Question

week of october 27-31 bellwork/reflection questions
bellwork/reflection questions
bellwork - october 27th

1. describe what you know about the south during the early 1900s.
2. what are two reasons you think large groups of people move from one area of the country (or world) to another?
3. if you were to migrate somewhere outside of nashville for a better opportunity, where would you go and why?

Explanation:

1. Question 1 Explanation: In the early 1900s, the American South was marked by racial segregation under Jim Crow laws, an agrarian economy with sharecropping (a system where Black and poor white farmers worked land owned by others, often in debt), and limited industrialization compared to the North. It had a rural, plantation - legacy - based society, with racial violence (like lynchings) targeting African Americans, and a social hierarchy dominated by white supremacy.
2. Question 2 Explanation:

• Economic Push/Pull: In the early 1900s, the South had limited job opportunities in industry. The North (and Midwest) had growing factories (e.g., in Detroit, Chicago, New York) offering manufacturing jobs (steel, auto, textiles). So, economic hardship (low wages, debt from sharecropping) in the South pushed people, while better - paying industrial jobs in the North pulled them.
• Social Push/Pull: Racial discrimination and violence (Jim Crow, lynchings) in the South pushed African Americans. The promise of less overt racial hostility (though not full equality) and more social freedom in Northern cities pulled them. For white Southerners, especially poor ones, the South's rigid social hierarchy (based on race and class) and lack of upward mobility pushed them, while the North's more diverse and (relatively) fluid social environment pulled them.

1. Question 3 Explanation: If migrating from Nashville (a Southern city) for a better opportunity, a place like Chicago would be a good choice. Chicago had a booming industrial economy in the early 1900s, with jobs in the meatpacking, steel, and manufacturing industries. It also had a growing African American community (part of the Great Migration destination) that could provide social support. The economic opportunities for upward mobility (better wages, chance to own property, access to unions) were much greater than in Nashville at that time. Also, the cultural and social environment in Chicago was more diverse, allowing for a broader range of experiences and less of the strict racial segregation that was prevalent in Nashville.

Answer:

1. In the early 1900s, the South had Jim Crow segregation, an agrarian - sharecropping - based economy, racial violence, and limited industrialization.
2. Reasons for moving: Economic (South's low - wage agrarian economy vs. North's industrial jobs); Social (South's racial violence/discrimination vs. North's relative social freedom).
3. I would migrate to Chicago. It had booming industries (meatpacking, steel) with better jobs, a growing Black community for support, and more social freedom than Nashville.