Jim Crow, Pennsylvania is a documentary film which premiered on US television (PBS) in 2007.
Jim Crow is a reference to rules and regulations which were introduced in the southern states after the end of the Civil War and the end of Reconstruction.
The purpose of Jim Crow was to establish and maintain segregation between black and white. To ensure that white people had power and privilege, while black people had little or no power and absolutely no privilege.
Many Americans believe Jim Crow is only connected with the history of the southern states. Many Americans believe Jim Crow has nothing to do with the history of the northern states.
This assumption is wrong.
Jim Crow was also found in the north.
In the south, Jim Crow was highly visible. Large signs marked different facilities for whites and people of color. Different waiting rooms at the bus station. Different water fountains outside the waiting room.
In the north, Jim Crow was almost invisible. The rules and the regulations were not proclaimed with large signs, but they were still there and the results were not very different from what was found in the south.
This film shows how Jim Crow worked behind the façade to establish and maintain segregation between whites and people of color in Pennsylvania.
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Producers and directors: Olga George, Chris Moore, and Minette Seate
** Narrator: Chris Moore
** Editor: David Cohen
** Available on the PBS website
** Available on YouTube
** Language: English
** Subtitles: English
** Run time: 57 minutes
The film is divided into eight chapters.
Here are the headlines:
# 1. Prologue
# 2. Levittown
# 3. Dr. McKenzie and Desegregation
# 4. Coatesville
# 5. The Pullman Porters
# 7. Fairview Park
# 8. Epilogue
Chapter # 1 is an introduction. The topic is presented by Thomas Sugrue who is a professor of history.
In chapter # 2, we learn what happened when a black family (William and Daisy Myers) moved into Levittown, a new suburb, which was supposed to be a white neighborhood. There is an interview with Daisy Myers (1925-2011).
In chapter # 3, we meet a black woman who campaigned with much energy for civil rights in Pennsylvania: Dr Edna Beatrice Chappell McKenzie (1923-2005)
In chapter # 4, we learn about the lynching of Zachariah Walker which happened in August 1911.
In chapter # 5, we learn about African Americans who worked as porters on the railroad. The trade union formed by the Pullman Porters was the first union which was able to sign a contract with a large American corporation.
In chapter # 6, we learn about working conditions in steel factories. When a job was difficult and dangerous, black people were chosen to do it. When a job was safe and easy, white people were chosen to do it.
Black workers were rarely promoted, while white workers were often promoted. This is how segregation worked in the steel industry.
In chapter # 7, we learn about Fairview Park, which was the only entertainment park in Pennsylvania where African Americans were allowed to use all facilities, including the swimming pool.
In other entertainment parks, the swimming pool was always reserved for white people.
Chapter # 8 is an epilogue. Professor Thomas Sugrue explains why this topic is important. He talks about the connection between the past, the present, and the future.
He says the past (the legacy of segregation) has shaped the present. He says we must make sure it is not allowed to shape the future as well.
What do reviewers say about this film? This question is not easy to answer.
The film is not listed on IMDb. There is no rating. There are no reviews.
The film is not available on Amazon. There is no rating. There are no reviews.
What do I think about it? In my opinion, this is an important film about an important topic.
The story of Jim Crow in Pennsylvania is a dark chapter of American history, which is not well-known.
The story deserves to be told, and in this film, it is done very well.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent)
REFERENCES
# 1. Film and Video
Segregation Northern Style
Mike Wallace Reports
CBS, 1964, 57 minutes
Available on YouTube
Race: The Power of an Illusion
PBS, 3 episodes
2003
Jim Crow of the North
WQED Pittsburgh
Minnesota Experience, Twin Cities PBS
28 November 2018, 57 minutes
Owned: A Tale of Two Americas
Writer, producer, and director: Giorgio Angelini
(2018) (83 minutes)
Segregated by Design
An animated film
Director: Mark Lopez
Featuring Richard Rothstein
(2019) (18 minutes)
Redlining: Mapping Inequality
PBS, 24 February 2022, 53 minutes
# 2. Books
** Sticks 'n Stones: The Myers Family in Levittown by Daisy D. Myers (2005)
** The Jim Crow Encyclopedia edited by Nikki L. M. Brown and Barry M. Stentiford (2 volumes) (951 pages) (2008)
** Levittown: Two Families, One Tycoon and the Fight for Civil Rights in America’s Legendary Suburb by David Kushner (2009)
** Sweet Land of Liberty: The Forgotten Struggle for Civil Rights in the North by Thomas Sugrue (2009)
** Second Suburb: Levittown, Pennsylvania edited by Dianne Suzette Harris (2010) – this volume includes a chapter written professor Thomas Sugrue: “Jim Crow’s Last Stand”
** The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein (2017)
** Redlined: A Memoir of Race, Change, and Fractured Community in 1960s Chicago by Linda Gartz (2018)
** Race for Profit: How Banks and the Real Estate Industry Undermined Black Homeownership by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor (2019)
** The Strange Careers of the Jim Crow North: Segregation and the Struggle Outside of the South edited by Brian Purnell and Jeanne Theoharis with Komozi Woodard (2019)
** The Hollywood Jim Crow: The Racial Politics of the Movie Industry by Maryann Erigha (2019)
** Driving While Black: African American Travel and the Road to Civil Rights by Gretchen Sorin (2020)
** Traveling Black: A Story of Race and Resistance by Mia Bay (2021)
** Keeping Races in Their Places: The Dividing Lines That Shaped the American City by Anthony W. Orlando (2021)
*****
Sticks 'n Stones:
The Myers Family in Levittown
by Daisy D. Myers
(2005)
*****
Dr Edna Beatrice
Chappell McKenzie
(1923-2005)
A civil rights activist in Pennsylvania
*****
No comments:
Post a Comment