1. Racial Issues in the 1920’s
13.3

2. 800,000 African Americans migrated north to join the many who did during WWI
More factory jobs in Northern cities
Large black communities develop in: -Chicago – New York City –
Detroit – Other Northern cities

3. The Great Migration
Wanted better economic opportunities and less discrimination
Situation better but not perfect
Blacks first to lose jobs during early 1920s recession
Violence – race riots – racial tension still existed even in North
1919-Red Summer. Race riots in Chicago, Washington DC, Elaine, Arkansas. Triggered by demobilization and scarcity of jobs. Whites targeted black and in the instances above, Blacks fought back.

5. Harlem Renaissance
A cultural movement that embraced expression and equality for African-Americans
Centered in Harlem, NY-fashion, entertainment, nightlife
Mecca of “The New Negro”
Also influential to Blacks in Paris, Africa, and the Caribbean

6. Harlem Renaissance “The New Negro Movement”
Betterment of self, escape segregation and economic depravation
Emphasized racial pride, equality
Challenged racism, stereotypes
Promoted progressivism, socialism, and integration
A freedom of expression

7. Themes and characteristics
Sociological development, intellectualism
Folk traditions
Modern Black life
Show humanity
Modernism vs. Jazz

8. Music Jazz and Blues: emotional, social, innovation
Duke Ellington-The Cotton Club
Louis Armstrong, Billie Holliday

9. Art Visual, photography, painting, drawing, acting
Reality brought to life
Past experiences
Ambitions, dreams, goals
Paintings by Archibald John Motley, black and white by Aaron Douglas “Play da Blues”

10. Literary Poets, playwrights, novelists, essayists. New styles
Inspire, influence,
Express, progress
New styles
Imitations of classic style
Publication
Langston Hughes, Review of Jessie Redmon Fauset’s book in 1924

11. Intellectual W.E.B. Dubois Marcus Garvey Sociologist, writer
NAACP founder; The Crisis
Marcus Garvey
Pan-Africanism-Unite all Africans
Black Nationalism-independent nation for all Blacks in Africa
UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement Association) “Back to Africa”

12. Why The Arts and Literature?
Saw them as an agent of change
Means of expression and self-determination
Way to inspire and connect
Open doors for new opportunities
This was the site of A’Lelia Walker’s ( ) home and famous salon, “The Dark Tower,” which she hosted for writers, musicians, and other artists during the 1920s. It was named after a sonnet by queer poet Countee Cullen, which has been said to capture the spirit of the Harlem Renaissance.

13. Impact
New identity for Blacks-from rural/ undereducated to urban/sophisticated
Players on the world stage
Self-determination
Set the stage for Civil Rights Movement
Inspiration for people worldwide
Movement towards integration

14. The Return of the Ku Klux Klan

15. Reestablishment of the Klan
1st Klan –
Reestablished in 1915
William Joseph Simmons –
Preacher
Brought the Klan back at Stone Mountain, GA

16. William Joseph Simmons reestablishes the clan in 1915

17. Carving of Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis
Carving of Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis. 1,686 feet high. Carving is 3 acres in size, begun in 1916 but not finished until 1972

18. Why did the Klan come back?
Racism, industrialization, migration, immigration
Targeted African Americans, Catholics, Jews, and radicals like Communists
Staged mass rallies, kidnappings, beatings, and lynching's

19. Lynching
A form of violence, usually execution, outside the law to terrorize and intimidate a group of people

20. The Fall of the Klan Rapid Rise – Early 1920s
Assisted by film Birth of a Nation
6 million members in 1924
Rapid Decline – Late 1920s
30,000 members in 1930
Today – 6,000 members

21. Fall of the Klan Decline Due To: -Negative publicity
-D.C. Stevenson Rape Case
-Publicity of Klan violence
-Some law enforcement crackdowns
-Internal Klan corruption