Abstract
Goin' to Chicago chronicles one of the most momentous yet least heralded sagas of American history - the great migration of African Americans from the rural South to the cities of the North and West after World War II. Four million black people created a dynamic urban culture outside the South, changing America forever.
Goin' to Chicago traces this history through the personal stories of a group of older Chicagoans born mostly in the Mississippi Delta. They share their bitter recollections of sharecropping - owing half of each crop to the landowner, each beginning back-breaking labor in the fields at ten. A steelworker, newspaper editor, blues musician and others movingly recall their journeys up Hwy. 61 to Chicago in search of comparatively well-paying factory jobs. On the South Side they built a vibrant city-within-a-city of thriving black businesses and civic institutions, proudly referred to as "Bronzeville."
They recall that after World War II increasingly self-assertive and prosperous blacks led a bitterly resisted struggle to open up fair housing opportunities outside the ghetto. But just as the American Dream was coming into reach for some, the steel mills and stockyards closed, leaving newer immigrants trapped in decaying public housing projects and inner-city despair.
Goin' to Chicago is a moving tribute to a generation of African Americans who struggled - and triumphed - over odds as great or greater than other immigrant groups.
Goin' to Chicago traces this history through the personal stories of a group of older Chicagoans born mostly in the Mississippi Delta. They share their bitter recollections of sharecropping - owing half of each crop to the landowner, each beginning back-breaking labor in the fields at ten. A steelworker, newspaper editor, blues musician and others movingly recall their journeys up Hwy. 61 to Chicago in search of comparatively well-paying factory jobs. On the South Side they built a vibrant city-within-a-city of thriving black businesses and civic institutions, proudly referred to as "Bronzeville."
They recall that after World War II increasingly self-assertive and prosperous blacks led a bitterly resisted struggle to open up fair housing opportunities outside the ghetto. But just as the American Dream was coming into reach for some, the steel mills and stockyards closed, leaving newer immigrants trapped in decaying public housing projects and inner-city despair.
Goin' to Chicago is a moving tribute to a generation of African Americans who struggled - and triumphed - over odds as great or greater than other immigrant groups.
Collection
Subject
African Americans -- Illinois -- Chicago -- History -- 20th century, Chicago (Ill.) -- Race relations -- 20th century, African Americans -- History -- 1877-1964, African Americans -- History -- 1964-, African Americans -- Social conditions -- 20th century, African Americans -- Economic conditions -- 20th century, African Americans -- Migrations -- History -- 20th century, Urban African Americans -- Illinois -- Chicago -- 20th century, African Americans -- Interviews, African Americans, Illinois -- Chicago
Contributors
King, George (director), Potter, Lou (writer), King, George (producer), Grosvenor, Vertamae (narrator), Carey, Amy (editor), Butler, Rick (director of Photography), Wells, Oliver (composer), Linder, Paul (composer), Ratner, Bill (narrator), George King & Associates (producer), University of Mississippi (producer), California Newsreel (Firm) (distributor)
Duration
01:09:29 (HH:MM:SS)
Language:
English
Target or Intended Audience
adult/continuing education, higher education, high school (grades 10-12), college
Copyright Holder
| Name | California Newsreel |
| Role | distributor |
| Telephone | 415-284-7800 |
| Address | 500 Third Street, Suite #505, San Francisco, CA 94107-1875 |
| [email protected] |
Copyright Date
1994-01-01
Rights Declaration:
This video is protected by copyright. You are free to view it but not download or remix it. Please contact the licensing institution for further information about how you may use this video.
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