The Advancement of African American Thought

1. The Advancement of African American Thought By: Priya Chilana and VeronikaJachimek

2. The Great Migration Before After • 3 of every four African Americans lived on farms • 9 of ten lived in the south • 1.5 million southern blacks moved to cities • Began to work in factories • No longer relied on tenant farming, sharecropping, and peonage • Black population in Chicago grew 148%, in Cleveland grew 307% and in Detroit grew 611%

4. National Urban League • The Urban League traces its roots to three organizations • the Committee for the Improvement of Industrial Conditions Among Negroes in New York (founded in 1906), • the National League for the Protection of Colored Women (founded 1906) • the Committee on Urban Conditions Among Negroes (founded 1910)— • Focused on finding jobs for the urban African Americans • League was composed of social workers, white philanthropists, and black leaders

6. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) • Founded in 1909 in New York City by a group of black and white citizens committed to social justice • enactment and enforcement of federal, state and local laws securing civil rights, and by informing the public of the adverse effects of racial discrimination • They won in court in favor of going against the grandfather clause (1915) and the restrictive covenants (1917) • Fought for equal rights in schools and elimination of segregation in Northern cities

8. Marcus Garvey • Garvey attended school in Jamaica until he was 14 • he founded (Aug. 1, 1914) the Universal Negro Improvement and Conservation Association and African Communities League, usually called the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) • Failing to attract a following in Jamaica, Garvey went to the United States (1916) and soon established branches of the UNIA in Harlem • He reached the height of his power in 1920, when he presided at an international convention in Liberty Hall, with delegates present from 25 countries • In 1920 with the help of the UNIA he held a 31 day march in Madison Square Garden in New York promoting the Back to Africa program. This was designed to enlighten the Black Americans to return to the homeland of Africa

9. The paper says, “There is more to Africa then famine, disaster, and war

10. Harlem Renaissance • A blossoming of African American art and literature • Gave African Americans a sense of pride for their own work • New opportunities for stage performances • More interest in black history and African American Folk Culture

12. Writers and Poets during the Harlem Renaissance • James Johnson- “Lift every voice and sing” … became anthem of NAACP • Claude McKay- “If we must die” • Langston Hughes- The Weary Blues • Writers usually had similar themes: • Black identity • Common heritage • Exploring the new world • Resistance in the face of white prejudice • Hope

13. Langston Hughes

14. Conflicts during the Harlem Renaissance • Some black artists felt that others were using the way of the whites in order for their works to be respected • Some artists designed their work to show what their roots looked like while others wanted to show a new African American culture and cut off all past labels that were placed on them

16. Why was the time period called the roaring 20’s? • African Americans were given more freedom in some way • They were able to express their feelings more through art and music • They moved from the south to the north to leave behind their past of slavery and violence

17. References http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/directory/n/naacp.asp http://www.huarchivesnet.howard.edu/0002huarnet/cartoon1.htm http://drs.tcsnc.org/UserFiles/Servers/Server_3232805/File/Harlem%20Renaissance%20Notes.pdf http://www.slideshare.net/juliahornaday/1920s-lecture-5-harlem-renaissance