Red Summer Of 1919 Essay

805 Words4 Pages

Historically well known in the U.S, Black communities have been oppressed by being segregated, discriminated, lynched, killed, and a lot more other stuff that is just as horrible. But because of that, enough was enough for them. There were groups of protesters from the Red Summer of 1919 and Black Panthers Party for Self Defense that wanted justice, equality, and a better place for black communities from all that has happened to them. Black communities fought back against their oppressors by coming together to protest, defend themselves, and taking it into their own hands. During the Red Summer of 1919, Black communities fought back white oppressors by protesting and defending themselves against them. The Red Summer of 1919 was a time when …show more content…

In the article “Explaining the Red Summer of 1919”, there is a quote that says “Throughout 1919, there was black agency, meaning a sense of their self, their history, and their culture. There were black veterans wearing their military uniforms in public, black children swimming in the white section of Lake Michigan and black sharecroppers in Arkansas organizing for better wages and working conditions.” They fought back by not following oppressed laws like the “whites only” signs, black veterans wearing their own military uniforms, and groups coming together to protest. They were fighting back because white violence was threatening them, telling them to “stay in their place” and people of color wanted equality and justice so that there wouldn’t be any more discrimination. This is significant because they …show more content…

The Black Panthers Party for Self Defense was an organization that helped black communities get better resources and protected them from acts of violence while fighting against racism and capitalism. In an article called “What We Don’t Learn About the Black Panthers Party - But Should”, it says “The Black Panthers Party conducted their own investigation into Dowell’s Death, and confronted police who harrassed Dowell’s family.” and “The Black Panthers Party fought back in black communities across the nation to give the poor access to decent housing, health care, and education.” Since the police would be racist to people of color and hide truths while letting off perpetrators and black communities were usually part of the poor, they wanted to give black communities justice and the proper resources that they have a right to. They didn’t just ignore and let the violence happen to them, they took action. This is important because they helped one another and relied on each other instead of having to rely on their oppressors, knowing that white institutions wouldn’t do anything and let things go. They helped themselves to bring more equality to black communities so that the gap between black communities and white communities would shrink since they would also have the same resources like education. Them taking initiative themselves to build up their own