Chicago Race Riots/Chapter 2
II
THE BACKGROUND
Chicago's "black belt," so called, to-day holds at least 125,000 persons. This is double the number that same district held five years ago, when the world war began.
Chicago is probably the third city in the United States in number of colored persons and, at the lowest, ranks as fifth in this regard, according to estimates of Frederick Rex, municipal reference librarian. The four cities that may possibly exceed Chicago in this population group are New York, which had 91,709 at the last census; Baltimore, with 84,749; Philadelphia, with 84,459, and Washington, with 94,466. The colored population in all these cities has increased since the last census.
New Orleans, which had 89,262, has decreased instead of gaining, and the same will apply to three other large southern cities where the colored population at the begining of the war was slightly above 50,000 and just about equal to that of Chicago. These are Birmingham, Ala., Atlanta, Ga., and Memphis, Tenn., all reported to have decreased, while Chicago has gained.
During interviews with some forty persons more or less expert on the question the lowest estimate of the present colored population of Chicago was 100,000 and the highest 200,000. The figure most commonly agreed on was 125,000. There is no doubt that upward of 150,000 have arrived here. The number that have departed for other points is unknown.
Under the pressure of the biggest over-crowding problem any race or nation has faced in a Chicago neighborhood, the population of the district is spilling over, or rather is being irresistibly squeezed out into other residence districts.
Such is the immediately large and notable fact touching what is generally called "the race problem."
Other facts pertaining to the situation, each one indicating a trend of importance, are the following:
Local draft board No. 4 in a district surrounding State and 35th streets, containing 30,000 persons, of whom 90 per cent are colored, registered upward of 9,000 and sent 1,850 colored men to cantonments. Of these 1,850 there were only 125 rejections. On Nov. 11, when the armistice was declared, this district had 7,832 men passed by examiners and ready for the call to the colors. So it is clear that in one neighborhood are thousands of strong young men who have been talking to each other on topics more or less intimately related to the questions, "What are we ready to die for? Why do we live? What is democracy? What is the meaning of freedom; of self-determination?"
In barber shop windows and in cigar stores and haberdasheries are helmets, rifles, cartridges, canteens and haversacks and photographs of negro regiments that were sent to France.
Walk around this district and talk with the black folk and leaders of the black folk. Ask them, "What about the future of the colored people?" The reply that comes most often and the thought that seems uppermost is: "We made the supreme sacrifice; they didn't need any work or fight law for us; our record, like Old Glory, the flag we love because it stands for our freedom, hasn't got a spot on it; we 'come clean'; now we want to see our country live up to the constitution and the declaration of independence."
Soldiers, ministers, lawyers, doctors, politicians, machinists, teamsters, day laborers—this is the inevitable outstanding thought they offer when consulted about tomorrow, next week, next year or the next century for the colored race in America, There is no approaching the matters of housing, jobs or political relations of the colored people to-day without taking consideration of their own vivid conception of what they consider their unquestioned Americanism.
They had one bank three years ago. Now they have five. Three co-operative societies to run stores are forming. Five new weekly papers, two new monthly magazines, seven drug stores, one hospital—all of these have come since Junius B. Wood's encyclopedic recital of negro activities in Chicago appeared in The Daily News in December, 1916. Also since then a life insurance company and a building and loan association have been organized. In one district where there were counted sixty-nine neighborhood agencies of demoralization there have been established within two years under negro auspices, a cafe, a drug store, a laundry, a bakery, a shoe repair shop, a tailor shop, a fish market, a dry goods store—all told, twenty-four constructive agencies entered the contest against sixty-nine of the destructive kind.
The colored people of Chicago seem to have more big organizations with fewer press agents and less publicity than any other group in the city. They have, for instance, the largest single protestant church membership in North America in the Olivet Baptist church at South Park avenue and East 31st street. It has more than 8,500 members. The "miscellaneous" local of the Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen's union, at 43d and State streets, reports that upward of 10,000 colored workmen are affiliated. The People's Movement club has moved into a $50,000 clubhouse, has 2,000 active and 6,000 associate members.
There is apparent an active home buying, home owning movement, with many circumstances indicating that the colored people coming in with the new influx are making preparations to stay, their viewpoint being that of the boll weevil in that famous negro song, "This'll Be My Home." In nearly all circles the opinion is voiced that Chicago is the most liberal all around town in the country, and the constitution of Illinois the most liberal of all state constitutions. And so if they can't make Chicago a good place for their people to live in the colored people wonder where they can go.
Their houses, jobs, politics, their hope and outlook in the "black belt," are topics to be considered in this series of articles.