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The Great Migration of the World War I years opened the way for on-going migration and nurtured a renaissance in African-American life. As migration continued in the 1920s, urban African-American communities grew in size, organizing new institutions and gathering new resources. Facing the challenges of racism and urban life, African Americans responded with new cultural and political energy. African-American life in the North was sharply affected by World War I. Many African Americans saw the war as a chance to show the nation they deserved equal rights. Almost 300,000 African Americans served during World War I. But military life was stained by bias and segregation. Some African Americans fought under French command, earning respect in key battles. Others were affected by the experience of living among Europeans, who regarded them not as outcasts but as human beings. When African-American veterans returned, they spoke out against lynching, segregation, and other forms of racism.
The bold spirit of returning veterans helped spark a new mood in African-American communities. Alain Locke, the first black Rhodes scholar, described a "new spirit...awake in the masses." Locke wrote about the changing sensibility and edited The New Negro, an anthology of African-American writers. In Locke's view, a "New Negro" had emerged, willing to settle for nothing less than equal rights, human treatment, and active involvement in politics, business, and the arts. This new energy made itself felt in different areas of life, including electoral politics. Across the North, African Americans used their right to vote. In Illinois and other states where women could vote, African-American women played key roles as voters and organizers. Adelbert H. Roberts became the first African American since Reconstruction to join the Illinois legislature. Oscar De Priest was the first northern African American to serve in the U.S. Congress. These elected officials helped to ensure the African-American community a measure of political recognition. Grassroots politics also flourished. The NAACP championed African-American equality in the courts. Jamaican-born Marcus Garvey created the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), which built pride in African heritage, encouraged economic independence, and called for a return to Africa. Though few left for Africa, many urban African Americans embraced Garvey's message of empowerment and pride. Meanwhile, working-class African-American women and men built the churches, social clubs, and political organizations that gave their community strength and stability.
The migration also revitalized American arts and culture. The growth of the urban African-American population opened the way for the growth of jazz, America's greatest contribution to world culture. Chicago played a major role in the jazz world. Musicians such as King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, and Bessie Smith created a vibrant musical art form. Meanwhile, poets and writers such as Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston wrote brilliantly about the African-American experience.
Harlem, the destination for many African-American migrants to New York City, became a symbol of this artistic and intellectual rebirth, which some called the "Harlem Renaissance." Urban culture offered African-American musicians, artists, and writers opportunities to cultivate their creative gifts. Publishing companies, theater owners, and patrons of the visual arts began recognizing African Anericans as world class creative artists. Together, African-American artists, writers, and musicians highlighted their heritage and explored the meaning of African-American life in the new urban America. |
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