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Glossary: Historical Events and Concepts

Black Nationalism: An ideology that arose to create a space for dignity and uplift among people of color all over the world, including African Americans, called black nationalism.  Black nationalism (sometimes also referred to as Pan-Africanism) called for unity among all people of African descent, and argued that blacks should strive together for dignity and self-improvement in the face of racism and imperialism.  Although this is generally what black nationalism was about, there was still great diversity among black nationalist intellectuals96-97.

 

Blackface minstrelsy: a form of popular entertainment in which white actors "blacked" their faces with shoe polish and performed humorous skits and songs that were based on racist stereotypes.

 

Cakewalk: a form dance popular in the late 19th century that originated during slavery. Slaves would make fun of their owners' high society dances, and the owners (unaware that they were the butt of a joke) found these dances highly entertaining. 
 

Diaspora: A population scattered in many geographical areas that had origins in one common geographical area.  The African diaspora refers to all people of African descent living outside of Africa.

 

Disfranchisement: Not having the ability to vote.  African Americans were widely disfranchised after Reconstruction, especially in the South.

 

Empire: The expansion of a nation through the acquisition of foreign territories, often through violent means. The US was an expanding empire around the turn of the century; in 1898 in gained control of Puerto Rico and the Philippines.

 

Jim Crow: The system of legal and extra-legal oppression in the South that was established after Reconstruction. Jim Crow kept black people politically and economically subordinate.

 

Lynching: The public torture and execution of black people (usually men) by a white mob. Lynchings were usually incited by rumors that a black man had sexually assaulted a white woman, and were considered a form of crude vigilante justice.

 

The “nadir” of African American history: This refers roughly to the period from the 1890s to the 1920s, which is considered to be the worst period of post-Civil War history for black Americans. The civil and political rights of blacks were eroded and racial violence plagued the country. The term was first used by historian Rayford Logan in his influential book The Negro in American Life and Thought: The Nadir, 1877–1901.

 

Racial uplift: Because they faced so much racial oppression in the late 19th century, African Americans wanted to improve the lives of their fellow citizens.  The black elites thought of it as “uplifting the race.”  Ideas about how to accomplish this were incredibly varied.

 

Reconstruction: This was the period after Civil War where the Federal Government initiated huge programs attempting to heal the wounds of the nation and help freed blacks integrate into society. Because of racism, politics, and an economic depression, Reconstruction failed by the mid 1870s.

 

Social Darwinism: The application of Charles Darwin's Theory of Natural Selection to the study of human society. Social Darwinism posited that "survival of the fittest" applied to the success or failure of individuals in society, and claimed that the white race had proven itself as superior through its scientific and cultural achievements, while darker races were backward.  This meant that whites either had to "civilize" darker races, or that people of color would eventually naturally die off because of their inherent inferiority.

© Copyright 2013 Charlie Birge. All rights reserved.

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