battlefields of WWI – would unwilling to return to the segregated South.
v. After living through trench warfare, German mustard gas, and the fact that the French (of all people) treated black US servicemen with dignity and respect, many blacks refused to return to the South and to their way of life they had before the war.
vi. The Northern states had many more industrial areas where work was to be found and in the 1920s, there was plenty of work.
vii. The North – like in placed like Harlem – African Americans were able to earn a living and express their themselves and their own American culture.
Blacks were looking to escape the segregated life of the South
Chicago and Harlem became centers of Black music, literature, and art.

6. The Great Migration

8. The Great Migration
Blacks became financially better off; yet remained at the bottom both economically and socially
During the 1920s, attitudes of African Americans changed dramatically. Questioning their place as second-class citizens, many blacks began to actively pursue equal rights. In some instances, this led to an increase in discrimination by reactionary whites, as well as deadly race riots in cities such as Chicago.
Beginning around 1910, large numbers of blacks left the deep South and relocated to Northern cities in what is now called the “Great Migration.” They sought better lives in the North, where they expected to find more economic and social opportunities, as well as educational. However, many found their lives in Northern cities just as difficult as in the South. African Americans tended to live concentrated in ghettos. Frequently, schools for blacks were inferior to largely white schools, while segregation policies barred them from most public accommodations. However, African Americans managed to draw some benefits from living in their own communities. As they more fully exercised their voting rights, they tended to elect African Americans to city, state, and national offices. Significantly, blacks also began to develop a separate African American culture. In New York City, a collection of black literary, musical, and artistic talent blossomed into the Harlem Renaissance. In 1925, African American writer Alain Locke described the ideal of a “New Negro” who would rise from slavery and segregation to be recognized for creative talent.
Many saw just as much discrimination in the North.
A number of Blacks began to actively pursue equal rights.
They exercised their voting rights electing Blacks to city, state, and national offices. 8

9. The Harlem Renaissance
Increased contacts with Whites in the work place and on the streets…
Black soldiers who served in WWI and found acceptance in Europe, were angered by the prejudice they encountered when they came home.
…increased awareness of the differences between the American dream and the reality for Blacks

10. Harlem Renaissance

11. Racial Pride
The artistic output of the Harlem Renaissance was dominated by racial consciousness and pride.
Harlem Renaissance was an upsurge of new racial attitudes and an artistic and political awakening.
Harlem writers and artists used their artistic endeavor as an extension of the struggle against oppression.

12. Political Agenda For Civil Rights
Leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey and the NAACP helped to inspire racial pride in the middle and working class
The NAACP published a journal used to share the literary works of Blacks
Marcus Garvey pushed for the Back to Africa movement
Du Bois helped in the creation of the NAACP

13. Two Differing Ideologies

14. W.E.B. DuBois
Saw the Arts as an area where talented and culturally privileged Blacks could lead their race’s fight for equality.
Believed art functioned as propaganda: works of art inspired by the artists’ racial heritage & experiences would prove the beauty of the race and its contributions to American culture.
These artistic successes could foster pride among all African-Americans and prove their educated class to be the equal of the White educated class.

15. Langston Hughes
Hughes felt the need to present the ordinary African-American person as an individual simply living in the flesh-and-blood world.
He argued against characterizing only “cultured” and “high class” African-Americans who mirrored the standards of White society.
Believed artists should choose to pursue their art for its own sake.

16. Quick Write: Answer this on your notes:
Which of the two ideologies: W.E.B. DuBois or Langston Hughes, do you feel was the best for the African American community?
Write in complete sentences why think this ideology was best.

17. Some African American art forms hurt the movement toward racial equality….
What message does this song, written by an Ernest Hogan, send to the general public?
While Hogan was considered one of the most talented performers and comedians of his day, his contribution to the racist "coon song" craze haunted him. Before his death, he stated that he "regretted" using the racial slur in his song.
Ernest Hogan
How do images and lyrics like this hinder the efforts of African Americans like Du Bois?

18. Yankees Buy Pennant Here!!
Mets Lose Here!!
Yankees Buy Pennant Here!!
Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City, was the center of the African American political, cultural, and artistic movement in the 1920s and early 1930s.
Can you see any evidence from this map that this is an African American community?

19. 1930
1920
1911

20. Impact of the Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem section of New York City was transformed from a deteriorating area into a thriving middle class community.
Before
After

21. Harlem in the 1920s

22. Cotton Club

23. Growing African American Middle Class
Developed as a result of improved educational and employment opportunities for African Americans.
The Harlem section of New York became the center of this new African American class

24. Push-back… Red Summer of 1919
In response to the gains by African Americans, many whites fought back during the summer of 1919.
There were 25 major race riots
83 Africa Americans were lynched
The KKK enrollment skyrocketed

25. Red Summer of 1919 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gvoq7oWkqRg
**One picture in this video from the 1960s –
can you spot it?

26. Answer the Essential Question: Minimum of 5 sentences
Explain the effect of the Harlem Renaissance had on African Americans