Class Synopsis 11/8

WWII was a pivotal moment in history for the United States, including African Americans. At the start of WWII segregation was prevalent. Not only was the South legally segregated, but so were the defense industry and the army. The United States entered the war as a segregated nation with a segregated army. However when America went to war to fight for freedom and equality, questions of true democracy forced Americans to look at the irony of being a “true” democracy, while still forcing African Americans to be second-class citizens. Many started to realize it is hard to practice segregation with the rhetoric of freedom. The Japanese even used America’s hypocrisy to enhance their war efforts, as they attempt to convince China to join them in the fight against the United States. African Americans used WWII and this hypocrisy as an opportunity to push for racial equality. Blacks decided to join the army not only to defend their country and fight for democracy, but also joined with the hope that the future would hold more in store as they cut away at the institution of segregation. When WWII started, African Americans were not allowed many privileges that their white counterparts were allowed, and many did not even see combat. However, as the war progressed there started to be racial movements throughout the army. The army desegregated, and by the end of the war African Americans were allowed to become Marines. African Americans wanted to use this movement within the army to gain access to all rights and privileges back home too. They argued that the rededication to the pursuit of a true democracy was the new normal. However, the South was still heavily dedicated to maintaining the status quo, which they started to feel was slipping away from them.

These clashing ideas led to high racial tensions, especially in the South. Whites used racial violence and terror to reaffirm their status and maintain the status quo. Many stories of racial segregation from this time show how committed whites were to segregation in the American South. One of the most vivid stories is the one of the African American soldier who, before going to fight for his country, wanted to eat a hotdog at a segregated hotdog stand. The waitress agreed to allow him to eat there, however before he can eat his hotdog, the manager of the establishment kicked him out and refused to let him eat there. As he was walking out, the soldier turned to see Nazi POW’s being served at the hotdog stand. This story perfectly captures the rising racial tensions and shows how hypocritical America was during WWII.

            The black press used stories like this to show the rest of America and the world what was going on in the South at this time. They used the war as an opportunity to push black agenda. Their double-V campaign sought to not only have a victory abroad, but also a victory at home. A. Phillip Randolph, a black labor leader, knew however that people would only respond to power. He realized people would be more likely to respond if African Americans could advance the issue by working collectively.  Randolph used the war effort to push Washington to desegregate the defense industries. He rallied 100,000 African Americans to complete a March on Washington movement in 1941. However, many people were critical of Randolph and his efforts to use the war to fight racial segregation. Many believed that the war should have come first, and talks of desegregation and equality at home could come after WWII was over. Randolph was successful in his efforts, however, and the defense industry was desegregated, opening more jobs and creating more equality for African Americans.

            WWII, along with the migration of people from rural to urban areas, the success of the court cases won by the NAACP, and the survival of black leadership, led to the civil rights movement. WWII and the period following the war was significant for America, and granted many opportunities to fight segregation and made many Americans face the hypocrisy of America’s democracy.

Class Synopsis 11/2/12

We started the class reminiscing on Ida B. Wells and the presentations on her life throughout the week. Surrounding the societal control that lynching provided, we expanded on the precedence lynching had in other eras, in other parts of the world. As economic expansion is experienced, there are folks who want to maintain the status quo of society. For example: the Salem Witch Trials and the Holocaust. Just like these significant instances in history, spectacle lynching was a product of a threatened population. There is the need for a scapegoat or a need to maintain social hierarchy; therefore, a specific population is dominated through violence. American lynching is a product of historical precedence as America modernizes. In essence, while a desired change is taking place (modernization), there are some facets of society that the dominant population want to keep dominant (White culture/social status).

Spectacle lynching became just that… a spectacle. This was a point in time that the Middle Class had never seen before: a time in which leisure time was experienced and entertainment was demanded. This was the same time the masses enjoyed baseball, circuses, and carnivals; naturally anything that could be considered “entertainment” was made popular and available to the masses. To fill the free-time of the populace, special trains were run, photographs were offered, and postcards were written, all within a single lynching. These patterns became something of a ritual, mimicking the popular baseball games: whereas in the latter, one could buy a ticket, eat a hotdog, cheer for the home team, and get players’ autographs, at a lynching, one could watch or take part in the victim’s jailbreak, confession, torture, hanging, shooting, and burning. If you were “lucky,” you’d even get some sort of souvenir (a charred finger or toe) in the process. If a little less unlucky, you could still get a photograph with the still-warm body to take home.

Finishing the topic of American lynching, we discussed how it is, essentially, a modern phenomenon, due to the rise in racial terror. Between 1890 and 1940 was the height of the Jim Crow Era. In that time, nearly 5,000 were executed by the lynching method, and that number may be largely undercounted. Of those 5,000, most of them were black males, their number rising each decade as a way to “keep blacks in their place.”

Nothing about lynching was legal. However, it was sanctioned by the state, if not the federal government. To put one’s self in the shoes of a Black contemporary, who would you go to for help? At the public displays, police, sheriffs, and even judges were present at the lynching. W.E.B. DuBois’s question, How do you poke holes in the sky?” becomes pertinent at this time.

Moving on to religion and culture in our discussion, we talked about the politics of respectability, still relevant in the Victorian Age of America. The shift of respectability, however, was to economic status, of which few African Americans at the time had little to make do with. A product of slaves or former slaves, the Afro-American populace had little material wealth to speak of, leaving them at the bottom tier on the social hierarchy. This was the time in which DuBoise spoke to the “Talented Tenth” that would lead and guide the entire race out of its social slump. Within that conversation, many Black Christians subscribed to a brand of Christianity that equated all humanity. Since every human was made of the same stuff and reflective of God’s image, religious intellectuals pushed for equal socio-economic treatment. In this way, they taught their church-sanctioned counter-narratives.

Sarah Smith gave us a great review of Blues People, in which the author emphasized the growth of the arts in tandem with societal issues and Black cultural identity. An interesting juxtaposition I picked up on was that Jazz was acceptable in the mainstream, both Black and White, while Blues music was considered something akin to Black “grunge” music. With the Blues being so prevalent (yet still “underground”?), Billie Holliday’s “Strange Fruit” became a headline. In which, she explicitly attacks the morality of lynching. The hauntingly beautiful song is one facet in the Harlem Renaissance in which what it means to be a Black artist resounds: “Am I a Black artist, or am I an artist who happens to be Black?” Either way, we can all agree that the art produced in this period is reflective of the society at large, the politics of respectability, lynching, Jim Crow, and Black unity within the Church, boycotting, and protest. Professor McKinney likens the artwork of this time to Picasso’s Guernica, noting one specific quote: When asked “Who did this?” Picasso answered, “You did,” a nod to all people, not one in particular. In this way, art became “another arrow in the quiver” for social commentary.

Activism v. Resistance

Hey all,

Hope you are well. Here's what I've been thinking: perhaps we're trying to stuff too much stuff into one definition. Are we over-burdening the concept of "activism"? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Let's keep talking about it.

Here's one thought. Perhaps we need to make the distinction (if there is one) between "activism" and "resistance." Can one engage in resistance (a malingering slave, for instance) that is not necessarily "activism"? How are these two concepts related/connected? Could it be a matter of degree? For instance, one malingering slave v. ten thousand malingering slaves? (Reminder: this is why Steve Hahn talks about slave activity during the Civil War constituting a large scale "rebellion.")

Just a thought. Let me know what you think.

A modern take on the politics of respectability

Hey all,

Here's an article I bumped into that explores the modern dilemma of black women and the politics of respectability. The issues are (sadly?) eerily similar to those facing black folks (and in this particular case, black women) throughout the 19th century, particularly in the North where free men and women were trying to navigate the waters of American life and culture.  Go here to see the article on the Ms. blog, and be sure to check out the article on the Crunk Feminist Collective site. It may be a bit spicy for some of you (there's bad language in it) but it makes some interesting points about the politics of respectability and their continued influence within black culture in general and hip hop culture in particular.

Let me know what you think!

Blog Synopsis: Thursday, September 20th

On Thursday, we delved into Reconstruction: its literal components, what it mean for new freedmen, and whether or not it can be simply categorized as a "success" or "failure."  The class began, however, with a return to a previous hot-button topic regarding the notion of activism.  We struggled with the question of what, exactly, constitutes activism?  Perhaps, we concluded, it would be even more difficult to determine what did not constitute activism.  Context, it was determined, is an absolute necessity in viewing early African-American activism.  While an African-American couple purchasing a home in white neighborhood in present-day Cincinnati would be a non-event, in the 1950's, that same event would certainly exemplify activism.  We must be careful not to retrospectively judge early, seemingly non-consequential modes of resistance, as they must be viewed in light of the total institution of slavery.

The Constitutional framework of Reconstruction: the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, allowed African-Americans the opportunity to not only engage in institution-building on a massive scale, but to challenge the socio-economic status quo by exercising control over their own labor.  For the first time, African-Americans can say no!  This heightened sense of personal autonomy catalyzed a massive diaspora during Reconstruction.  Former slaves sought better jobs, displaced family-members, and expressed a distinct desire to move away from their former masters.  The Freedman's Bureau, for instance was designed to assist African-Americans and landless whites during Reconstruction, offering funding for schools and infrastructure.

Family-life for African-Americans in the Reconstruction era was immeasurably different.  Now, African-Americans could get legally married; no more "jumping the broom."  The tenuous connection which existed between family during bondage, the knowledge that, at any time, one member could be sold away, dissolved immediately.  In the 1870s-1890s, African-American families begin to rename themselves, rejecting the surname of their former owner, in favor of ones that more readily indicated their destiny as sons and daughters of America (Washington, Jefferson, etc.).  Central to notions of family, was the concept of identity creation.  Freedmen diligently sought, both collectively and individually, the opportunity to recreate themselves in their own image, according to their standards.

The Church was another major institution which quickly developed in the immediate post-Civil War era.  Much like the situation regarding the rejection of former master's names, African-Americans sought to distance themselves from the churches of their former masters.  By 1870-1880, Several different denominations of African-American churches were flourishing: the African-Methodist Episcopal Church, Church of God in Christ, among others.  In addition to offering spiritual guidance and providing valuable community service, African-American churches represented some of the largest and most important pieces of public space available to African-Americans in the period.  With growth of so many new denominations in a short amount of time, African-Americans faced a dilemma: Do I want to join an African-Methodist Episcopal Church or go to a traditional Methodist church?  The greater variety of options available to African-Americans during Reconstruction allowed for an even more individualized rout to the systematic cultivation of group and personal identity.

Early on, African-Americans realized the centrality of education to achieving the fulfillment of their recently-granted status in America.  This voracious appetite for learning did not suddenly spring up during Reconstruction, however.  Slaves exhibited a conscious desire for self-education while in bondage.  "Pit Schools," holes 6-7 feet deep where slaves would organize clandestine meetings in order to teach each other to both read and write, demonstrate the fact that African-American desire for higher education was not a new or novel concept come Reconstruction.  Rather, the efforts to advance African-American education during the Reconstruction period represented a continuation of past exertions.  Nobody had to tell freedmen that education was important.  It was obviously key, they realized, because since 1830, they had been legally barred from learning to read/write in most southern states.  The rise of Historically Black Colleges occurred during this period.  From 1866-1867, Morehouse College, Spelman, and Howard were founded.  Ex-slaves were, tellingly, the biggest proponents of the public school system in the South.  The region was overwhelmingly agrarian and rural, with very few members living in cities.  As a result, few Southerners prioritized education in a manner analogous to that of African-Americans.  The state constitutions of 1868, constructed under a period of high-percentage African-American representation, established the basis upon which southern public school systems were created.

Throughout Reconstruction, African-Americans sought to "build freedom from the ground up."  Provided the legal infrastructure to challenge extant socio-economic hierarchies,African-Americans engaged in a protracted negotiation, most notably for labor and public space.  Though seemingly uninspiring now, public space was of paramount importance in the early 20th Century.  Parades, for instance, were extremely well attended, and were used by sundry institutions to assert their political independence and identity.  When African-Americans began to exercise their freedom with regards to the notion of public space, whites often viewed it as an intrusion, resulting in the initiation of a protracted negotiation for the exercise of legal freedoms and political power.  As a result of the percieved "encroachment" of African-Americans into the public sphere, the American South begins to develop the legal structure, beginning with Plessy v. Ferguson  for legal segregation.

Class Discussion for September 13, 2012

     In our last class session, we began discussing the onslaught of slave rebellions that took place in the years prior to the Civil War.  Upon looking at these various instances, a common theme begins to emerge: in the cases of Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vesey, and Nat Turner, a plot in which to overthrow the white oppressors is quickly extinguished before the plan can be carried out.  Ironically, all of these men had religious sentiments and revolutionary ideals.  The idea of being sacrificed or "crucified" for one's beliefs and the value of a revolutionary rhetoric all resonated with these men.  In terms of a religious standpoint, the story of the Exodus out of Egypt served as a deep connection among many in the African American community during this period.  Slaves, under the yoke of white oppression, saw themselves as the Israelites, or God's chosen people.  In contrast, the white slave holders were the Egyptians keeping them in bondage. 

     In the 1830s and the 1840s, an expansion of the rhetoric of equality began to develop across America.  With the election of President Andrew Jackson in 1828, this notion of equality strengthened, and the idea of the "common man" became an important symbol by a nationalistic standpoint.  In reality, this notion of equality and equal rights was severely limited, and was restricted based on race and gender.  During this time, the rights for the black population of the United States, in particular those in the deep South, became more and more marginalized within society.  Although the Atlantic slave trade ended in 1808, the institution of slavery grew and became more profitable as more states entered the Union.  Within this domestic slave trade, over one million slaves were bought and sold.  The domestic slave trade also brought greater economic value to the slave industry.  For example, a young, fit field hand cost around $500 in 1800.  By 1837, the price of a healthy worker cost around $1200.  The areas that profited most during this time were the states found in the cotton belt of America: Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, east Texas, and the Florida panhandle.  All the while, Africans Americans were subject to a government constantly reaffirming the institution of slavery.  For example, the 1857 decision in the case of Dred Scott deemed that African Americans did not have American citizenship.  As Chief Justice Taney stated, "Blacks have no rights which a white man is bound to respect."  Not only was the government reaffirming slavery, but also infringing on the personal liberty laws of many "free" states in the North.  This infringement of state's rights for the benefit of slave holding states became an important fuse in the start of the Civil War. 

     Predominately, the focus of this class session was on the beginning of black nationalism.  To overcome this feeling of inferiority, a convention movement began to arise in the late 1830s.  Two of the predominate themes of these movements were the topics of national identity and racial ideology: How should the black population perceive race?  As Mallory pointed out in her report on the book The Radical and the Republican: Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and the triumph of antislavery politics, the key to a sense of black nationalism lay in the ability of African Americans to construct their own freedom.  This nationalism could be achieved in a variety of different ways.  As a nation, we are a mix of various cultures.  One way of constructing nationalism could be through hearkening back to one's roots.  During the onset of the Civil War, slaves also had the opportunity to drastically change the outcome of the war in favor of the Union.  As thousands of slaves willingly went toward Union lines, they were actively fighting for their freedom.  By joining the army, many black communities believed the war could end the institution of slavery in the United States, and destroy the barriers of difference in terms of racial inferiority.  The movement of blacks making their way into Union lines also drastically impacted the view of slavery on the minds of white Northern soldiers.  Having seen the horror of slavery up close in the Southern states, the policy towards allowing slaves to fight began to change.

    Overall, this class helped to construct a rounder, multi-dimensional persona of the people we are discussing.  I certainly believe that one of the main goals of this class is to realize the humanity of the people we are discussing.  Because of little circumstantial evidence from that period, it is difficult to understand the thinking of a 19th century African American.  However, evidence, such as the friendship and views on war between Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln found in James Oakes' book, helps us to understand the thinking and natural tendencies of the black population during this time.   

Today in class, our focus was on resistance to slavery. Although we read several passages in preparation for today’s class, for the most part the focus was on Levine’s “Black Culture” with little references to the other passages. I split it up into two parts just because it was easier that way.

The lecture, as I decided, had two main themes: the creation and maintenance of a slave society and resistance to that slave society. We will begin with the creation and maintenance of the slave society. It should be noted that a slave society is different from a society with slaves; a slave society is a society in which slavery is considered one of its founding principles and is therefore woven into the fabric of that society. In order to create such a society, America codified slavery in the Constitution in its three-fifths compromise and the first Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 which was later reinforced by the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, both allowed slave owners to recover their slaves from anywhere in the country; by the time the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed, any black person could, regardless of whether or not they were previously free, be taken into slavery. Because the Constitution only covered those considered a whole person and slaves were only considered to be three-fifths of a person, technically they were not guaranteed anything outlined in the Bill of Rights so in order to be certain that the slaves would not have access to these rights, states put into place various laws, also known as “slave codes.” In addition to codification, various slave ports were also established, ports in Charleston, SC and New York, NY were the two largest, to ensure that the importation of this “property” was possible. In order to enforce and maintain this slave society, whites made use of three methods: dehumanization, subjugation, and coercion. Means of dehumanization included, but were not limited to, preventing the slaves from gathering, reading, and writing. They did not want these things to happen because expressing feelings, telling of atrocities, being educated, having familial structures similar to that of whites, et cetera, were all things that would humanize the slaves (and give them the tools to revolt/rebel) and therefore jeopardize the vitality of the slave society. Means of subjugation included, but were not limited to, things like the fugitive slave law that allowed slaveholders to retain control of their slaves at pretty much all costs. Means of coercion included, but were not limited to, any ways the slave holders decided to threaten, mutilate, beat, et cetera, slaves; they were allowed to do anything because slaves were property. This slave society was prepared to deal with slaves who did not do what they were told whether it be by laws that granted permission, or widely accepted customs and traditions.

Onto the resistance to the slave society on behalf of those enslaved.  People were all over the place when it came to their responses to slavery, in regards to how they chose to resist slavery, if they chose to do so at all. There is a spectrum that can be used when it comes to their degree of resistance (pictured below). The vast majority of those enslaved fall somewhere in the middle.

Ways of which slaves resisted slavery may not have entailed revolting and rebelling, but could nevertheless still be considered resistance, just to a lesser degree. Examples of resistance that are a bit more obvious, as detailed in Grant’s “Day to Day Resistance,” included playing dumb, not working up to one’s full potential, and things of that nature because after all, slaves received no incentives worthy of mentioning to behave as their slave holders would have them. Other examples of not so obvious resistance, as detailed in Levine’s “Black Culture,” include mocking whites via song and dance, communicating with other slaves via song and dance often incomprehensible by whites, et cetera. All of these examples, and some not listed, which serve to construct families and communities for the slaves providing them with a “human space.” This is considered resistance because they lived in a society that went through vast measures to dehumanize them which they clearly worked against which equals resisting.

Other Notable Mentions:

-Olaudah Equiano who was captured from Nigeria and wrote a narrative about his life that does a fine job of illustrating the ills of slavery.

-In the 19^th century, we saw the country becoming more and more pro-slavery. As the U.S. continued to expand, so did slavery.

-1809 slave trade ends, at least legally; it is believed to have gone on until the late 1800s.

-People who are not considered a whole person do not have standing in court.
-Although the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 made people more anti-slavery, it did not make them anti-white supremacy.

-From the mid to late 1800s, anywhere from 20,000-50,000 slaves tried to run away.

-During war, coercive power of slavery undermined because men were off to war and were not there to enforce the means of coercion and slaves took advantage of these opportunities.

For more information: refer to your notes, re-read the assigned readings, or speak with The Detective.