African Diaspora GEO 103 CHP 10 & 12

In order to better understand African-American resistance, the authors (Chapter 12) suggest this:

(1) Engaging with the spatial strategies employed to address fundamental racism. (2) Address social,economic and bio political questions about the rights of African American to the city.

Goin' to Chicago

(1) Examines the aspects of significant internal migration of Blacks in the United states. (2) Focuses on a migration stream (origin and destination) from Mississippi to Chicago; the stream was part of the "Great Migration", the largest internal migration in this nation's history. (3) Blacks were being "pushed" out of the South and "pulled" into the North by a number of forces. (4) Reveals early success of Black people in Chicago and other cities. Documents the problems faced by Black Americans in numerous northern cities such as Chicago. (5) Institutional and individual White behaviors were deigned to segregate and discriminate against Blacks in employment and in housing.

When did the two great waves of Black migration take place?By 1929 how many Blacks had left the South? Why did they leave?

1916-1925, By 1929 racial segregation, poverty, devastation caused by the cotton crop drove this migration. In the 1940's the second wave began.

In what region of Chicago was the neighborhood of Bronzeville (Brownsville) located?

47th Street. Bronzeville was located on the south side.

What was a "blockbuster"? How did real estate agents exploit this?

A blockbuster was the first black person to move in to a white neighborhood. Real estate agents would then buy the homes from scared whites below market value and sell them to blacks at market value.

What was a kitchenette? What is its significance?

A kitchenette was a small room made out of other buildings. It was basically a one-room apartment. It was a lower standard of living and realtors charged more money due to fire-hazards.

Explain the significance and outcomes of "The Green Book". Was "The Green Book" a tool for African-American resistance? Explain why or why not with specific examples.

A travel guide intended to help middle-class African-American travelers avoid discrimination by identifying accommodations that would welcome them. The Green Book became a geospatial product and tool, to rework and resist the effects of White supremacy on personal freedom and citizenship, requires placing what appears to be simply a business directory into an understanding of Jim Crow-era activism and resistance.

Which of the following is (are) correct about the "Reverse Migration"?

A)Refers to the relocation from all other regions to the Southern states. B)By 1970 the Reverse Migration was in progress and it accelerated in subsequent decades. C)These "reverse migrations" relocated disproportionately to 5 southern states.

The Black Ghetto, a new urban geographic form, expanded over three periods. During the third period of ghetto development (1950- 1970), this occurred:

A)South's share of the total population decreased in the South, and the Black urbanization rate increased from 50% to 75%. B)The first- and second-generation Black ghettos were the primary destinations for Black migrants. C)NYC and Chicago had more than one million Blacks each by 1970 (All of the above)

Which of the following is (are) true about the evolution of the Black middle class during the Great Migration period?

A)There was a growing working class population. B)Black Americans saw gains in the entrepreneurial class. C)Nothwithstanding the obvious inequalities faced by African Americans, persistent struggles lead to "progress on economic, social, and geographic grounds".

What do the authors suggest in order to better understand African-American resistance?

African-American resistance means engaging with the spatial strategies employed to address fundamental racism. African Americans seek the "right to the city" and struggling to claim places of survivability, expression, and social reproduction.

Approximately how many manufacturing jobs were lost between 1975 and 1990?

Between 1975 and 1990 Chicago lost approximately half of its manufacturing jobs.

In your own words, discuss Harold Rose's observation about Black suburbanization. What was the most negative aspect of this urban geography according to Rose?

Black suburbanization accelerated in the 1960s as White-Black relations changed in response to civil rights legislation. Large numbers of Blacks moved to the suburbs but usually to places where Black populations already existed. In the 1970s, overall U.S. suburbanization growth slowed due to decreased central city fringe movement by Whites and a reverse movement by some White suburbanites to the central city in response to gentrification (renewal) of inner city neighborhoods to upscale housing and amenities.

Listen during the closing credits of the video. Why do you think blacks are returning to the American South today?

Blacks are returning to the American South today because of employment opportunities, wanting to escape the ghettos of the North, cultural ties and sentiment towards the South as "home".

What were the origins and destinations of some of the other migrant streams? Give some examples of the patterns.

Blacks from Georgia went to Washington, DC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, New Jersey, and New York. Blacks from Alabama went to Detroit.

By 1910 what happened to the Blacks?

By 1910, one-fifth of the southern region's Blacks resided in urban areas and most still resided in the rural South. New Orleans and Baltimore were the most populous Black urban centers in the region in 1910! Their numbers exceeded those for New York and Philadelphia.

Discuss and explain the two types of Black suburban ring settlements that occurred in the North and in the mid-late 20th century.

By the 1970s, as Black populations increased in selected large cities across the country, a concurrent non-central city suburban ring settlement of African Americans also was occurring. (1) Spatial spillover of Blacks from the central city into adjacent suburban jurisdiction, such as the case of East Cleveland, Ohio, into its adjacent communities. (2) Development of vacant land surrounding historically Black communities already in existence, as was the case of Prince George's County, Maryland, near Washington, D.C. *Racial geography resulted in a "checkerboard" pattern of suburban racial settlement.

What were restrictive deeds?

Certain deeds involved a specific clause that prohibited the sale of homes to anyone who was not caucasian.

According to the text, civil rights resistance does not only include formal protests. What other actions can be referred to as civil rights resistance by African Americans?

Civil rights resistance need not be confined to formal protest, but can refer to the everyday struggles in which African Americans defied a racist socio-spatial order by living, working, moving, and bodily surviving on their own terms and in ways that delegitimize and circumvent White Supremacy. Not always a conscious effort that requires the planning of mobilization strategies.

The "Slave Landscape" specifically help the enslaved in this manner.

Escaping.

True or False: The invention of the cotton gin in 1793 reduced the demand for slavery. Explain the answer.

False. The invention of the cotton gin in 1793 dashed any hope for Black emancipation because it dramatically increased the demand for slaves. However, the gin dramatically reduced the labor required after harvest and freed additional slaves for planting and harvesting. Cotton had also become the fabric of choice in the US and in England. This increased demand for slaves for the production and harvesting than the existing population could supply.

History, movements, and black settlements.

First settlers arrived between 1607-1700, they came initially as indentured servants and as refugees from Spanish colonies. Virginia Slave Code of 1705: ushered Blacks into slavery in colonial America. Maryland, the Carolinas, Georgia, the Middle colonies, and New England replicated Virginia's code.

Many Black travelers came across White-only hotels and had little money. What helped ease their burden (family)?

Had to stop on the side of the road, and take a nap. Rented a trailer, to put in the back of the car.

Why are geospatial technologies and methods becoming increasingly used by African American activists?

Has contributed to tools of anti-racism advocacy and self-determination. Took many forms: reading, navigating, and exploiting racialize landscapes; developing subaltern-way and transport systems, creating counter public spaces that offer social refugee and economic freedom; and mapping the social effects and spatial networks that undergirded White supremacy.

What was Robinson's problem with the government's definition of the Black middle class?

He felt it was disingenuous to categorize those making incomes near the poverty level as middle class.

Characteristics of Black-American inner city neighborhoods. Why did these Black-American spatial clusters form?

Highly segregated, inner city Black-American neighborhoods have become symptomatic of all the negative perceptions of life in the U.S.: (1) Pervasive property (2) Persistent low-income jobs (3) Infrastructure deficient neighborhoods (4) Above average crime rates Black spatial clusters are often islands of social isolation and physical and "moral" decay. These clusters were formed in response to historical, social, economic and political processes.

Diversification of U.S. Black Population-

Increase is reflected in three major changes in immigration law: (1) 1965 Hart-Celler Act: increased immigration from Latin America and Asia; provided visas for relatives of people already in the U.S. legally or people with skilled jobs. (2) 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (3) 1988 Amendment (4) 1990 Immigration Act

This was a function of the "Greek Book."

It helped middle-class African-American travelers avoid discrimination by identifying accommodations that would welcome them.

Despite some negative trends in Black suburbanization, which of the following is (are) true about evolving contemporary Black suburban neighborhoods?

It is evident that wealthy and middle-class Blacks native- and foreign-born, are residing in upscale neighborhoods in a variety of US regions.

What were the Jim Crow Laws? Explain the economic and social impacts these laws had on Blacks.

Jim Crow laws, which legally separated Blacks form Whites from birth (separate hospital accommodations) to death ("White only" cemeteries), also excluded them from economic, social and housing opportunities.

What were the Jim Crow laws? Explain their impacts and how geospatial work was accompanied by these laws.

Jim Crow was a spatial system as well as a social one.

Why did many Blacks want to go to Chicago? What influenced their respective decisions?

Job opportunities. Employment was very easy to find.

The 1927 Flood changed both the older and younger Percy, including their beliefs and behaviors prior to the Flood. Explain each.

Leroy Percy: Suggests that evacuation was not the best decision to make. Also had feared the exodus of Blacks would prove to be disastrous. He was able to sway over members to cancel the evacuation. Will Percy: Believes evacuation was the only right decision to make. Believed that the principles of honor and decency were lost when Leroy led to the cancelation of the evacuation.

Why was Leroy Percy tolerant toward African Americans and treat them fairly prior to the Flood?

Leroy Percy: his empire expanded far beyond the cotton fields; determined to bring the plantation economy into the 20th century. He feared losing his black labor force, and therefore wanted to treat them fairly; "Southern code of honor". Why destroy what makes you money? Took his views with him after appointed into a vacant Senate seat.

As the Flood subsided, the Red Cross entered and Will suggested that Greenville become the distribution center for relief supplies. Blacks would provide the labor. What were the "tent cities" and what were the experiences of African Americans there?

Many whites were evacuated, Blacks were deposited on narrow lands of high ground; Blacks were brought to make sure that laborers would still be present if the water went down. Tent cities set up by Red Cross, to help those after the flood; Blacks on the levee would provide labor, Red Cross would be distribution center. Life wasn't favorable for AA, many were herded into "tent cities". Had to get tags for permissions, such as going downtown. Abuse of guards was reported.

The Great Migration occurred from 1910-1970. Describe the directionality of the Great Migration from 1910-1920, who it involved, where they went, and why it occurred.

Massive movements northward and westward between 1910 and 1970, it is the largest internal migration in american history. Northwards directed between 1910 and 1920, directed to particular northern cities such as Chicago. Movements northward were also driven by the 1920s quota system and labor shortages associated with the two world wars. States with the highest out-migration flows were Alabama, Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, and Mississippi. Direct to a few urban centers in the Middle Atlantic and East-North-Central census divisions.

Explain the distribution of pre-1910 Blacks. What was the major determinant factor for why Black distributions occurred? By 1910, where did most Blacks work?

Most blacks resided in the Chesapeake Bay area. Virginia and Maryland were the primary Black term-25concentrations and the Carolinas were secondary centers. **Plantation agriculture was the major determinant of the distribution of Blacks until the beginning of the 20th Century. Black migration at this time was from East to West. Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas, all primary cotton-producing areas, received major increases of Black labor.

According to Frey, the greatest concentrations of foreign-born Blacks occurred in which immigrant gateways?

NY, NJ, Florida and California

What new technology pushed Blacks out of the South?

New technology to harvest crops. Robot cotton picker.

This describes the direction of Blacks movements during the Great Migration from 1910-1920.

Northward to cities such as Chicago.

Why was the Black children's school year different from that of the southern White children?

Operated for 7-8 months, had what was known as a split session. The school year revolved around the farmers needs. Only on rainy days could go to school.

What geographic knowledge did the White elites have that the slaves did not? What was the "deliberate strategy" of White elites regarding slaves' geographical intelligence and why?

Ordinal directions, distance, scale and even maps.

What is a "share cropper" and why is this significant to the "Great Migration"?

Person that works for a landowner for hay. "Means that you work 20 years for-yourself, 20 years for someone." Share cropper had to pay for the seed, the gas, the fuel, the fees for the horses and the mules- the owner then takes 1/2. Considered a form of slavery.

What factors were responsible for meeting the housing demands for southern Blacks from 1950-1970? Compare and contrast these factors with the North.

Pre-ghetto communities: triggered by tremendous commercial and industrial growth and associated rapid urbanization, rural-to-urban movement of Blacks from the South to the Northeast. Third period of national ghetto formation (1950-1970), Black continued to move form the South to the North and West. Black migration in this period included relocations to Southern cities such as Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Houston, Norfolk and New Orleans. Northern Blacks acquired housing through racial residential succession in the 1950s and, by the 1960s, a construction boom enabled some Blacks to secure better quality housing. *Both types of housing access, new construction and racial residential succession, are responsible for meeting housing demand in the South.

When the 1927 Flood hit north of Greenfield and threatened Percy and other planters cotton fields, what did they do with African American workers?

Pulled workers from the fields to battle the river. Struggled to raise the height of the levees with sand bags; police then resorted to force, started taking a lot of the black men to go in and protect the levees. National guard enforced shooting if anyone tried to leave. Both Leroy and Percy made efforts to raise funds for the community after the flood.

The was factor most responsible for meeting the housing demands for Southern Blacks from 1950 - 1970.

Race-specific demand, new housing was constructed as needed.

What was the "Reverse Migration"? When and why did it occur?

Refers to the relocation of Blacks from other major U.S. regions to the southern states, which began in the 1970s and accelerated in the decades of the 1980s and 1990s. Moved to five southern states: Florida, Georgia, Texas, Maryland, and North Carolina.

Discuss the various forms of resistance, used by slaves, to combat enslavement.

Resistance to enslavement came in many forms- from overt violence and defiance against slave owners and overseers to more covert strategies that included sabotage, the theft, and vandalizing of property, and the intentional slowing of one's labor. The act of escaping or self-emancipation.

Which of the following are forms of resistance used by slaves to combat enslavement?

Sabotage, theft, and vandalizing of property, and the intentional slowing of one's property.

The Jim Crow laws did the following:

Separated Whites and Blacks from birth to death at stste level.

The two types of Black suburban ring settlement that occurred in the North in the mid-late 20th Century were:

Spatial spillover

How did Percy challenge the Klan?

Started off with humor about his jewish business partner. Started to mock the klan, and then went into a serious speech. He asked the klansman to go home and come back into the community. Crowd went wild after the speech. Pastor resolution then condemned the klan.

What was the SNCC and when was it founded? What was the main goal of the SNCC? Explain the analysis, findings, and outcomes of the research done by the SNCC in Bullock County, Alabama.

Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee. Founded in 1960, after a meeting between student organizers and Ella Baker, a long time civil rights activist. Research in Alabama: SNCC researchers documented and traced the major shareholders of the main bank in the county. They then traced those shareholders and documented their interconnections to the largest businesses in the county, showing how many of the same individuals controlled the economy of the county.

By the 1920s, the KKK had swept over most of the South, painting the picture that Black men were a threat to White womanhood. What other stereotypes offended Percy?

Swept through states such as Colorado, and Indiana. Helped elect the governors of many states. Had swept over the Mississippi hill country. Challenged Percy in his own domain; the klan attacked those closest to him; his business partner was a jew.

According to Robinson, what was the problem with the definition of the Black middle-class in 1995? Discuss his points about Black incomes and Black middle-class. Do Jack Norman's findings refute Robinson's?

The 1994 definition of the Black middle class as persons earning $15,999 to $50,000, which suggested that nearly one-half of all Black families had achieved middle class status. The poverty line for a family of four in 1995 was $15569, Robinson believed it was disingenuous to categorize those making slightly more than the poverty line as members of the Black middle class. 1. Nearly 1/3 of Black families of the period lived below the poverty level. 2. Among Black income groups, the upper quintile, the wealthy has grown most rapidly since 1965. 3. A "squeezing effect" occurred between 1970 and 1990, wherein some middle-income Blacks have been elevated to high income Blacks without squeezing the poor income groups to middle-income status.

What was the name of the Black-owned newspaper in Chicago and why was it so important?

The Chicago Defender was important because it allowed black people to read about success stories, etc. that were otherwise left out of the White media.

This law ushered slavery into Colonial America:

The Virginia Slave Code or Virginia Slave Law.

By 1910, although freed from slavery, where were most blacks employed?

The agricultural sector.

Describe the current status of Chicago's public housing projects.

The current state of Chicago's public housing projects involves a lot of crime, unemployment, fear, and violence. It is in general a very crowded, dangerous area.

What was the experience of the first Blacks that moved into White neighborhoods?

The first blacks in white neighborhoods had a violent experience. They faced whites being outwardly racist. Some whites even tried to prevent blacks from just walking down the sidewalk.

What dimmed the dreams of southern Black migrants and their children in the 1960s and 1970s? How was this ironic?

The formation of ghettos dimmed the dreams of Southern black migrants. Furthermore, the jobs that had initially brought blacks North were moving south: this is ironic because the blacks had just left the new location of jobs.

Understanding the spatiality of African-American resistance relies on this:

The increased use of GIS technologies to liberate the ideas of the "geospatial intelligence"

What were the original plans for public housing in Chicago? Why was an alternative sought? What was the alternative?

The original plan was to scatter neighborhoods around the city. However, whites did not want blacks in or near their neighborhoods. Instead, the sites where housing was constructed were made very tall.

What growth did the Southside of Chicago experience during World War II?

The population doubled after WW II. Blacks were also looking for new places to live outside of the black ghetto, however, they were largely unsuccessful.

Though some Blacks have attained middle class status in Chicago, according to the video, what is the single largest factor keeping many from reaching the "American Dream"?

The single largest factor preventing blacks from achieving the "American Dream" is racist sentiment.

Explain the "Slave Landscape" and its components. How did the "Slave Landscape" specifically help the enslaved?

The slave landscape played an important role in "emboldening many to set out for freedom", allowing runaways slaves to elude capture by taking advantage of a "system of paths, places, and rhythms" created by the slave community "as an alternative, often as a refuge, to the landscape systems of planters and other Whites".

Besides the steel mills and stockyards, what other types of employment did Chicago have that provided migrants with opportunities to make a living?

There were jobs in service industries, hotels, and even entrepreneurs. Other examples include jobs in electric companies, house cleaning, and working in mail rooms.

What was the main goal of the SNCC?

To broaden the scope of democracy to include everyone and deepening the concept to include every relationship.

Ginsburg theorized the escape from slavery as a process that heavily relied upon what?

Varied escape tactics as well as the more famous Underground Railroad, African Americans engaged in a form of geospatial work in pursuing self-emancipation. Escaping slaves employed a "geographical intelligence", a term that "refers to ways that enslaved people knew the land, the modes by which they made sense of their surroundings. *Theorized the escape from slavery as a process that relied heavily upon the environmental cognition of runaway slaves and their reading and exploiting of landscapes.

Name the institutional mechanisms used by northern Whites to restrict Black American living spaces. What was the result of these mechanisms?

What started as the formation of Black enclaves within these cities, evolved into hyper-urbanization and hyper-segregation in large central cities. The continuous flow of Blacks, the refusal of Whites to share social space, and codified covenants restricted Black settlement options and turned the ghetto into a permanent feature of the American urban landscape. Jobs shifted to the suburbs and the national highways system provided easy access to smaller cities for Whites, while lower-income Blacks were trapped and middle-class Blacks were limited to housing largely in adjacent areas of their cities thus extending the highly segregated ghetto to continuous areas.

How were Blacks discriminated against in the housing market? Give specific examples of the barriers the black pop faced when trying to move away from ghettos and int o white neighborhoods .

Whites resisted blacks moving into their neighborhoods. It was difficult for blacks to acquire a mortgage. White flight occurred and realtors used blockbusting to take advantage of this. Restrictive deeds also prevented blacks from moving into white neighborhoods.

How did the personalities and interests of Leroy and Will Percy differ?

Will Percy: was Leroy's only son and heir. Soft-spoken and introspective; felt himself an outsider, wrote poetry. Saw no pleasure in hunting and fishing. He was also gay. Served with valor in WWI, went to Harvard, tried to live up to the expectations of his father. Spring of 1992 empire would come under

Which of the following was (were) true about Northern Blacks in the 1950s and 1960s:

a) they acquired housing through residential succession. b) by the 1960s, a construction boom resulted in better housing availability for some blacks.