Jonatas' Blog

After William T. Sherman burned the city to ashes in his Civil War campaign in 1864, the citizens of Atlanta returned to find a completely different landscape. The railroads, once Atlanta’s source of prosperity, were now devastated, and the city lacked government buildings. Yet, the citizens were determined to bring Atlanta back from the ashes, and through a community effort, the city was rebuilt in only a year. The spirit of rebirth in the city led to the creation of the New South: a more industrialized and business-oriented South with Atlanta as its center. This new mentality brought with it great economic development, so much so that the city was nicknamed the “Chicago of the South.” But among the thriving industry and progress, one important segment of Atlanta’s population lived in a different reality: the city’s recently-freed African-Americans.

The New South relied heavily on attracting businesses to Atlanta, and was particularly focused on restoring the business ties with the North that were broken after the Civil War. In order to do so, Atlanta had to look attractive for northern businessmen, and Atlantans had to embrace northern concepts. One such concept involved the issue of race relations, and thus the city’s newspapers promoted the idea of a racially integrated South, in which blacks thrived along with whites in the city’s development. But while Southern media showcased African-American progress, the New South was ultimately a white concept. African-Americans lived in a different reality and had to forgo certain liberties, such as the right to vote and black college education, and accept the concept of white racial superiority to participate in Atlanta’s economic development.

Perhaps the first step in understanding the New South as a white concept is analyzing the question of race in the aftermath of the Civil War in Atlanta. Embracing the concept of the Lost Cause, by which the war was fought to preserve the southern way of life, white Americans, scholar William Link notes, saw Atlanta’s destruction as an opportunity for redefinition and rebirth as “a southern place” (61). African-Americans, on the other hand, saw the burning as the “price… for black freedom” (61). While blacks saw an opportunity for the establishment of a new racial order and economic development free from white control, whites believed that emancipation had disrupted both social and economic systems, and sought for new means to control blacks (61). These two perspectives were closely tied to economic development, but created a dualism in deciding Atlanta’s future. Ultimately, the white view prevailed, merging the white idea of a southern identity and racial order with Atlanta’s vision for future economic prosperity. Thus, from the moment of its creation, the New South was an essentially white concept to bring economic development and implicitly reestablish the racial order. But this concept also had to appeal to northern businessmen, who also had progressive integrationist views.

The New South was closely tied to the media, from the moment of its conception to its promotion of the southern environment to northern businessmen. Henry Grady, described by Link as “the ultimate New South booster,” was the editor of the Atlanta Constitution journal (141). It is because of him that the New South gained most of its attention, a great part of it being traced to his address at the New England Society in New York, through which the concept gained national attention (138). Quoting politician Benjamin Hill, Grady showcased the South as a place once torn by slavery and secession, but now united in freedom, and aimed to get this idea of the New South to attract northern business (140). Through the Constitution, he proclaimed that “no racial troubles… existed in Georgia,” and that southerners treated blacks very well, thus impressing northerners (Davis 136). Grady’s – and many other southern civic leaders’ – speeches were crafted to lead to the conclusion that African-Americans partook in the New South’s prosperity as much as whites did. However, black Atlantans lived a much different life than the joyride of equality proposed by the media.

Grady’s view of an inclusive and racially united New South did not accurately depict reality. White southerners believed that blacks were only productive under slavery, and, when emancipation was declared, many refused to pay freedmen wages or tried to trick them into excruciating labor contracts. To assist in overseeing fair black labor practices, the Freedmen’s Bureau was created in 1865 as part of the Reconstruction measures, but the Congress-created institution was in many ways ineffective (Link 67). In addition, former slaveholders in many occasions ignored the bureau’s directives, relying on oral agreements instead of official oversight (76). Moreover, many African-Americans were subject to the tenant farming system, which stripped blacks (and poor white southerners) of their economic freedom by binding them to a landlord and paying with crops instead of money.

The white depiction of the New South did not shed light into any of these issues. In fact, the Atlanta Constitution editor was a white supremacist himself, and the hypocrisy in his speech was pointed out by several black newspapers and writers in both North and South (Davis 137). When attracting northerners, Grady himself seemed to offer a compromise: racial peace through a partnership between southerners and northerners, but only if the latter acknowledged the former’s concept of white supremacy (Link 154). Naturally, these views omitted the reality of African-Americans in Atlanta. Being socially excluded, blacks had different means to partake in the New South’s economic development.

African-Americans used different tactics in an attempt to partake at the economic development brought about by the New South. Many whites saw African-Americans as degraded, non-intellectual and inferior, and blacks had to first and foremost change this view (159). The Cotton States Expositions, the first one happening in 1881, were the perfect stages to showcase black progress. In those expositions, many prominent black figures embraced the idea of the “new negro,” who could transcend history and enter a “progressive middle class” (Cardon 293). Blacks challenged the concept of race inferiority, and the best example of this is seen in the 1895 exposition through the “Negro Buildings.” Such pavilions portrayed blacks as a “progressive, future-oriented people” in an attempt to change the stigma of inferiority (291). However, as scholar Nathan Cardon points out, African-American participation in the exposition resulted in blacks presenting “a southern interpretation of their race,” embracing the very same views they tried to avoid (326). Therefore, black participation in the New South’s economic development meant that in some way blacks had to acknowledge the existing racial structure.

Perhaps this view is best exemplified by the view of one of the most famous African-American leaders of the time: Professor Booker T. Washington. In what has become one of the most famous speeches in the history of the South, Washington proposed, at the Cotton States Exposition of 1895, the “Atlanta Compromise,” by which blacks should “forgive the South” and forgo their political pursuits and focus on economic recovery instead (Seaton 52). As scholar Corey Seaton notes, Washington proposed that blacks should relinquish the pursuit of equality and focus on earning white trust, so that over time the South would willingly give them rights (58). Washington claimed that blacks should aim at industrial jobs and economic recovery, but that came at a price. As famous African-American leader W.E.B. DuBois points out, Washington’s philosophy came at the cost of black disenfranchisement, civil inferiority, and the end of higher education for African-Americans (DuBois 7). Therefore, to participate in Atlanta’s prosperity, African-Americans in one way or another acknowledged the racial order, sacrificing their struggles and liberties in the process.

While the media promoted Atlanta’s New South as an environment in which blacks thrived and equally partook in the city’s economic development, the reality was much different for African-Americans themselves, who had to concede certain liberties to participate in this environment. The New South, then, was ultimately created for and experienced by white Atlantans. The post-Civil War period that could have established a new and more equal society instead clothed itself in new concepts to rebuild an old racial order, eventually leading to a period of segregation that lasted almost a century, whose sparks of a fragmented society still linger even today.

Moreover, despite establishing a racially divided society, the New South also impacted the African-American community in a positive way, one that even influences contemporary Atlanta. The division brought by the New South ultimately united African-Americans in a quest for progress and equality, allowing for strong and impactful leaders, such as W.E.B. DuBois and, later in history, Martin Luther King Jr., to emerge among the community and influence not only Atlanta, but the entire world. This united community continues to have an enormous cultural impact. Atlanta is today a vibrant hub for African-American culture, and paving the way for a truly new South.

Contemporary Atlanta is still scarred by racial division. Racial disparities in economic development are very evident through a comparison of the wealthy white majority of Buckhead with the predominantly black homeless and poor seen in Downtown Atlanta. This division in many ways is still reminiscent of the New South mentality, given that most of the city’s economic activity is held in Buckhead. However, especially because Atlanta’s participation in Civil Rights, black Atlantans today have the powers that they were once forced to relinquish: the power of the vote, the power of citizenship, and the power of education. African-Americans’ dominance in the municipal political scene and the revitalization efforts in Downtown are proof that Atlanta is indeed walking away from the segregated New South mentality, and making its way towards another South. Today, Atlanta’s South is neither Old nor New; the city leads the efforts to create a Transcendental South, in which the opportunity of economic development indeed equal for all, regardless of race.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Cardon, Nathan. “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the

Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 80, no. 2, May 2014, p. 287. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aqh&AN=95795796&site=eds-live.

DuBois, W. E. B. “Chapter III: Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others.” Souls of Black Folk,

Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 3/1/2006, pp. 25-36. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=34413869&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Davis, Harold E. Henry Grady’s New South. [Electronic Resource] : Atlanta, a Brave and

Beautiful City. Tuscaloosa : University of Alabama Press, c1990., 1990. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat00477a&AN=gast.2837930&site=eds-live

Link, William A. Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s

Aftermath. The University of North Carolina Press, 2013. Civil War America. EBSCOhost,

ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=532689&site=eds-live.

Seaton, Corey. “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship

Post-Reconstruction in the America’.” Kola, no. 1, 2014, p. 51. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.365072224&site=eds-live.

After William T. Sherman burned the city to ashes in his Civil War campaign in 1864, the citizens of Atlanta returned to find a completely different landscape. The railroads, once Atlanta’s source of prosperity, were now devastated, and the city lacked government buildings. Yet, the citizens were determined to bring Atlanta back from the ashes, and through a community effort, the city was rebuilt in only a year. The spirit of rebirth in the city led to the creation of the New South: a more industrialized and business-oriented South with Atlanta at its center. This new mentality brought with it great economic development, so much so that the city was nicknamed the “Chicago of the South.” But among the thriving industry and progress, one important segment of Atlanta’s population lived in a different reality: the city’s recently-freed African-Americans.

The New South relied heavily on attracting businesses to Atlanta, and was particularly focused on restoring the business ties with the North that were broken after the Civil War. In order to do so, Atlanta had to look attractive for northern businessmen, and Atlantans had to embrace northern concepts. One such concept involved the issue of race relations, and thus the city’s newspapers promoted the idea of a racially integrated South, in which blacks thrived along with whites in the city’s development. But while Southern media showcased African-American progress, the New South was ultimately a white concept. African-Americans lived in a different reality and had to forgo certain liberties to participate in Atlanta’s economic development.

Perhaps the first step in understanding the New South as a white concept is analyzing the question of race in the aftermath of the Civil War in Atlanta. Embracing the concept of the Lost Cause, by which the war was fought to preserve the southern way of life, white Americans, scholar William Link notes, saw Atlanta’s destruction as an opportunity for redefinition and rebirth as “a southern place” (61). African-Americans, on the other hand, saw the burning as the “price… for black freedom” (Link 61). While blacks saw an opportunity for the establishment of a new racial order and economic development free from white control, whites believed that emancipation had disrupted both social and economic systems, and sought for new means to control blacks (Link 61). These two perspectives were closely tied to economic development, but created a dualism in deciding Atlanta’s future. Ultimately, the white view prevailed, merging the white idea of a southern identity and racial order with Atlanta’s vision for future economic prosperity. Thus, from the moment of its creation, the New South was an essentially white concept to bring economic development and implicitly reestablish the racial order. But this concept also had to appeal to northern businessmen, who also had abolitionist views.

The New South was closely tied to the media, from the moment of its conception to its promotion of the southern environment to northern businessmen. Henry Grady, described by Link as “the ultimate New South booster,” was the editor of the Atlanta Constitution journal (141). It is because of Grady that the New South gained most of its attention, a great part of it being traced to his address at the New England Society in New York, through which the concept gained national attention (Link 138). Quoting politician Benjamin Hill, Grady showcased the South as a place once torn by slavery and secession, but now united in freedom, and aimed to get this idea of the New South to attract northern business (Link 140). Through the Constitution, Grady proclaimed that “no racial troubles… existed in Georgia,” and that southerners treated blacks very well, thus impressing northerners (Davis 136). Grady’s – and many other southern civic leaders’ – speeches were crafted to lead to the conclusion that African-Americans partook in the New South’s prosperity as much as whites did. Beyond the media however, black Atlantans lived a much different reality.

Grady’s depiction of an inclusive and racially united New South did not accurately depict reality. White southerners believed that blacks were only productive under slavery, and, when emancipation was declared, many refused to pay freedmen wages or tried to trick them into excruciating labor contracts. To assist in overseeing fair black labor practices, the Freedmen’s Bureau was created in 1865 as part of the Reconstruction measures, but the Congress-created institution was in many ways ineffective (Link 67). In addition, former slaveholders in many occasions ignored the bureau’s directives, relying on oral agreements instead of official oversight (Link 76). Moreover, many African-Americans were subject to the tenant farming system, which stripped blacks (and poor white southerners) of their economic freedom by binding them to a landlord and paying with crops instead of money.

Grady’s view of the New South did not shed light into any of these issues. In fact, Grady was a white supremacist himself, and the hypocrisy in his speech was pointed out by several black newspapers and writers in both North and South (Davis 137). When attracting northerners, Grady himself seemed to offer a compromise: racial peace through a partnership between southerners and northerners, but only if the latter acknowledged the former’s concept of white supremacy (Link 154). Naturally, these views omitted the reality of African-Americans in Atlanta. Being socially excluded, blacks had different means to partake in the New South’s economic development.

African-Americans used different tactics in an attempt to partake at the economic development brought about by the New South. Many whites saw African-Americans as degraded, non-intellectual and inferior, and blacks had to first and foremost change this view (Link 159). The Cotton States Expositions, the first one happening in 1881, were the perfect stages to showcase black progress. In those expositions, many prominent black figures embraced the idea of the “new negro,” who could transcend history and enter a “progressive middle class” (Cardon 293). Blacks challenged the concept of race inferiority, and the best example of this is seen in the 1895 exposition through the “Negro Buildings.” Such pavilions portrayed blacks as a “progressive, future-oriented people” in an attempt to change the stigma of inferiority (Cardon 291). However, as scholar Nathan Cardon points out, African-American participation in the exposition resulted in blacks presenting “a southern interpretation of their race,” embracing the very same views they tried to avoid (326). Therefore, black participation in the New South’s economic development meant that in some way blacks had to acknowledge the existing racial structure.

Perhaps this view is best exemplified by the view of one of the most famous African-American leaders of the time: Professor Booker T. Washington. In what has become one of the most famous speeches in the history of the South, Washington proposed, at the Cotton States Exposition of 1895, the “Atlanta Compromise,” by which blacks should “forgive the South” and forgo their political pursuits and focus on economic recovery instead (Seaton 52). As scholar Corey Seaton notes, Washington proposed that blacks should relinquish the pursuit of equality and focus on earning white trust, so that over time the South would willingly give them rights (58). Washington claimed that blacks should aim at industrial jobs and economic recovery, but that came at a price. As famous African-American leader W.E.B. DuBois points out, Washington’s philosophy came at the cost of black disenfranchisement, civil inferiority, and the end of higher education for African-Americans (DuBois 7). Therefore, to participate in Atlanta’s prosperity, African-Americans in one way or another acknowledged the racial order, sacrificing their struggles and liberties in the process.

Therefore, while the media promoted Atlanta’s New South as an environment in which blacks thrived and equally partook in the city’s economic development, the reality was much different to African-Americans themselves, who had to concede certain liberties to participate in this environment. The New South, then, was ultimately created for and experienced by white Atlantans. The post-Civil War period that could have established a new and more equal society instead clothed itself in new concepts to rebuild an old racial order, eventually leading to a period of segregation that lasted almost a century, whose sparks of a fragmented society still linger even today.

However, despite establishing a racially divided society, the New South also impacted the African-American community in a positive way, one that influences even contemporary Atlanta. The division brought by the New South ultimately united African-Americans in a quest for progress and equality, allowing for strong and impactful leaders, such as W.E.B. DuBois and, later in history, Martin Luther King Jr., to emerge among the community and influence not only Atlanta, but the entire world. This united community also had and continues to have an enormous cultural impact, and Atlanta is today a vibrant hub for African-American culture, and paves the way towards a truly new South.

 

 

 

Works Cited

Cardon, Nathan. “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 80, no. 2, May 2014, p. 287. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aqh&AN=95795796&site=eds-live.

“Chapter III: Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others.” Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois, Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 3/1/2006, pp. 25-36. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=34413869&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Davis, Harold E. Henry Grady’s New South. [Electronic Resource] : Atlanta, a Brave and Beautiful City. Tuscaloosa : University of Alabama Press, c1990., 1990. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat00477a&AN=gast.2837930&site=eds-live

Link, William A. Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s  Aftermath. The University of North Carolina Press, 2013. Civil War America. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=532689&site=eds-live.

Seaton, Corey. “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship Post-Reconstruction in the America’.” Kola, no. 1, 2014, p. 51. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.365072224&site=eds-live.

After William T. Sherman burned the city to ashes in his Civil War campaign in 1864, the citizens of Atlanta returned to find a completely different landscape. The railroads, once Atlanta’s source of prosperity, were now devastated, and the city lacked government buildings. Yet, the citizens were determined to bring Atlanta back from the ashes, and through a community effort, the city was rebuilt in only a year. The spirit of rebirth in the city led to the creation of the New South: a more industrialized and business-oriented South with Atlanta at its center. This new mentality brought with it great economic development, so much so that the city was nicknamed the “Chicago of the South.” But among the thriving industry and progress, one important segment of Atlanta’s population lived in a different reality: the city’s recently-freed African-Americans.

The New South relied heavily on attracting businesses to Atlanta, and was particularly focused on restoring the business ties with the North that were broken after the Civil War. In order to do so, Atlanta had to look attractive for northern businessmen, and Atlantans had to embrace northern concepts. One such concept involved the issue of race relations, and thus the city’s newspapers often promoted the idea of a racially integrated South, in which blacks thrived along with whites in the city’s development. But while Southern media showcased African-American progress, the New South was ultimately a white concept. African-Americans lived in a different reality and had to forgo certain liberties to participate in Atlanta’s economic development.

Cardon, Nathan. “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the

Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 80, no. 2, May 2014, p. 287. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aqh&AN=95795796&site=eds-live.

Nathan Cardon, in the article, “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897″ (2014), portrays the Atlanta and Nashville international expositions (occurring between 1895 and 1897) as places that provided greater opportunities for African-Americans to expose their views on the South’s economic and social progress. Cardon supports his claim by describing the facilities in the expositions called the “Negro Buildings,” through which African-Americans were given a greater socioeconomic voice and were able to coexist with whites amidst the racial turmoil of the era. Cardon’s paper also provides an account of the African-American leaders present in the exposition and their desire to portray blacks’ progress in the South after the Civil War. The paper has lesser focus on the media’s role in portraying African-American progress through journals such as the Atlanta Constitution. The author’s purpose is to analyze the participation of African-Americans in the international expositions in order to evaluate the exposition’s impact on black participation in the New South. Cardon writes in an informed and descriptive tone primarily for readers of the Journal of Southern History, an academic journal.

Cardon’s paper is very centered around my essay topic: African-American participation in the New South especially as it pertains to economic development. The idea of the “New Negro” will be crucial to my thesis, and the article provides a very good explanation and context of such concept. I also intend to use Cardon’s information on the media’s image of African-Americans and contrast it with the reality depicted in other sources.

 

“Chapter III: Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others.” Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du

Bois, Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 3/1/2006, pp. 25-36. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=34413869&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

W.E.B. DuBois, in chapter III of his book Souls of Black Folk (2006) argues that African-American professor Booker T. Washington’s approach to reconciliation between blacks and whites would limit rights and freedom for African-Americans. DuBois supports his claim by analyzing Washington’s “Atlanta Compromise” and its pragmatic call for willful forgoing of certain African-American rights in exchange for harmonious coexistence with whites and economic development. In fact, DuBois goes beyond his critique of the “Atlanta Compromise,” also providing an account of Washington himself and his efforts among the African-American community. In addition, DuBois offers his personal views on how African-Americans should fight for the end of second class citizenship. The author’s purpose is to explain his views on Booker T. Washington and his doctrines, in order to reveal African-Americans’ struggles for rights and participation in society after the Reconstruction Era. DuBois writes in a critical and analytical tone for readers of his book and Civil Rights activists.

Perhaps what is most important about DuBois’ book is the fact that it is a primary source. Such type of source is fundamental in a historical research paper such as mine, given that it provides very accurate insight into one of the biggest African-American minds of the New South period. I will use this book to provide a firsthand account on how African-Americans were treated in the New South.

 

Link, William A. Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s

Aftermath. The University of North Carolina Press, 2013. Civil War America. EBSCOhost,

ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=532689&site=eds-live.

William Link, in the book Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s Aftermath (2013), argues that the concept of the New South originated through Atlanta’s recovery after the flames that brought it to ruins in 1864. Link supports his claim by providing a thorough record of Atlanta’s history before and after the Civil War and analyzing the origins of the term “New South.” Link more specifically focuses on the changes throughout Atlanta’s history, how they are seen by African-Americans, and how this group is affected by the changes. The author also focuses on how black Atlantans were able to overcome white supremacy and build a center for African-American culture. The author’s purpose is to ultimately analyze the New South and Atlanta’s revival from the ashes as they pertain to African-Americans, in order to reveal the differences in what the New South meant to whites and blacks. Link writes in an assertive and scholarly tone for historians and researchers of the history of Atlanta.

Link’s book will most likely be my main source for this essay, for it provides not only a historical account of Atlanta, but also focuses on the city’s African-American history. I will use Link’s thorough research all throughout my paper, especially Chapter 2 of the book, which deals with the Civil War’s aftermath and Atlanta’s rebirth, and what those two occurrences meant for African-Americans.

 

Seaton, Corey. “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship

Post-Reconstruction in the America’.” Kola, no. 1, 2014, p. 51. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.365072224&site=eds-live.

Corey Seaton, in his article “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship Post-Reconstruction in the America” (2014), explains that African-American leaders had different approaches to overcome prejudice and inequality in the Post-Reconstruction Era. Seaton supports this assertion by comparing the philosophies of two very prominent African-American leaders in the Post-Reconstruction Era: the pragmatic Booker T. Washington and the more insistent W.E.B DuBois. Seaton summarizes Washington’s approach as wanting to solve short-term economic problems, while second-class citizenship would be solved over time. DuBois’ approach is described as insistently and constantly working to increase African-American participation in society, and approach that would later be preferred. The author’s purpose is to provide greater insight into the different ways of approaching problems of the African-American society during the Post-Reconstruction Era by comparing two prominent figures and analyzing their impact on Civil Rights history. Seaton writes in a scholarly and concise tone primarily for readers of the academic journal Kola and scholars interested in Civil Rights.

Seaton’s paper provides a very concise view on the tactics of two very important African-American leaders during the New South period. I intend to take advantage of this conciseness in order to summarize the different African-American thoughts on the period and relate them to my audience. The paper is also exceptional at providing the historical context for each leader, something I also intend to mention in my paper.

 

Vivian, Bradford J. “Up from Memory: Epideictic Forgetting in Booker T. Washington’s Cotton

States Exposition Address.” Philosophy and Rhetoric, no. 2, 2012, p. 189. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edspmu&AN=edspmu.S1527207912200052&site=eds-live.

In the article “Up from Memory: Epideictic Forgetting in Booker T. Washington’s Cotton

States Exposition Address” (2012), Bradford Vivian explains that Booker T. Washington’s speech at the Cotton States Exposition is an example of a case where being a witness of atrocities does not readily result in the ability to call for an expansion of human rights. Vivian supports his thesis by analyzing the rhetoric behind Washington’s speech as it calls on the public to willfully forget the past brutality of slavery in exchange for socioeconomic harmony. Vivian also analyzes more recent speeches on other dark times, such as the Holocaust and World Wars, and compares them with Washington’s apparent forgetfulness of slavery’s atrocities to evidence that his behavior is uncommon. To explain Washington’s behavior, the author also draws from more recent witnesses of atrocity, such as Auschwitz victims, and their views on the moral obligation of a witness’ testimony. The author’s purpose is to analyze how the symbolism behind the failure of speaking as a witness may ultimately hinder the development and expansion of human rights. Vivian writes in a critical and analytical tone primarily for readers of the academic journal Philosophy and Rhetoric and people in the field of Communications.

Vivian’s paper provides very powerful insights into not only Booker T. Washington, a key figure in my research, but also into communication and rhetoric, an important element for all leaders of the New South period. I intend to use these insights to also analyze my other sources and the rhetoric of other leaders such as Henry Gray and W.E.B. DuBois.

Cardon, Nathan. “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the

Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 80, no. 2, May 2014, p. 287. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aqh&AN=95795796&site=eds-live.

Nathan Cardon, in the article, “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897″ (2014), portrays the Atlanta and Nashville international expositions (occurring between 1895 and 1897) as places that provided greater opportunities for African-Americans to expose their views on the South’s economic and social progress. Cardon supports his claim by describing the facilities in the expositions called the “Negro Buildings,” through which African-Americans were given a greater socioeconomic voice and were able to coexist with whites amidst the racial turmoil of the era. The author’s purpose is to analyze the participation of African-Americans in the international expositions in order to evaluate the exposition’s impact on black participation in the New South. Cardon writes in an informed and descriptive tone primarily for readers of the Journal of Southern History, an academic journal.

 

“Chapter III: Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others.” Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du

Bois, Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, 3/1/2006, pp. 25-36. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=34413869&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

W.E.B. DuBois, in chapter III of his book Souls of Black Folk (2006) argues that African-American professor Booker T. Washington’s approach to reconciliation between blacks and whites would limit rights and freedom for African-Americans. DuBois supports his claim by analyzing Washington’s “Atlanta Compromise” and its pragmatic call for willful forgoing of certain African-American rights in exchange for harmonious coexistence with whites and economic development. The author’s purpose is to explain his views on Booker T. Washington and his doctrines, in order to reveal African-Americans’ struggles for rights and participation in society after the Reconstruction Era. DuBois writes in a critical and analytical tone for readers of his book and Civil Rights activists.

Link, William A. Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s

Aftermath. The University of North Carolina Press, 2013. Civil War America. EBSCOhost,

ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=532689&site=eds-live.

William Link, in the book Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s Aftermath (2013), argues that the concept of the New South originated through Atlanta’s recovery after the flames that brought it to ruins in 1864. Link supports his claim by providing a thorough record of Atlanta’s history before and after the Civil War and analyzing the origins of the term “New South.” The author’s purpose is to ultimately analyze the New South and Atlanta’s revival from the ashes as they pertain to African-Americans, in order to reveal the differences in what the New South meant to whites and blacks. Link writes in an assertive and scholarly tone for historians and researchers of the history of Atlanta.

 

Seaton, Corey. “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship

Post-Reconstruction in the America’.” Kola, no. 1, 2014, p. 51. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.365072224&site=eds-live.

Corey Seaton, in his article “‘W.E.B. Dubois & Booker T. Washington: Approaches to Developing Citizenship Post-Reconstruction in the America” (2014), explains that African-American leaders had different approaches to overcome prejudice and inequality in the Post-Reconstruction Era. Seaton supports this assertion by comparing the philosophies of two very prominent African-American leaders in the Post-Reconstruction Era: the pragmatic Booker T. Washington and the more insistent W.E.B DuBois. The author’s purpose is to provide greater insight into the different ways of approaching problems of the African-American society during the Post-Reconstruction Era by comparing two prominent figures and analyzing their impact on Civil Rights history. Seaton writes in a scholarly and concise tone primarily for readers of the academic journal Kola and scholars interested in Civil Rights.

Vivian, Bradford J. “Up from Memory: Epideictic Forgetting in Booker T. Washington’s Cotton

States Exposition Address.” Philosophy and Rhetoric, no. 2, 2012, p. 189. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edspmu&AN=edspmu.S1527207912200052&site=eds-live.

In the article “Up from Memory: Epideictic Forgetting in Booker T. Washington’s Cotton

States Exposition Address” (2012), Bradford Vivian explains that Booker T. Washington’s speech at the Cotton States Exposition is an example of a case where being a witness of atrocities does not readily result in the ability to call for an expansion of human rights. Vivian supports his thesis by analyzing the rhetoric behind Washington’s speech as it calls on the public to willfully forget the past brutality of slavery in exchange for socioeconomic harmony. The author’s purpose is to analyze how the symbolism behind the failure of speaking as a witness may ultimately hinder the development and expansion of human rights. Vivian writes in a critical and analytical tone primarily for readers of the academic journal Philosophy and Rhetoric and people in the field of Communications.

Matthew Teague, in the article “The new south: all roads lead to Atlanta, Georgia, city of black power” (2016), explains that contemporary Atlanta, known as the “purgatory of the South,” has gone through a restructuring in terms of race dynamics, and this played a role in the primaries of March 1st, 2016. Teague supports his claim by comparing the business-oriented white majority of the Buckhead neighborhood,  once in control of politics, and the black majority present in Downtown Atlanta and elaborating on the role of this division in the primaries.

The author’s purpose is to show the audience that Atlanta, as the hub of the South in both business and politics, is also racially divided, and the candidates for the primaries (Donald Trump, Hilary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders) are relying on different strategies in order to try to gain an advantage in this major city in politics and also influence the other primaries held on March 1st. The author writes in a descriptive and informative tone for politics enthusiasts and readers of the newspaper The Guardian.

 

Full article available at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/feb/25/the-new-south-atlanta-georgia-city-of-black-power

General William T. Sherman’s Atlanta campaign during the Civil War left the city devastated. Upon the citizens’ return, the city lacked “a functioning government,” and the railroads were destroyed (Link 46).  Yet, as the war ended in 1865, Atlanta gradually began to thrive once more, and would eventually become the hub of the South. This impressive recovery led to the birth of the New South; Atlanta was reborn as a more industrialized and business oriented city. But while this recovery was a joint effort between all Atlantans, little is said about the African-American participation on this process. My research, therefore, will focus on African-American efforts to participate in the New South, and what role did African-Americans play in the post-Civil War Atlanta business scene.

The New South is, to many, a concept that provided new opportunities to African-Americans. In a personal interview with Donald Rooney, director of expositions at the Atlanta History Center, I came to understand a lot of the spirit of rebirth associated with Atlanta. This spirit began with the New South, greatly promoted during the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition of 1895 (Rooney). As mentioned by historian Nathan Cardon, this exposition provided an opportunity for blacks to voice their “narrative of the South’s past, present, and future” and challenge the racial structure (Cardon 288). African-American leaders also idealized the concept of a “New Negro,” more well-educated and “well-versed in agriculture and industry” (Cardon 289). This suggests that more opportunities were made for African-Americans in terms of both education and participation in the business world. Through further research, I intend to investigate into the specifics of these opportunities, and understand whether they allowed for African-Americans to truly partake in Atlanta’s economic growth and recovery.

However, other scholars believe that the New South in fact only furthered racial divide in Atlanta. Henry Grady, one of the main leaders behind the New South movement, believed that African-Americans had “little capacity for development,” and saw black politicians as a threat to his interests regarding Atlanta (Davis 134). Author William Link claims that while the New South “united whites across different social classes,” but it was a message of economic development that excluded African-Americans (Link 60). In fact, even the progress in education through the New South might have come at the cost of segregation, as African-American leader Booker T. Washington championed the “Atlanta Compromise,” which saw blacks as a “separate and vibrant race” (Cardon 289). In further research, I intend to uncover how, if even, the New South movement facilitated segregation, and analyze first-hand accounts of African-Americans during this period in Atlanta.

Therefore, while the New South movement can be seen as a positive period for post-Civil War African-Americans, evidence also suggests that many of the new opportunities it provided to African-Americans came at the cost of more racial divide, and not all blacks were able to partake in the economic growth. In my research paper, I intend to elaborate on these seemingly contrasting ideas, relying on books, scholarly essays, and first-hand accounts in order to fully understand African-American participation in the New South and the role of race in the promotion of post-Civil War Atlanta as a business city.

 

 

 

Works Cited

Cardon, Nathan. “The South’s “New Negroes” and African American Visions of Progress at the

Atlanta and Nashville International Expositions, 1895-1897.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 80, no. 2, May 2014, p. 287. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aqh&AN=95795796&site=eds-live.

Davis, Harold E. Henry Grady’s New South. [Electronic Resource] : Atlanta, a Brave and

Beautiful City. Tuscaloosa : University of Alabama Press, c1990., 1990. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat00477a&AN=gast.2837930&site=eds-live.

Link, William A. Atlanta, Cradle of the New South : Race and Remembering in the Civil War’s

Aftermath. The University of North Carolina Press, 2013. Civil War America. EBSCOhost,

ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=532689&site=eds-live.

Rooney, Donald. Personal interview. 27 February 2017.

• “Human Trafficking,” by Gabriell Brown

 

In “Human Trafficking,” Gabriell educates her audience on the fact that human trafficking can happen to any female, anywhere and at any given time. To achieve that, she relies mainly on emotional appeal, by showing footage of places, such as the streets, a park, and even her own home (seemingly safe places), where females could be subject to human trafficking. Gabriell ends the video by claiming that women should be “aware of themselves at all times,” or else they are vulnerable to traffic. Perhaps what contributes most to this ominous ending’s appeal is the presence of bystanders in most of the footage shown throughout the video, which leads to the conclusion that even in the presence of other people, women should be mindful of their surroundings. The video does a good job at reaching its audience: all women. However, it could be improved by increasing credibility, as the video makes claims about the dangers to females on public environments without providing a credible source.

The video is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDXqOs5Yotw

 

• “A Walk in Atlanta,” by Erin Hamilton

 

With the video “A Walk in Atlanta,” Erin evidences the constant presence of street art in Atlanta, doing so through a walk on the city’s streets. The video’s thesis is that street art is always present in Atlanta, and such claim is effectively developed and proven by the video footage. Erin not only walks on the streets, but does so without interrupting the footage, fast-forwarding while walking, but shooting at normal speed when coming across street art. Since street art is found very frequently, many of these normal speed “breaks” occur, and this strengthens Erin’s claim. In fact, this is Erin’s Logos, the proving of his claim through a walk in the streets, Erin’s credible source. Pathos is also present when varied forms of street art, from elaborate paintings to simpler quotes, are shown on the street, creating a connection with the audience by appealing to a great variety of preferences of art. Overall the video is very effective in appealing to its audience: urban art enthusiasts. Perhaps some more words could be added to add to the footage and music.

The video is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPyrzyGiiIE&feature=youtu.be

 

• “Grey,” by Amaal Abdi

 

In “Grey,” Amaal Abdi depicts the emergence of “fake news” and its role in dividing society, claiming that “fake news” bring damage to society. Amaal does so through a short story, by which grey people are depicting entering a “news pill” store. This begins Amaal’s critique of news, claiming that people do not think twice when it comes to news and accept a ready-to-swallow “news pill” instead of thinking for themselves. As other grey people enter the store, a nearby “fake news” stand begins to gain more and more clients until, when the last grey person comes in, everyone in the now renamed “alternative news” stand is either white or black and fighting amongst themselves. Through all this symbolism, Amaal leads the audience to conclude that “fake news” is on the rise, becoming mainstream and not only polarizing society in opinions, but also creating racial divide. The video masterfully uses these symbols to conclude in a call to action: people ought to be more skeptical about the news they see. Because of its depictions of ordinary people, the video successfully appeals to every viewer, creating emotional appeal through a divided society, logical arguments through the symbolism in the story, and ethos by contextualizing a contemporary issue.

The video is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjez0mInBrw