The rise of the NAACP, was in effect long before the first members came together as a unit, the spirit of freedom was already being heard through the cries of those lynched, forced to endure public disgrace and ignorance through like of education, the American Negro. Before the first letter was typed, the spirit of writers such as August Meier, and John Hope Franklin were being purged through the blood of their fallen comrades. Yet being in the ground, their voices cry out what does it take for a black man to receive justice as free men. In the spirit of the rise of the NAACP, there were many challenges and obstacles they had to confront, lynching, the Jim Crow laws and educating newly freed slaves of their worth in this hostile society. It is my hope that the voices of Moorfield Storey, Mary White Ovington ans W.E.B. Du Bois will show the validity of the NAACP as a platform to the success of people of color, yesterday, today and whenever needed. In mid- August 1908, in Springfield Illinois there was a report that a white woman had been assaulted in her home by a black man, shortly afterward, a second report came in stating there was an assault on another white woman by a black man. These incidents coming within hours of each other inflamed a large white mob. The Springfield police arrested Joe James for the first offence, and George Richardson for the second, meanwhile the gathering mob met at the county courthouse ready to lynch the two men in custody. Not able to get to the men the sheriff had in custody, the mob turn their attention on two other black men in the area. Scott Burton and William Donegan where taken by the angry mob and were quickly lynched. This angry mob violence spread throughout the community and the city lim... ... middle of paper ... ...he newly freed black males and females, they could be lynched for just about anything, for example, a newly freed slave could be lynched for being unpopular in the community, for refusing to work when asked, for causing harm to livestock, which was considered more valuable. If they were accused of any crime major or minor they could be lynched without representation, this was not just a southern problem, but a national problem. The NAACP got involved publicly by the lynching of Jesse Washington of Waco, Texas. He was a young black man accused of raping a white woman, Mr. Washington was ushered into court, forced to sign a confession, taken to a public square, where he was strip naked, lynched and his body set on fire. The spectacle was celebrated by the whole town, businesses where shut down, schools were close, to participate in this event, including the children.
Over the course of five chapters, the author uses a number of sources, both primary and secondary, to show how the National Negro Congress employed numerous political strategies, and allying itself with multiple organizations and groups across the country to implement a nationwide grassroots effort for taking down Jim Crow laws. Even though the National Negro Congress was unsuccessful in ending Jim Crow, it was this movement that would aide in eventually leading to its end years later.
By the end of the 19th century, lynching was clearly the most notorious and feared means of depriving Bl...
Wexler, Laura. 2003. Fire in a Canebrake: The Last Mass Lynching in America. Scribner; 2004. Print
On July 25, 1946, two young black couples- Roger and Dorothy Malcom, George and Mae Murray Dorsey-were killed by a lynch mob at the Moore's Ford Bridge over the Appalachee River connecting Walton and Oconee Counties (Brooks, 1). The four victims were tied up and shot hundreds of times in broad daylight by a mob of unmasked men; murder weapons included rifles, shotguns, pistols, and a machine gun. "Shooting a black person was like shooting a deer," George Dorsey's nephew, George Washington Dorsey said (Suggs C1). It has been over fifty years and this case is still unsolved by police investigators. It is known that there were atleast a dozen men involved in these killings. Included in the four that were known by name was Loy Harrison. Loy Harrison may not have been an obvious suspect to the investigators, but Harrison was the sole perpetrator in the unsolved Moore's Ford Lynching case. The motive appeared to be hatred and the crime hurt the image of the state leaving the town in an outrage due to the injustice that left the victims in unmarked graves (Jordon,31).
The 14th amendment granted citizenship to all who were born in the United States and the 15th amendment prohibited the government from denying a citizen the right to vote based on race and color. The increase in the Black population caused jobs to become competitive, the advancement of Blacks made some become business owners and others obtained education. This caused the White Elites to have some concerns and to compete, which they weren’t too thrilled about. The lynching of Sam Hose and the display and consumption of his body caused W.E.B. Du Bois, and others, to realize that they were not cared for and that Blacks as a whole were merely nothing. There was no respect for the deceased and Blacks were treated more like animals than actual living beings. The author’s stated “He was startled by the festive capture and ghoulish torture that ended in castration and incineration, with strips of Hose 's liver cooked and sold for ten cents. The message to all blacks was that they, too, could be sexually mutilated, reduced to meat, and consumed-exorcised in cannibal meaning and act.” “733:22”. Du Bois couldn’t believe how they treated the dead man’s body. Newspapers didn’t try to calm down the rising tensions between Blacks and White and instead they added more fuel to the fire. They described accounts of Black men harassing and assaulting White women which caused an uproar in the White
Students form student government associations to represent and voice the needs and wants of the student body. Rappers travel with entourages, and preachers have amen corners. Surrounding one's self with a cluster of like-minded individuals creates a comfortable atmosphere, that fosters confidence, and makes an individual and his/her ideas appear more credible. People have a tendency to connect with others that have common interests and goals. It is easier to fight for a particular cause, when there are people in your corner, who believe in what you believe in. This has been the case throughout history. Baptist Students created the Baptist Student Alliance (BSA), Homosexuals join GLAAD, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Deformation and women in the LWV (League of Women Voter's) fight for women's rights and encourage active participation of citizens in government. Black people have participated in and created numerous movements and organizations as well. Marcus Garvey's Back to Africa campaign instilled a sense of pride in black people who quoted the Garvey coined phrase "Black is Beautiful." The Black Panther's militant views excited black folk, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference was a major player in the civil rights movement. Individuals dedicate themselves and their time to organization in order to encourage and create positive change. Though organizations provide structure and a support system they often face their own set of issues, while trying to solve the big problem.
The Niagara Movement was a radical protest organization; its members were highly educated African-Americans; ‘The Talented Tenth’.This short-lived movement launched a campaign for equality for African-Americans, with an emphasis on political rights. However the movement was unsuccessful due to lack of financial support, causing its dissolution. The NAACP was a coalition of African-American and White educated radicals who sought to remove legal barriers for full citizenship of African-Americans. The NAACP was successful due to its triumph of many segregation and discrimination cases. DuBois was one of the founding members of the organization; he became known for editing it’s publication ‘The Crisis’; in which he denounced White racism and demanded that African-Americans stand up for their rights. DuBois’ publications were socially successful because they increased Black pride and confidence. These two organizations were able to conduct productive political efforts because their members were well educated, thus showing that DuBois’ ‘Gradualist Political Strategy’ was rational. DuBois’ strategy was politically efficient in the sense that it exercised the importance of political equality on the
Mr. Stevens used racial propaganda like that of Hitler’s National Socialist Republic Party. His purpose was to incite riots, and eradicate the Blacks from his neighborhood. He and his cohort, Mr. Morton would then buy up the devalued property. The motive here, being purely profit for Mr. Stevens and his friend. Mr. Stevens attempted to promote a violent, angry mob to carry out his plan. There are numerous instances in which this attempt is evident, “Mr. Stevens had been actively engaged in promoting his riot scheme; and already several disturbances had occurred, in which a number of inoffensive coloured people had been injured in their persons and property” (175).
Although the conclusion of the Civil War during the mid-1860s demolished the official practice of slavery, the oppression and exploitation of African Americans has continued. Although the rights and opportunities of African Americans were greatly improved during Reconstruction, cases such a 1896’s Plessy v. Ferguson, which served as the legal basis for segregation, continue to diminish the recognized humanity of African Americans as equal people. Furthermore, the practice of the sharecropping system impoverished unemployed African Americans, recreating slavery. As economic and social conditions worsened, the civil rights movement began to emerge as the oppressed responded to their conditions, searching for equality and protected citizenship.With such goals in mind, associations like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which came to the legal defense of African Americans and aided the march for civil rights reforms, emerged. By working against the laws restricting African Americans, the NAACP saw progress with the winning of cases like Brown v. Board of Education, which allowed the integration of public schools after its passing in 1954 and 1955. In the years following the reform instituted by the ruling of Brown v. Board of Education, the fervor of the civil rights movement increased; mass nonviolent protests against the unfair treatment of blacks became more frequent. New leaders, such as Martin Luther King, manifested themselves. The civil rights activists thus found themselves searching for the “noble dream” unconsciously conceived by the democratic ideals of the Founding Fathers to be instilled.
From slavery being legal, to its abolishment and the Civil Rights Movement, to where we are now in today’s integrated society, it would seem only obvious that this country has made big steps in the adoption of African Americans into American society. However, writers W.E.B. Du Bois and James Baldwin who have lived and documented in between this timeline of events bringing different perspectives to the surface. Du Bois first introduced an idea that Baldwin would later expand, but both authors’ works provide insight to the underlying problem: even though the law has made African Americans equal, the people still have not.
The National Association for Advancements of Colored People (NAACP) is a widely recognized civil rights organization built by advocates who desire to achieve equality for all victimized of racial discrimination. Since being founded in 1909 among supporting advocates, the NAACP holistically shares support on the following black policy issues: inequality in political, educational, social and economic opportunities granted for all citizens, need for legislative change to diminish racial prejudice and replenish equal rights, ensure communities are well acquainted with their constitutional rights and knowledgeable enough to use them in advantage of achieving racial progress and need for more conscious awareness of effects of racial discrimination
The South was shocked that even seven of the defendants were found guilty; the rest of the nation was relieved. The Imperial Wizard of Mississippi’s Klu Klux Klan was sentenced to prison. The arrogant Judge Cox had been humbled. "The Mississippi Burning Trial” was the first trial in Mississippi history where white jurors found white men guilty of crimes against “outsiders, niggers, and nigger lovers”.
Shortly after Rachel was written in 1916, the New Negro Movement began to gain traction in the African American community. This broad cultural movement focused on promoting a public image of African Americans as industrious, urban, independent, and distinct from the subservient and illiterate “Old Negro” of the rural South. Unlike his predecessor, the New Negro was self-sufficient, intellectually sophisticated, creative, knowledgeable and proud of his racial heritage (Krasner, Beautiful Pageant 140). While these concepts had been promoted since the turn of the century, it was not until 1917-1918 that they began to crystalize as a concerted effort among African American intellectuals. These men actively supported the creation of black drama because they recognized that “At a time when African Americans had virtually no political recourse, their voice could best be heard through…a creative and humanistic effort to achieve the goal of civil rights by producing positive images of African Americans and promoting activism through art” (“New Negro Movement” 926). The New Negros therefore shared the same overall goal as black intellectuals such as DuBois, but believed that black artists should focus on presenting the reality and beauty of the “black human experience” instead of an idealized vision of what life should be. Ultimately, the transition from “political” art to that which held creativity in high esteem was complex and divisive. Fortunately, just as Dubois emerged as the primary advocate of the former Political Theatre, so too would Alain Locke help guide the New Negros to support the idea of Art Theatre.
Two white females claimed they were raped by nine african american teenagers on their way to Memphis from Chattanooga on March 25, 1931 (Linder). Four young whites and five African Americans were looking for a rumor of government jobs, but on the way back from an unsuccessful job search, a white youth accidently stepped on the hand of Haywood Patterson who was hanging off the side of the train (Linder). A stone-throwing fight occurred, and a posse stopped the train (Linder). Dozens of men with guns rushed to the train and rounded up every African American (Linder). Nine African Americans were captured and tied together with plow line and were taken to jail (Linder).
For the white people, lynching was a form of entertainment. A lynching was an occasion to be celebrated, a community event that brought people together. “Children were often there they were being taught” (Collins 59). White children were brought to see lynchings, which taught them what it meant to be a white person during this time. They witnessed and were desensitized, to this violence against black people- usually black men. Race gave white people the privilege to sit on the sidelines of a lynching, and watch for entertainment’s sake. Black people did not have the same privilege. Instead of watching lynchings, black people locked themselves in their homes and hoped that the white mobs didn’t come for them