Transcript Racial Pride & The Harlem Renaissance Racial Pride & The H.Renaissance: My Q’s • How did Booker T.

Racial Pride & The
Harlem Renaissance
Racial Pride & The
H.Renaissance: My Q’s
• How did Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, and
Marcus Garvey differ in their perspectives about
fighting discrimination against African Americans?
• How did the two common themes of Harlem
Renaissance art and literature affect many
Americans?
• What was slumming?
Moving Out!
• 400,000 blacks left the South during WWI to find jobs
in wartime work in Northern factories.
• New York City’s black population swelled from
152,000 at the beginning of the war to 327,000 by
the end of the war. This movement of blacks from
the South to the North is often called The Great
Migration.
• Despite the move, African Americans once again
found racism and discrimination prevalent.
• However, in the North, blacks knew they could
express themselves more freely than they could in
the South.
Three Men, Three Leaders
• Foremost among the black population, were three
men who were not afraid to voice their opinions
about African Americans’ roles in American society.
• The three are:
• Booker T. Washington
• W.E.B. Dubois
• Marcus Garvey
• Each one of them had very different opinions.
Booker T. Washington
• Born a slave, Washington became educated after
the Civil War.
• In 1881, Washington organized Tuskegee University,
a college devoted to teaching blacks work skills
and trades.
• Washington believed that if blacks could prove
they were hard workers and could help white
America make more money, then racism would
slowly fade away.
W.E.B Du Bois
• Du Bois, in 1895, was the first black person to earn a
PhD from Harvard.
• As a professor of History at Atlanta University, Du Bois
openly criticized Booker T. Washington’s viewpoint.
• He denounced Washington’s call for patience and
reliance on only manual skills for blacks.
• Du Bois instead demanded full racial equality,
including the same educational opportunities as
whites.
• He also said that blacks should actively fight against
racism.
• Eventually, Du Bois would form the NAACP.
Marcus Garvey
• Born in Jamaica in 1887, Garvey went on to found the
United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in New
York City in 1914.
• He declared that it was impossible to change white
America’s racism and that they had to start embracing
their own race and black culture.
• He promoted the separation of the African American
community from white America. Garvey founded a
chain of UNIA grocery stores and other businesses
owned by only black people.
• Because of his leadership, 80,000 African Americans
joined the UNIA.
• One newspaper noted, “In a world where black is
despised, Garvey taught his followers that black is
beautiful.”
The Harlem Renaissance
• As hundreds of thousands of blacks flooded NYC
during WWI in search of jobs, there was also an
infusion of African American culture and pride that
no American city had ever seen before.
• Many of these new black residents settled in a
wealthy NYC community called Harlem.
• However, once African Americans moved in, the
white people moved out.
Racism in the Big Apple
• Although some blacks in Harlem were able to
secure middle-class jobs as real estate agents,
ministers, and funeral directors, a majority of blacks
could only get unskilled work with bad wages.
• Many found no work at all, causing many issues
within Harlem.
• Other problems in Harlem included overcrowding,
huge outbreaks of tuberculosis, and high infant
mortality rates.
• White government leaders paid little attention to
these problems.
Harlem Renaissance Art
& Literature
• Perhaps the most lasting contribution of the Harlem
Renaissance was the African American literature and art that
came out of the time period.
• This work would reflect how the Harlem Renaissance affected
many Americans through its two major themes.
• One emphasized theme was that African Americans should
be proud of their rich history and ways of life. This made more
African Americans truly believe that “Black is Beautiful.”
• The other common theme of H. Renaissance art and
literature was that inner cities were places of struggle and
injustice towards minority groups. The work of the Harlem
Renaissance exposed these urban problems to the American
public in captivating ways.
Slumming in Harlem
• Jazz, a new African American musical genre,
enticed many Americans from around the country.
• Often whites from wealthier neighborhoods would
go out and enjoy the “exotic” night life of Harlem.
When whites did this they often called it slumming.
• Because wealthier whites wanted excitement and
had the cash, illicit businesses sprang up in Harlem.
• Prostitution, speakeasies, and cocaine was always
on hand in Harlem.
• Harlem suffered long-term because of these
businesses.
The Renaissance Ends
• Despite an all-time surge in employment, culture,
and excitement for blacks in Harlem, the
Renaissance came to a screeching halt.
• When the Stock Market crashed in 1929 and the
Great Depression began, the Harlem Renaissance
came to an abrupt end.
• Although the Harlem Renaissance seemed to
highlight a promising future where African
Americans were more respected within the U.S.,
severe racism started again during the Great
Depression.
A Lasting Legacy
• However, the Harlem Renaissance left quite an
impact that African Americans and others
benefited from.
• Black writers, especially females, were now widely
accepted as serious writers.
• Black culture, with it beliefs, music, food, and more,
were spread throughout the country.
• Most importantly, the Harlem Renaissance
convinced many downtrodden African Americans
to finally feel good about themselves.