Red Summer 1919
By
John C Abercrombie
The Red Summer is the name often applied to a period of time around 1919 when the number of incidents of racial strife increased dramatically. Many Blacks were injured or killed in violent confrontations with Whites.
As we look at the events, there are several causes, but this post will concentrate on
• Soldiers returning from heroic service in World War I
• Black men and women taking advantage of job opportunities, long denied them
• Sentiment that denied Blacks full citizenship
Many Black soldiers served in World War I. Many units were all volunteer, such as the 369th , “The Harem Hellfighters”, which was featured in a previous post. Link to Harlem Hellfighters.
While we speak of the 369th, other units including the 370th (formally the 8th Illinois) and the 371st which trained at Camp Jackson, now Fort Jackson, South Carolina, fought with valor.
Freddie Stowers with the 371st from Sandy Springs, South Carolina, was awarded the Medal of Honor. Stowers will be featured in a future post on amazingblackhistory.com.
Many Black soldiers were more than willing to fight for America and in return expected to be recognized as full citizens, yet they were subjected to continued disrespect by the country they fought for. Many suffered disabling injuries fighting or, lost their lives in service to America.
Rather than being hailed heroes as White soldiers were, they returned to the same second-class citizenship they left. German prisoners of war in America, were welcomed in restaurants that refused to allow Blacks to enter.
White solders were hailed as heroes and most found jobs upon return, yet Blacks were denied the opportunity of employment, just as they had before their strong show of patriotism.
Black servicemen were greeted with the same level of disrespect that they had left. Upon arriving back on the shores of America, there were signs showing “Whites this way” “Colored this way”. The same segregated facilities, restrooms, waiting rooms, buses, restaurants, movie theaters, schools and churches.
Black soldiers who suffered debilitating injuries were given a maximum of 29% disability, while White soldiers with lesser injuries were given higher disability ratings. Why? Because at 30% disability, soldiers were grated a pension.
Soldiers who were proud of there service to America were sometimes lynched in public gatherings for wearing an American Military uniform. Many were slaughtered as being “uppity” if they did not display total respect to any White person, regardless of the status or circumstances.
For more information on World War I soldiers, and their accomplishments see the post on the Harlem Hellfighters. Click here to see post on Harlem Hellfighters.
While the following example comes from World War II, it demonstrates the prevailing attitude and treatment that Blacks face on a daily basis, no matter where they went or what they did.
Sergeant Isaac Woodward was on a Greyhound bus after receiving an honorable discharge, returning to his hometown, wearing his Unite States Army uniform when the bus driver refused to allow him to use a restroom when the bus stopped to allow White passengers to use those facilities.
Note: Bathrooms were segregated, Blacks were required to go to a distant restroom. The driver had said he would wait on no one.
When the bus reached Aiken, South Carolina, police officer Lynwood Shull beat and gouged out the eyes of this American Army soldier. Leaving him permanently blinded in both eyes.
Note: A historical plaque has been erected in Batesburg-Leesville, South Carolina memorializing the event.
In another post Bessie Coleman was inspired to become a pilot after being told by her brothers who fought in France during World War I, that French Women were better because they could fly. When Coleman attempted to take lessons in America, no one would accept a Black female as a student and she had to go to France for training. Click here to see post on Bessie Coleman.
While many people believe people willing to put their lives on the line for the principals of America would be treated with respect and offered opportunities given to other citizen, we see it just ain’t so.
We see an example of American racial attitudes being exported around the world in the book “Forgotten” featured below. The book is offered in several forms and invite your attention in the section on Books, videos and other offerings.
The second reason for much of the bloodshed. Many Blacks were subjected to racial hatred because they sought and took jobs. Following the end of slavery, Blacks were denied all but the most labor intensive, dirty, dangerous, low paying jobs, even when they have been qualified for better.
During world War I, there were labor shortages and Black men and women who had been denied the opportunity to work and provide for themselves and their families were eager for the opportunity to work. They were excited about the opportunity to show their ability to work. Yet the very fact that they were hired led to many riots.
In Elaine, Arkansas there was a riot over the issues of share cropping that left 237 Blacks and 5 Whites dead. With the zeal of racism, many of the other Black residents were tried in Kangaroo courts and found guilty. Verdicts that were overthrown by the United States Supreme Court. See videos in the appropriate section below.
Other Riots included the South Side of Chicago, where 38 people lost their lives, 23 Black and 15 White. 537 were injured with 2/3 of them being Black. Between 1,000 and 2,000 people lost their homes, most of them Black. This was considered the worst of the almost 25 race riots that rocked America in 1919.
The Omaha race riot of 1919 resulted in the brutal lynching of Will Brown, a Black worker and 2 of the White rioters. It also resulted in the attempted hanging of the Mayor Edward Parsons smith, the injuries of many Police officers. Injuries were also suffered by the 1,000’s of White rioters who set fire to the Douglas County Court house in downtown Omaha, Nebraska.
The Norfolk, Virginia riots began when a mob of Whites attacked a homecoming celebration for Black veterans returning from World War I. At least 2 people were killed, and the Navy and Marines were called to restore order.
Washington, DC riots of 1919
White men responded to the rumor of a Black man being arrested for the rape of a White woman with 4 days of mob violence against Blacks and Black owned businesses. Whites randomly beat Blacks on the streets, even pulling them off streetcars and beat them.
These are just some examples of the unrest and bloodshed caused by racial tension in America.
American Blacks have been subjected to frequent acts of violence including over 4,000 Lynchings. There is a National Memorial for Peace and Justice dedicated to the legacy of Black people who have been terrorized by Lynchings, humiliated by racial segregation and Jim Crow as well as people burdened with contemporary presumptions of guilt and police violence.
The museum is located at 417 Caroline St, Montgomery, Alabama 36104
The racial attitude of America is fueled by the lack of acknowledgement of accomplishment by Blacks. Many people, both Black and White are not familiar with accomplishments such as those featured in amazingblackhistory.com. This in turn leads to diminished opportunities and even suspicions of inferiority.
Differences that are nonexistent become magnified leading to current attitudes and actions that persist to this very day.
Continue to the section below as it is packed with additional information. A great selection of videos and books. Also there are selected offers of value to shoppers. The links take you to Amazon and can be used for all of your Amazon shopping. This allows you to support us without cost to you.
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The book discussed above. Recommended
Forgotten: The Untold Story of D-Day’s Black Heroes, at Home and at War
The injustices of 1940’s Jim Crow America are brought to life in this extraordinary blend of military and social history—a story that pays tribute to the valor of an all-black battalion whose crucial contributions at D-Day have gone unrecognized to this day.
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Video of Isaac Woodard (also shown as Woodward)
In 1946, just hours after being honorably discharged from the army, Sergeant Isaac Woodard Jr. was attacked by South Carolina police officers…while still in uniform. The injuries he sustained left him completely and permanently blind. This brutal attack sparked national outrage in both the Black and White communities. Famous actors, athletes, musicians and politicians of the day lent their support for Sgt. Woodard and in so doing, galvanized the Civil Rights Movement in/du the United States.
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Judge Richard Gergel tells the story of Sgt. Isaac Woodard during a ceremony Saturday leading up to the unveiling of a historical marker in the World War II veteran’s name.
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Elaine Massacre: The bloodiest racial conflict in U.S. history | Dark History | New York Post
American streets ran with blood in 1919 during what would become known as “Red Summer”. In the small town of Elaine, Arkansas, racial tensions turned to riots after African-American sharecroppers tried to unionize. A staggering 237 people were estimated to be hunted down and killed in what is now known as the Elaine Massacre. The bloodbath made its way all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. This is “Dark History” by the New York Post.
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Red Summer: The Summer of 1919 and the Awakening of Black America
After World War I, black Americans fervently hoped for a new epoch of peace, prosperity, and equality. Black soldiers believed their participation in the fight to make the world safe for democracy finally earned them rights they had been promised since the close of the Civil War.
Also see Moore v Dempsey Court case involving Red Summer
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This is an audio, but gives some valuable information and definition to the cause
America’s Red Summer 1919
In 1919 America experienced a post war explosion of racial violence. Black communities in over 30 cities across the USA were attacked by mobs, angry at the new economic opportunities that had opened up to black people as a result of the First World War.
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Unexampled Courage: The Blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard and the Awakening of President Harry S. Truman and Judge J. Waties Waring
On February 12, 1946, Sergeant Isaac Woodard, a returning, decorated African American veteran, was removed from a Greyhound bus in Batesburg, South Carolina, after he challenged the bus driver’s disrespectful treatment of him. Woodard, in uniform, was arrested by the local police chief, Lynwood Shull, and beaten and blinded while in custody.
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A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919
On a hot day in July 1919, five black youths went swimming in Lake Michigan, unintentionally floating close to the “white” beach. An angry white man began throwing stones at the boys, striking and killing one. Racial conflict on the beach erupted into days of urban violence that shook the city of Chicago to its foundations. This mesmerizing narrative draws on contemporary accounts as it traces the roots of the explosion that had been building for decades in race relations, politics, business, and clashes of culture.
On a hot day in July 1919, five black youths went swimming in Lake Michigan, unintentionally floating close to the “white” beach. An angry white man began throwing stones at the boys, striking and killing one. Racial conflict on the beach erupted into days of urban violence that shook the city of Chicago to its foundations. This mesmerizing narrative draws on contemporary accounts as it traces the roots of the explosion that had been building for decades in race relations, politics, business, and clashes of culture.
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The Chicago Race Riots: July 1919
Nearly a century ago, an African-American teenager crossed an invisible line of segregation at a Chicago beach and paid with his life. The incident set off days of violence that resulted in several dozen deaths and hundreds of injuries as well as the destruction of homes and businesses. This contemporary account was written by Pulitzer Prize–winning author and poet Carl Sandburg, who reported on the riots for the Chicago Daily News.
Few other journalists of the era explored the issues of discrimination in housing, politics, and organized labor that fueled the 1919 riots in Chicago and across America.
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This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.
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The Red Summer: The Chicago Race Riots of 1919
The Red Summer refers to the summer and early autumn of 1919, which was marked by hundreds of deaths and higher casualties across the United States, as a result of race riots that occurred in more than three dozen cities and one rural county. In most instances, whites attacked African Americans. In some cases, many blacks fought back, notably in Chicago.
The Chicago race riot of 1919 was a major racial conflict that began in Chicago, Illinois on July 27, 1919 and ended on August 3. During the riot, thirty-eight people died (23 African American and 15 white) and over five hundred were injured. It is considered the worst of the approximately 25 riots during the Red Summer. The combination of prolonged arson, looting, and murder was the worst race rioting in the history of Illinois.
Source: Wikipedia.org
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America’s Worst Race Riot and Its Legacy: Accounts, Causes, Effects, Facts, History (2002)
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History Fair Red Summer
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The Arkansas Race Riot
The press dispatches of October 1, 1919 heralded the news that another race riot had taken place the night before in Elaine, Ark., and that it was started by Negroes who had killed some white officers in an altercation. Later on the country was told that the white people of Phillips County had risen against the Negroes who started this riot and had killed many of them, and that this orgy of bloodshed was not stopped until United States soldiers from camp Pike had been sent to the scene of the trouble.
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BookTV: Cameron McWhirter, “Red Summer: The Summer of 1919 and the Awakening of Black America”
Cameron McWhirter, staff reporter for the Wall Street Journal, recounts the violence against African Americans that erupted throughout the United States from April to November 1919, deemed Red Summer.