AAST 220 – Reading Assignment #4
Chapters 18 – 19
1) Why Did African Americans abandon their long association with the Republican Party in favor of the Democratic Party?
2) How did black radicalism influence Roosevelt’s New Deal policies and programs?
3) How did black people respond to and survive the Great Depression? How did the experiences of black women during the Depression reflect their race, class, and gender status?
4) How did the New Deal adversely affect black sharecroppers, tenants, and farmers? What were the political, social, and economic repercussions of the large-scale migration of African Americans out of the South during the 1930s?
5) What role did racism play in the Tuskegee experiment and the “Scottsboro Boys” case?
6) Why were W.E.B. DuBois’ editorials in the Crisis about segregation so divisive and explosive? How did black activists and scholars respond to the idea of voluntary self-segregation?
7) How did the Great Depression affect black culture? How did the WPA democratize black culture? How did black religious culture change during this era?
8) How did black artists, musicians, filmmakers, and writers negotiate the dilemma of dual consciousness as articulated by DuBois? Which parts of black art did white corporate executives find easiest to appropriate and shape for white consumption?
9) How did swing-era big band music lead to bebop? What problems did the bebop musicians encounter? How did black music transform American culture? How did African American musicians make creative use of radio technology?
10) How did radio broadcasts and Hollywood films portray black Americans during the 1930s and the 1940s? How did these images affect white Americans’ attitudes and behavior toward black Americans? How did these representations contribute to the emergence of an alternative black radio and /or independent black cinema?
11) How did the Chicago Renaissance compare with the Harlem Renaissance?
12) Why did black athletes become prominent during the 1930s and 1940s? What was their impact on American culture? How did the experiences of black sports figures reflect the status of race relations in the United States?
