African Americans in New York

1 African Americans in New York Before the onset of World War Ⅰ, most of the African Americans settled in rural areas in the southern parts of the United States. Crew (1987) notes that the Great Migration of African Americans occurred between 1915 and 1940, where over a million Blacks moved from the South to the North. When World War Ⅰ began, many Blacks moved to the North searching for available job opportunities and become full citizens of the North. During this period, many of them settled in New York, with Bedford-Stuyvesant having the highest number of Africa-Americans and Blacks from the Caribbean. Perhaps the Blacks preferred New York following the abolition of slavery back in 1827. With the onset of World War Ⅰ, the area had several job opportunities due to the increased production of munitions and other weapons (Crew, 1987).

After the great migration, many Blacks accessed education and managed to secure better jobs. Due to this, the Whites who settled in New York before presented discrimination since they feared the Blacks would impact the economic, social, or political state of the United States in New York. The abolition of slavery in New York resulted in the emancipation of several individuals that facilitated the movement of the blacks to the North. Due to this, one can argue that the freedom of slaves in the United States, especially New York, enhanced the Great Migration of the African Americans, who significantly impacted the economic, social, and political status of the city.

Buy this excellently written paper or order a fresh one from ace-myhomework.com

2 The emancipation bill had been passed back in 1799 that declared ani individual born into slavery to be free from it, while those who had been slaves were to remain for life. Over sixty years later, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863; this was the move that set the United States in motion towards the complete abolition of slavery.

According to Guelzo (2005), President Abraham Lincoln freed about four million African American slaves by signing the Emancipation Proclamation and initiated a significant move of slavery abolition. The Emancipation Proclamation declared that every state must free any slave that they held. Despite the objective of freeing the slaves, the Emancipation Proclamation faced a setback that limited its effect in the United States; this was major because the declaration only applied for the slaves in Confederacy and exempted border states that were loyal to the United States. Moreover, the Emancipation Proclamation excluded some Confederacy parts because they had been under the North’s control. The freed Blacks found freedom after the emancipation, where they could vote, get an education, and join the forces that were fighting in the Civil wars.

The African Americans who joined the American Army and Navy contributed significantly to the fight for freedom and the Union and freed several other Blacks.

The United States also allowed the Blacks freedom to live wherever was fitting for them, leading to the frequent migrations of the African Americans in the United States. Just before the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, only approximately 1% of New York's population consisted of the Blacks. The proportion had a slight fall after the declaration at around 1870 when the American Reconstruction was ongoing. The Reconstruction was the effort by the United States to mediate between the southern and the northern parts of the country and make them one. President Lincoln’s approach provided that if the South lost, they would emancipate all their slaves and remain loyal to the North henceforth (Wallenfeldt, 2009).

3 The Reconstruction continued with President Andrew Jackson, who was a White Southerner.

Due to this, he perceived the Blacks as inferior individuals who did not deserve equal rights as the other Americans. Despite the abolishment of slavery in the United States, President Andrew Jackson allowed the Thirteenth Amendment that was followed by the Black Code where most of the Southern states limited the rights and freedom of the freed African Americans.

The Great Migration of the African Americans occurred during and after World War I and Ⅱ. The event, where African Americans were moving from the South to the North, marked a significant demographic occurrence in the United States. Many of the Blacks settled in the Northeastern parts of the United States, especially New York City, with most of them inhabiting Bedford-Stuyvesant. The United States had emancipated most of the slaves of this era, and the Blacks had freedom. According to Crew (1987), the African Americans migrated to New York during the onset of World War Ⅰ to seek their lives by getting better jobs. World War Ⅰ had severely transformed the cities of the North and their job structures since many industries received pressure from the war to produce more weapons, including munitions. Due to this, African Americans considered this a chance to start fresh after their plight in the South. The Blacks' rights and freedom were minimal after the Reconstruction under President Andrew Jackson. Northern companies also faced a shortage of labour. They sought to the South, where the African Americans could not resist their offer following the low social and economic status of life in the South.

The more favourable living conditions in New York, better economic, social, and political dimensions that the Blacks found facilitated their influx in the city during the 20th Century. Before the Great Migration, the majority of the African Americans lived in the Southern rural parts of the United States. However, after the Blacks moved to New York City

4 during the onset of World War Ⅰ, over fifty per cent of them lived in the North, and most of them inhabited the city, thereby significantly increasing New York City’s population. According to the statistics by Gibson and Jung (200), New York's population was 9 million by 1920 and grew to 16 million in 1960. The influx in the number was due to the Great Migration, and since then, more African Americans moved to New York over the 20th Century. The policies, including the Reconstruction under President Abraham Lincoln that enabled the African Americans to get better jobs, education, and housing, facilitated the influx of their population in New York City.

Moreover, the White teachers agreed to teach any individual regardless of their race or origin.

The Blacks received the freedom to vote and voice their political views and equality in civil rights—all these facilitated the growth of their population in New York.

Beginning from the early 20th Century during World War Ⅰ when the Great Migration occurred, many Africa Americans moved to New York City, most of them inhabiting the Bedford-Stuyvesant areas near Brooklyn. The Blacks have influenced the areas that they settled with the African American cultures and Bedford-Stuyvesant remaining the epicentre of this cultural reserve. Crew (1987) notes that the Great Migration between the World Wars contributed significantly to a shift in economic, political, and social dimensions of the American society. The moving of the Blacks to New York City spread general challenges of population increase, including racial problems and sociopolitical equality. Chronopoulos (2020) notes that the areas of Black inhabitants in Brooklyn have gained the name ‘Black Brooklyn’ over the decades. From this information, it is evident that the African Americans shifted New York's culture into Black culture. As many Whites continue to move to the Black neighbourhoods, New York City may experience a slight relief in racial segregation due to the higher rates of urban sprawl as more Whites continue to move to the areas of Black habitation.

5 African Americans also contributed to the increase in New York's economic gains. When World War Ⅰ began, the Northern companies were desperate for labour, which they acquired from the South as "a large portion of the unskilled workforce" (Crew, 1987). Since the companies’ current workforce were unreliable, the Blacks proved to be significantly competent in working to meet the markets’ high demand. The African Americans moved to New York City in anticipation of better opportunities to change their lives and the lives of their children, making them focused on hard work. Thus, as immigrants, they contributed to the income generation of New York through the companies. The Blacks moved to the North where they had the freedom to vote and to become leaders in the United States, allowing them to have a voice in the social affairs. Due to this, they could access education and better employment opportunities that enabled them to work towards the generation of New York’s income. Despite the several challenges that the African Americans may have faced throughout their time in New York, they thrived, and some of them became successful businesspersons running significant black businesses in New York.

The Emancipation Proclamation and the Reconstruction under President Abraham Lincoln contributed significantly to the freeing of slaves and the abolishment of slavery. The plight of the African Americans, who served as slaves in the American soil, was quite challenging. However, they survived all the horrors of slavery and the tortures that slaves experience until they finally got freedom. After the emancipation, several Blacks joined the American Army and Navy to help liberate other Blacks who were still under slavery in the Southern parts of America. In contrast, others moved to the North and the West, hoping to find better living conditions, both for them and their children. The Reconstruction followed the success of the military in subduing the South to abandon slavery. However, President Andrew

6 reign resulted in limited freedom and rights of the African Americans since he perceived them as inferiors who should not get equal rights as the Whites. With the onset of World War Ⅰ, the Northern companies, especially in New York, needed immense labour to meet the war’s demand of increased weaponry which they could only get from the African Americans, leading to their recruitment of the blacks in the South. The Blacks sought to hard work to improve their living conditions. Various policies facilitated their freedom to access all the services and rights like any other American, leading to increased income for New York. Blacks also introduced black culture, especially in Brooklyn and Bedford-Stuyvesant. Thus, African Americans contributed to New York City's success.

7 References Chronopoulos, T. (2020). “What’s Happened to the People?” Gentrification and Racial Segregation in Brooklyn. Journal of African American Studies, 24(4), 549-572. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12111-020-09499-y Crew, S. R. (1987). The great migration of Afro-Americans, 1915-40. Monthly Lab. Rev., 110, 34. https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/month110&div=34&id= &page= Gibson, C., & Jung, K. (2002). Historical census statistics on population totals by race, 1790 to 1990, and by Hispanic origin, 1790 to 1990, for the United States, regions, divisions, and states. Washington, DC: US Census Bureau. http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.227.3630&rep=rep1&type=pdf Guelzo, A. C. (2005). Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation: The end of slavery in America.

Simon and Schuster. https://books.google.co.ke/books? hl=en&lr=&id=fT7v1zHHvAQC&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=The+Emancipation+Proclamat ion&ots=1XUOdAx0Rg&sig=FczTExOvSH2vZJ3O_gdW_wyGsQs&redir_esc=y#v=on epage&q=The%20Emancipation%20Proclamation&f=false Wallenfeldt, J. (Ed.). (2009). The American Civil War and Reconstruction: People, Politics, and Power. Britannica Educational Publishing. https://books.google.co.ke/books? hl=en&lr=&id=4bmcAAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=Britannica,+E.+P.+S.+(2009). +The+american+civil+war+and+reconstruction+:+People,+politics,+and+power. +Retrieved+from+https://

8 ebookcentral.proquest.com&ots=w9Jxq_huQj&sig=ZW3I2nDGEEmcEX6fuAGthUslUw&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=reconstruction&f=false