This does not occur in the North but there was reportings of whites attacking blacks in street riots. Blacks were still living in one-bedroom slave houses that were of very poor quality, whereas in the North they could afford better housing. There were few slum areas present in the North as they were limited due to the expense in which the blacks could not afford. In some ways Blacks living in the South were similar to those in the North. This is because Northern Blacks were still being segregated and treated unequal even though there was no official law being made. In this case Blacks were still not served in places and they were disassociated from where white people were situated. In the North there was better education which led to more job opportunities. Black Americans didn’t really have the same benefits as others due to the Black Schools being less prioritised meaning less money went into them gaining an education. In the 1950’s it was believed that only 1/3 could read or write in the South and that in both North and South 2/3 finished school without any qualifications. Although Northern Blacks gained a better education is some respects, fewer blacks achieved a full education compared to whites in the same school.
Employment seemed to be an issue for Black Americans across the US as it was very hard for them to get jobs due to both discrimination and lack of literacy. In the South, many jobs were beyond them due to the poor education they received. If they did get an interview and they were up against a white with the same qualities, the white person would get it due to them being more superior. This basically occurred for blacks in the North as well, which showed how problems were similar in this respect across the US. Both Northern and Southern Blacks got paid less than whites. In the 1950’s those in the South got paid 75 cents a day but blacks in the North got paid $3.25 a day. This is a considerable difference of wages between the two areas although in both the whites earned nearly double the amount blacks did. It was not always pleasant in the North for blacks wanting jobs as they struggled to gain promotions and many were just stuck on a factory floors.
Although promotion was a problem, to whites dismay 3 blacks were promoted in the company Ford. This is shown as an improvement on equality as there was more jobs available for Blacks as whites were not as prejudice and were accepted to work alongside fellow whites.
Voting was deemed a very important issue amongst the black community in the US. It was very difficult for blacks in the South to vote as the government did specific things to persuade them not to vote. Firstly the government issued voting bars and literacy tests to complete in order for people to vote. This in some ways prevented Blacks to vote, as they weren’t clever enough to take the test due to lack of education early on in their lives. Due to lack of literacy it was harder for blacks to get jobs therefore many were unemployed meaning they didn’t have money to pay for the voting taxes. The Northern blacks didn’t have these dilemmas as voting bars, taxes and literacy tests were not around meaning more blacks could vote. If some blacks originally came from the southern areas they were not confident or just didn’t wish to vote resulting in many people having a lack of interest to vote. Even though in the North they could vote freely many were ignorant of the privileges or thought that voting would not make a difference. As a matter of fact from the results of voting they had their first black congressman called Adam Powell in 1944. The Klan also used apprehension and fear to stop them from registering a vote. By the end of the World War II, voting did increase by 9%, which was a vast improvement on the Black American society.
Malcolm X was a black leader who was jailed for 5 years for a minor crime. He was imprisoned for this length of time because he was going out with a white girlfriend. Due to the judge, juries and police being white they punished him even more as they didn’t agree with mixed race relationships. Even though in the Northern parts of the US there was still white juries and judges etc more black cases stood up in court which was a development in their status.
In Conclusion, the black people in the South seem to be more similar to each other then they are different. This is mainly due to the fact that in both parts of the US, the blacks were being segregated and discriminated against although in the South the official laws meant blacks had worse facilities whereas in the North there were unofficial laws. Blacks that live in the North do have more beneficial opportunities than they would in the South due to better housing and educational facilities. By having those benefits they are able to obtain better jobs. However, they are similar in some ways as in both the North and the South their wages were less then that of whites doing the same job. Education played a huge part in the progress of Black Americans in the North. This is because the education was improving therefore more blacks were able to apply for jobs, as they were literate enough to do so.
