Transcript Chapter 24, Section 3 *The Jazz Age*

Chapter 24, Section 3
“The Jazz Age”
MINORITIES
African Americans in Early 20th Century
• Redemption – with the end of
Reconstruction in 1876 and the removal
of federal troops from the South, the
Southern Democratic Party sought to
regain control (often with the support
of groups like the KKK)
• Jim Crow laws – set up segregation in
public places in the South
• Plessy v. Ferguson – US Supreme Court
case that said that “separate but equal”
segregation was legal
• Restrictions on voting – in violation of
the 15th Amendment Southern states
passed laws to restrict their right to
vote (Grandfather’s clause, literacy
tests, poll taxes)
Ku Klux Klan
• Racist group that terrorized
African Americans after
Reconstruction that saw a
resurgence in the 1920s
• 5 million members
• Harassed African
Americans, but also
Catholics, Jews, and
immigrants
• Also fought women’s rights,
urbanization, and
technology
Marcus
Garvey
• Born in Jamaica and eventually
moved to New York in 1917
• Published a newspaper for African
Americans in which he expressed his
ideas about how African Americans
could improve their place in society
• Encouraged black people around the
world to express pride in their
culture and to unite to build strength
• Encouraged African Americans to
build economic independence by
building their own businesses and
supporting other businesses owned
by black people
• Founded the Universal Negro
Improvement Association to help
spread black nationalism (what his
ideas are collectively known as)
The Great Migration
• The economic opportunities of the
era (during WWI and the
prosperous 1920s) triggered a
widespread migration of black
Americans from the rural south to
the industrial centers of the north and especially to New York City
• In New York and other cities, black
Americans explored new
opportunities for intellectual and
social freedom
• Black American artists, writers, and
musicians began to use their talents
to work for civil rights and obtain
equality
Jacob Lawrence
• Jacob Lawrence grew up in a
settlement house in Harlem
during the Harlem
Renaissance
• Lawrence's parents were
among those who migrated
between 1916-1919,
considered the first wave of
the migration
• His own life in Harlem, and
the struggle of other African
Americans inspired his
earliest work
Lawrence’s Work
• Jacob Lawrence painted his Great Migration
series during the 1940s to capture the experience
of African Americans during the 1920s
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/history/odonnell/w1
010/edit/migration/migration.html
Harlem Renaissance
• The Harlem Renaissance
was a flowering of
African American social
thought which was
expressed through
– Paintings
– Music
– Dance
– Theater
– Literature
Where is Harlem?
New York State
New York City →
Where is Harlem?
*
New York City is on Manhattan Island
Manhattan
Neighborhoods
*
Harlem
Langston
Hughes
• Hughes is known for his
insightful, colorful,
realistic portrayals of
black life in America.
• He wrote poetry, short
stories, novels, and plays,
and is known for his
involvement with the
world of jazz and the
influence it had on his
writing.
• He wanted to tell the
stories of his people in
ways that reflected their
actual culture.
I, too, sing America
(1920s)
To listen to Langston Hughes read
his poem, click here.
'I, Too' written just before Hughes’ return to the
States from Europe and after he'd been denied
passage on a ship because of his color, has a
contemporary feel in contrast to the mythical
dimension of 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers'. It is
no less powerful however, in its expression of
social injustice. The calm clear statements of the 'I'
have an unstoppable force like the progress the
poem envisages. Hughes's dignified introductions
to these poems and his beautiful speaking voice
render them all the more moving.
From PoetryArchive.org
•What is the tone or mood of this poem?
I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.
Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,“
Then.
Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--
•Why do you think the poem was written and for what audience?
•List two things in this poem that tell you about life in the United States at the time.
I, too, am America.
The Jazz Age
• The 1920s are known as the “Jazz
Age” due to the popularity of jazz
music in the decade
• Jazz was a blend of European
harmonies and West African
rhythms that began in New Orleans
and moved north during the Great
Migration
• Young people loved it and the fastpaced dances that went with it
• It symbolized the divide in the
decade between the younger and
older generations
Duke Ellington
• Ellington was a jazz composer,
conductor, and performer during
the Harlem Renaissance
• During the formative Cotton Club
years, he experimented with and
developed the style that would
quickly bring him worldwide success
• Ellington would be among the first
to focus on musical form and
composition in jazz
• Ellington wrote over 2000 pieces in
his lifetime
The Cotton Club
• The Cotton Club in Harlem
opened in 1923
• Its revue shows featured
glamorous dancing girls,
acclaimed tap dancers,
vaudeville performers, and
comics
• The shows featured African
American performers and
white-only audiences
• The Duke Ellington Orchestra
was the "house" orchestra for
a number of years at the
Cotton Club
Apollo Theater
• In opposition to the Cotton Club was this theater
that featured the same performers, but was open
to African American audiences
Louis Armstrong
• Louis Armstrong was a jazz
composer and trumpet player
during the Harlem Renaissance.
• He is widely recognized as a
founding father of jazz.
• He appeared in 30 films and
averaged 300 concerts per year,
performing for both kids on the
street and heads of state.
• Biggest Hits: When the Saints
Come Marching In, What a
Wonderful World
Questions to think about:
1. What do you see?
2. What does each part of the
painting represent?
5. What actions/activities do
you see?
6. What questions does this
painting raise in your mind?
7. How does this painting relate
to the Harlem Renaissance?
“Ascent from Ethiopia,” Louis Mailou Jones. 1932
Effects of the Harlem Renaissance
• The Harlem Renaissance helped to redefine how Americans
and the world understood African American culture.
• It integrated black and white cultures, and marked the
beginning of a black urban society.
• The Harlem Renaissance set the stage for the civil rights
movement of the 1950s and 60s.
Negro League
Baseball
• Another aspect of the movement
of African Americans north (and
the discrimination they faced
there) was the creation of
professional baseball teams for
just black players
• African Americans in northern and
eastern cities had the time and
money to go to games now
• Some of the greatest players of alltime played in these leagues such
as Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and
Jackie Robinson
Native
Americans
• Thousands of Native Americans
served in World War I
• This helped convince Congress
to pass the Indian Citizenship
Act in 1924 that granted
citizenship to all Native
Americans
• Also during this time the
federal government was
trying to buy back as much
reservation land as possible
• Native Americans organized
Native American leaders with
groups to try to stop this and
President Coolidge after the
to build pride in Native
bill was signed into law
American culture
Hispanic
Americans
• Hispanic Americans also faced
discrimination in the US in the
1920s
• This treatment would include
segregation and a denial of
voting rights
• League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC) –
created in 1929 by a group of
Mexican American leaders to
fight to improve their situation
Lost Generation
• Nickname for the group of
young writers and their
followers who expressed
feelings of disillusionment in
the American society
• They were worried about their
futures and felt as though
American society was losing its
sense of morality
• Some like Ernest Hemingway
moved to Paris to escape our
society and write
• Others like F. Scott Fitzgerald
stayed and wrote about the
problems in our society (in
books like “The Great Gatsby”)
← Ernest
Hemingway
In Paris in
1923
F. Scott
Fitzgerald →
writing