The Great Migration
by T. M. Ford
'The Great Migration' by Jacob Lawrence - Panel One
Between 1910 and 1930 millions of African Americans embarked on an exodus. They walked away from the painful existence they endured in the South and made their way to the Northeast, the Midwest and the West in hopes of finding better lives. They were eager to leave behind poverty, racism, humiliation and lynchings. They pressed forward with their dreams, their meager belongings, and their ‘Great Expectations’ to cities such as Chicago, St. Louis, Boston, Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia and New York. They moved North in hopes of finding work and a chance to become educated. This movement of African Americans from the South to the North, West and the Midwest is known as the Great Migration, and it was partly responsible for giving birth to one of the most exciting cultural periods this country would ever experience. This cultural dawning is known as the the Harlem Renaissance, and it was a veritable explosion of African American art, dance, music, literature, poetry, activism and intellectualism.
Comprehension Questions - Grades 3 to 5
1. When did the Great Migration take place?
2. What geographical region in America did African Americans leave?
3. Name the period the author speaks about at the end of the passage.
4. Name a reason African Americans wanted to leave the South.
5. By using the map above, name three cities African Americans settled in when they
left the South. Also name three Midwestern cities to which African Americans
migrated .
6. Identify an example of Cause and Effect in the passage.
7. Write three sentences about things your learned about African Americans from the
reading?
Comprehension Questions - Grades 6 to 8
1. Identify an example of Cause and Effect in the passage?
2. Using context clues, explain the meaning of the word exodus.
3. What push and pull factors supported the Great Migration?