Changing Geography last Flashcards
(38 cards)
1
Q
Outline the situation of black Americans in 1850?
A
- 4 million of America’s 23 million people were black
- Most of the 4 million black people lived in the south, facing restriction of movement due to slavery.
- During the outbreak of the Civil War, black people started migrating to the north.
2
Q
What was the situation for black Americans after freedom in 1865?
A
- Many stayed in the south as life got better during Reconstruction due to enfranchisement and military law preventing violence.
- Many also were illiterate and unskilled so migration was daunting.
- Northern employers and unions excluded black labour.
3
Q
What was the slow drift north?
A
- Considerable number of black Americans migrating North in the late 19th century.
- 1879: 20,000 black Mississippian ‘Exodusters’ migrated from the South to Kansas.
4
Q
How much did Chicago and New York black population increase by during the slow drift north?
A
- Chicago (6,480 - 30,150)
- New York (65,000 - 100,000)
5
Q
What were advantages/disadvantages of living in the north for black Americans?
A
- (A) Better life in the north
- (A) More racial conciousness and activism
- (D) White people attacked the black population and participated in race control
6
Q
What were examples of methods to control black people in the north?
A
- Violence
- Gerrymandering against black Americans
- Secret ballot party in 1891 excluded illiterate black voters.
- School boards promoted de facto segregation
- Labour unions excluded black workers.
7
Q
How many black southerners migrated North during the First Great Migration (state what period of years this was)
A
- c1910-1930
- 1.6 million black Southerners migrated north.
8
Q
Push factors during the first Great Migration?
A
- Jim Crow
- Greater incidence of lynching in the South (Georgia mob lynched 11 black people in May 1918)
- Overdependence on the cotton crop led to slumps and lower wages (boll weevil infected cotton crops)
- Bad weather/disease ruined the cotton crop (500,000 black cotton workers migrated from South Carolina in 1922)
9
Q
Pull factors during the First Great Migration
A
- Northern employers sought black workers during WW1 when European labour was short.
- Wages were higher (few dollars a week in the south vs few dollars a day in the north)
- Less predjudice in the north and black migrants were welcomed by already migrant black communities.
10
Q
Disadvantages for black Americans in the north?
A
- Life was more expensive
- De facto segregation was more common
- Prejudice in employment and housing
- Racial tensions when black people were perceived as competition for housing and jobs.
11
Q
How many moved during the Second Great Migration (State the time period)
A
c1940-70 (5 million black Southerners migrated North and West between 1940-1970.
- 2 million black Americans sought well paid employment in defence industries
- 180,000 migrated to Los Angeles
12
Q
Consequences of Second Great Migration
A
- greater black consciousness and political power
- defence industries employed 2 million
- Chicago black population doubled in 10 years
- Race riots in Detroit where 25 black people died
13
Q
Why did black Americans move back to the south after 1970?
A
- Northern ghettos deteriorated
- Southern conditions had improved with less violence and less de facto segregation
- South was cheaper for living
- Northern industries such as the Rust Belt were declining
- Many felt they were returning to their ancestral home to be with their relatives
- Climatic reasons (warmer)
14
Q
Why did black Aermicans move into Harlem after 1905?
A
- Property was cheap so landlords were desparate for any tenants
- Many black New Yorkers were seeking new homes
- First Great Migration
15
Q
Why was black migration into Harlem significant?
A
- 1890-1920 - New York population rose from 70,000 to 200,000 reflecting the dramatic impact of the Great Migration on urban demographics.
- 1920-30 (100,000 black migrants arrived in Harlem but over 100,000 white people exited indicating racial tensions)
- Large amount of black Americans generated a sense of togetherness and empowerment and helped make Harlem into a black activist and cultural centre.
16
Q
Leading organisations activists based in Harlem?
A
- NAACP opened its first branch in Harlem
- Du Bois founded the NAACP’s Crisis magazine in 1910
- Garveys UNIA was based in Harlem in 1916 attracting millions
17
Q
List Harlem issues?
A
- Poor relations between black communities and white police officers
- Poverty was a major cause of ill-health (Black infant mortality was twice that of New York City)
- Rents were high for black people
- Overcrowded schools
- Harlem experienced unemployment issues due to their unskilled positions
- White racism made it difficult for black workers to gain employment
(One third of black Harlemites were unemployed and only 142 were working in the 30,000 war related jobs in NYC)
18
Q
When were the Chicago Race Riots?
A
- 1919
19
Q
Causes of the Chicago Race Riots?
A
- Underlying white resentment at the increasing black population
- White opposition to black Americans moving into neighbourhoods
- Returning white soldiers viewed black people as competition for scarce jobs and housing
- Resentment over black political power
20
Q
What was the incident on Lake Michigan beach?
A
- 1919 (a 15 year old black youth accidentally strayed into the white section of a segregated beach leading to him being stoned and drowned which led to rioting.
21
Q
How many black people killed in Chicago Race Riots and how many homes destroyed?
A
- 25 black people, 1000 black families lost their homes
22
Q
When were the Tulsa Race riots?
A
- 1921
23
Q
What were the underlying causes of the Tulsa Race riots?
A
- White oklahoman opposition to racial mixing, state made residential segregation mandatory in 1916
- Returning black veterans questioned their equality as they had fought for a better world.
- White residents resented black prosperity
24
Q
How did the Tulsa Race riots start?
A
- Rumours that a black male had assaulted a white female
- Both black and white people armed themselves.
25
Impact of the Tulsa Race Riots?
- 1000 black house burned down
- 10,000 black Americans left homeless
- 300 black Americans died
- 800 white people were injured
26
When were major consecutive race riots?
- The summers of 1964-1968
27
Who did white people blame for consecutive race riots?
- White people blamed extremists such as Malcom X because he said that America would see a 'bloodbath'
28
What happened during the 1965 Watts riots? (deaths,injuries, cost)
- Black mobs set fire to several blocks of stores with 34 people dying and 100 people being injured
- The riot cost $40 million
29
Why did the Watts riot happen?
- Ghetto residents felt the end of segregation and guarantee of voting rights in the South was no help to them.
- King told the press that Watts was basically the revolt of an economic underclass.
30
What was the underlying cause of the Newark riots and when were they?
- Newark riots were in 1967 and were caused by poverty and deprivation.
31
What was the trigger of the Neward riots?
- Police brutality against a black cab driver
- snipers fired at white police officers and black residents accused troopers of indiscriminately shooting looters.
32
How many died during the Newark riots?
- Over 20 died during the Newark riots
33
Why were white Americans responsible for the black rioting?
- Violence and force driving black families out of suburbs.
- Federal Government policies rejected mortgage applications from people of colour meaning there weren't any federal housing units for poorer blacks.
- White flight from cities to suburbs meant that white people moved out of cities, depleting their tax base so the ghettos grew even more rundown.
34
What was the % increase of Americans living in suburbs between 1920 and 1960?
- 16% increase in 40 years
35
Why were white people moving into suburbs more quickly?
- Land and new homes were cheaper
- Cars and highways facilitated commuting
- Escape from black, impoversihed centres
36
Who were the Levitt brothers?
- Builders of the suburban houses
- Built over 10% of suburban housing
- Construction of first Levittown began in Long Island in 1947
37
Why were the Levittowns popular?
- Spacious, cheap and surrounded by good facilities.
- Racially exclusive meaning blacks weren't allowed to own property
- When a black family tried to move into a Pennsylvania Levittown in 1957, white people threw stones at them.
38
How had the great migration revolutionised settlement patterns?
- White people had fled.
- Black populations remained in ghettos that were characterised by poor qualities of life.
