Relentless Determination

Relentless Determination. It is no secret that African Americans have struggled as both community and race for hundreds of years. In fact, the history of African Americans and their quest for fairness, equal rights, and nondiscrimination have shaped this country economically and culturally into what it is today. Forced to uproot their homelands, African Americans and their families traveled to the northern states to escape racism and discrimination. Racism, the prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior, was first seen hundreds of years ago and is still prevalent in society even after the progress that has been made in the African American community.

Originally shipped via boat, most were immediately torn away from their families and sold to plantation owners. Stronger men were most preferred due to their strength and stamina. Likewise, bigger women who could move and life more were favored as well. To continue a strong blood line throughout the plantation, the slave owner, or “Master”, would force slaves into reproducing and threaten them with punishment if they did not abide. An extremely controversial issue at the time, and still today, few non-blacks recognized the inhumanity that individuals were being exposed to. Many slaves attempted escaping and if successful, were guided with help along the way. Also known as the Underground Railroad, the secretive tunnel served as a safe haven for slaves who fled plantations and sought to migrate north for freedom. Until the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln, slavery seemed to be very far from abolishment. However, in 1865, the 13th Amendment had been ratified, officially ending slavery. Although free, white prejudice and discrimination still played a huge role in African American’s lives.

Fast forward to the twentieth century and not until half-way through did the dream of equality seem obtainable. Like the abolishment of slavery, The Great Migration was also a historical event that shaped this country into what it is today. An event in the twentieth century, relocation sparked across African Communities across the globe. Kurt Schlichting, author of “Great Migration of African Americans to Hartford Connecticut” compared the movement of African Americans to that of the biblical exodus. The search for a “promised land” seemed easier to obtain than was