Right to Ride: Streetcar Boycotts and African American Citizenship in the Era of Plessy v. Ferguson (The John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture)

Through a reexamination of the earliest struggles against Jim Crow, Blair Kelley exposes the fullness of African American efforts to resist the passage of segregation laws dividing trains and streetcars by race in the early Jim Crow era. Right to Ride chronicles the litigation and local organizing against segregated rails that led to the Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896 and the streetcar boycott movement waged in twenty-five southern cities from 1900 to 1907. Kelley tells the stories of the brave but little-known men and women who faced down the violence of lynching and urban race riots to contest segregation.Focusing on three key cities--New Orleans, Richmond, and Savannah--Kelley explores the community organizations that bound protestors together and the divisions of class, gender, and ambition that sometimes drove them apart. The book forces a reassessment of the timelines of the black freedom struggle, revealing that a period once dismissed as the age of accommodation should in fact be characterized as part of a history of protest and resistance. MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict Contents 8 Acknowledgments 10 Introduction 16 1 NEW YORK: The Antebellum Roots of Segregation and Dissent 30 2 THE COLOR LINE AND THE LADIES’ CAR: Segregation on Southern Rails before Plessy 48 3 OUR PEOPLE, OUR PROBLEM?: Plessy and the Divided New Orleans 66 4 WHERE ARE OUR FRIENDS?: Crumbling Alliances and New Orleans Streetcar Boycott 102 5 WHO’S TO BLAME?: Maggie Lena Walker, John Mitchell Jr., and the Great Class Debate 139 6 NEGROES EVERYWHERE ARE WALKING: Work, Women, and the Richmond Streetcar Boycott 161 7 BATTLING JIM CROW’S BUZZARDS: Betrayal and the Savannah Streetcar Boycott 187 8 BEND WITH UNABATED PROTEST: On the Meaning of Failure 217 Notes 223 Bibliography 255 Index 269 A 269 B 269 C 270 D 271 E 271 F 271 G 272 H 272 I 272 J 272 K 272 L 273 M 273 N 274 O 274 P 274 R 275 S 276 T 277 U 277 V 278 W 278 Y 278 Illustrations appears 131 Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Introduction......Page 16 1 NEW YORK: The Antebellum Roots of Segregation and Dissent......Page 30 2 THE COLOR LINE AND THE LADIES’ CAR: Segregation on Southern Rails before Plessy......Page 48 3 OUR PEOPLE, OUR PROBLEM?: Plessy and the Divided New Orleans......Page 66 4 WHERE ARE OUR FRIENDS?: Crumbling Alliances and New Orleans Streetcar Boycott......Page 102 5 WHO’S TO BLAME?: Maggie Lena Walker, John Mitchell Jr., and the Great Class Debate......Page 139 6 NEGROES EVERYWHERE ARE WALKING: Work, Women, and the Richmond Streetcar Boycott......Page 161 7 BATTLING JIM CROW’S BUZZARDS: Betrayal and the Savannah Streetcar Boycott......Page 187 8 BEND WITH UNABATED PROTEST: On the Meaning of Failure......Page 217 Notes......Page 223 Bibliography......Page 255 B......Page 269 C......Page 270 F......Page 271 K......Page 272 M......Page 273 P......Page 274 R......Page 275 S......Page 276 U......Page 277 Y......Page 278 Illustrations appears......Page 131

focusing On Three Key Cities--new Orleans, Richmond, And Savannah--kelley Explores African Americans' Organized Efforts To Resist The Passage Of Segregation Laws Dividing Trains And Streetcars By Race In The Early Jim Crow Era. The Book Forces A Reassessment Of The Timelines Of The Black Freedom Struggle, Revealing That A Period Once Dismissed As The Age Of Accommodation Should In Fact Be Characterized As Part Of A History Of Protest And Resistance.

"Focusing on three key cities--New Orleans, Richmond, and Savannah--Kelley explores the community organizations that bound protestors together and the divisions of class, gender, and ambition that sometimes drove them apart. The book forces a reassessment of the timelines of the black freedom struggle, revealing that a period once dismissed as the age of accommodation should in fact be characterized as part of a history of protest and resistance."--Page 4 of cover Through a reexamination of the earliest struggles against Jim Crow, the author exposes the fullness of African American efforts to resist the passage of segregation laws dividing trains and streetcars by race in the early Jim Crow era.