Was life universally bad for Black Americans?Aims (pick which level your working at):

Grade G-D: Some evidence of different conditions faced by black people in USA before Rosa Parks.

Grade C/B: Detailed evidence and explanations of what USA was like for black Americans.

Grade A/A*: Detailed analysis of the variety of conditions facing black Americans

StarterWhat do you think is happening in the picture below?

• What evidence have you seen so far that this behaviour was typical before the success of the Civil Rights movement?

Was it all bad for black Americans?

• Look at the source sheet and fill in the table.

Source Number:

What does it tell you about life as a black American before 1950s?

1

2

3

4

• What was life like for black Americans before WW2? Explain your answer

What clues does this picture give you in relation to the impact WW2 had on black people?

What impact did WW2 have on black peoples lives?

AimC-B: to describe what impact WW2 had on black people’s lives

A-A*: to explain the importance of WW2 to black people.

Background Info:•1 million black Americans served in WW2.

•At the beginning of the war there were only 12 black officers.

•Black people were usually assigned to all black units

•Soldiers would often be given medial jobs such as cooks and labourers.

•As the war developed more racially integrated units became popular because General Eisenhower believed in them.

•By the end of the war integrated units and black officers increased significantly, and several black people even became pilots.

Black Americans found themselves fighting for democracy and freedom against the tyranny of Nazi Germany and the oppressive rule of Japan. In Europe Hitler was condemned for his racial policies and promoting the Aryan Race.. Yet black people lived in a country were they were seen as second class citizens, with no rights to, and discrimination in education and jobs.

• Accordingly, civil rights leaders called for a “Double V” campaign calling for the defeat of Nazism in Europe and victory over racism at

home.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• Energized by these appeals, one million African Americans enlisted

in the armed forces, and thousands joined civil rights organizations like the NAACP (National Association for

the Advancement of Coloured People ).

• The NAACP demanded anti-lynching laws, access to voting, and racial

equality in employment, education, and housing.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• In 1944, NAACP lawyers won the landmark Supreme Court case Smith v. Allwright, striking down all-white

election primaries in Texas.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• Under pressure, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, it outlawed discrimination in the U.S. civil service and in private establishments receiving federal defense contracts.

• Executive Order 8802 did not extend to the U.S. armed forces.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• FDR’s order enabled two million African Americans to attain defense jobs and another 200,000 to enter the workforce.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• Black union membership doubled and African American wages

quadrupled from $457 to $1,976 a year, approximately $600 less than

whites.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• The military’s record on racial equality was less impressive.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• When the war began, the army and navy rarely sent blacks into combat

and relegated them to menial chores like kitchen duty and burial

detail.

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

• The Marines refused to admit African Americans in any capacity.

http://www.qmfound.com/soldiers_hawaii_1942.jpg

• The Red Cross maintained different blood supplies for white and black

soldiers.

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

• U.S. military officials deployed all-black units such as the 761st Tank

Battalion and the 99th Pursuit Squadron that compiled

distinguished records in combat against the Nazis.

• Wartime demands forced revision of some of these practices.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

• By 1944, the army and navy were experimenting with integration. Most black soldiers, served in

segregated companies commanded by white officers.

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

• Throughout the war, African American soldiers bitterly complained about racial

harassment on and near military installations.

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

• Not surprisingly, black veterans were among the thousands of

African Americans who joined the civil rights movement in the years

following World War II.

http://www.lwfaam.net/ww2

Task

• Do you agree with the letter in source 1? Explain your answer

• Super thinking• Write a response from President

Eisenhower

A black soldiers writes to the president.

Dear President Roosevelt : “It was with extreme pride that I, a

soldier in the Armed Forces…read the following affirmation…”

http://www.nydailynews.com/img/2007/11/26/amd_roosevelt.jpg

“Your use of the words ‘all persons, regardless of race, color, and creed’

means that we are fighting for ‘freedom, equality, and justice’ for

our Negro Americans… ”

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

“On the home front …your issuance of Executive Order 8802 …to fight against the discriminatory employment practices …used against Negroes…is…part of the world struggle against tyranny.”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959631/

“But the picture in our country is marred by one the strangest paradoxes in our whole fight against world fascism. The U.S. Armed Forces, to fight for World Democracy, is within itself undemocratic.”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2525959865/

“The undemocratic policy of Jim Crow and segregation is practiced by our Armed Forces against its Negro members. Totally inadequate opportunities are given to the Negro members…”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackheritage/2164137231/

“Negro soldiers are completely segregated from the white soldiers on

the base…the Negro Section C are covered with black tar paper, while all

other barracks and housing on the base are painted white.”

http://www.qmfound.com/quartermaster_black_history_resources.htm

“Just as our government in civilian life, is carrying on a fight for the full integration of the Negro…so in the Armed Forces our government must take up the same fight for the full integration…into all phases of our fighting…”

http://www.buffalosoldiers.com/AAChronology5.htm

• “…another Executive Order is now needed…whereby the Negro soldiers would be integrated…as fighting men, instead of segregated…housekeepers.”

Respectfully yours, Charles F. Wilson, 36794590 Private, Air Corps

http://www.digitaljournal.com/images/photo/african-americans-wwii-00a-m.jpg

                                            

In the summer of 1943, race riots took place in a number of Northern cities. Some of the most serious took place in Harlem, New York

Race Riots Facts

• The arrival of black Americans in large cities across America caused huge problems.

• Race riots broke out causing millions of pounds worth of damage

• The worst took place in Harlem New York. 6 black people were killed and 300 injured.

• There were also riots at 9 black army camps where soldiers resented the unequal treatment.

Homework – next Tuesday 18th

• Overall, do you think WW2 had a positive or negative impact on black people? Explain your answer