Reply #195: The Red Summer Riots [View All]

The term, coined by author James Weldon Johnson, refers to the series of race riots that took place in the summer and fall of 1919. The greatest number of race riots occurred during and just after World War I. During this period the North was concerned with the tremendous migration of Blacks from the South, and the displacement of some whites by Blacks in jobs and residences, which escalated social tensions between the races. The South was concerned about the possible demands of returning Negro soldiers, who were unwilling to slip quietly back into second-class citizenship. Race riots exploded in 26 towns and cities of both North and South, with the most violent outbreaks in Chicago, Washington, DC, and Elaine, AR.



http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_red.html
http://www.africawithin.com/maafa/a_killing_season.htm
http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1979/2/79.02.04.x.html