It ’s been said that account is often write by the winner , but in the case of the Civil War , the expression might not take hold true . Although the Union army of the North won the warfare , the Southern Confederacy may have win the story that keep an eye on .
cause in head : before long after the nonstarter of Reconstruction , the United Daughters of the Confederacy(UDC ) survive to work rewriting the textbooks — and therefore history — across the schooling systems in the South byblacklisting textbooks that were"unjust to the institutions of the South " and publishing new ones that stick by to theirdistorted interpretation of Civil War history . In other lyric , The Lost Causenarrative .
Hagiographa by southerly historian likeEdward Pollardand Confederate GeneralJubal Earlyreframed the Confederacy as an " heroic defense of the Southern way of liveliness against the overwhelming forces in the North,“according to Vox . Part of the UDC ’s strategy was to carry on and teach their deformed perception of the warfare — let in the much - romanticized lives of slaves and the relationships they had with their masters .
" In summation to commit up monuments to the Confederacy all over the South , the UDC also write and release textbooks to indoctrinate southerly children in their Lost Cause mythology , " explains Brad Perry , father ofThe Public Franklin , an activistic mathematical group that promote anti - racism through didactics , protagonism and action in Franklin , Tennessee . Perry is also an pedagogue who has learn and developed curriculum on African American history to high school day pupil . " These textbooks almost wholly take out the accomplishment and contributions of African Americans , and they were used by the overwhelming absolute majority of southerly public schools well into the seventies . "
So it ’s no surprise that many adults develop after 1877 in U.S. public schoolhouse never learned about these five accomplishments reach by — and injustices face by — African Americans .
1. Redlining and Racist Housing Practices
For decennary , redlining was a practice many bank in the U.S. used todeny mortgagesto mostly masses of color in urban areas . It stemmed from theGreat Depressionwhen the government was evaluating the riskiness of mortgages but now gives us a coup d’oeil into how invidious American lodging policies were .
Redlining was commonin the thirties in full-grown city like Atlanta , Detroit and Chicago . The living accommodations and real estate industries helped redline flourish by increase prices of properties in predominantly white neighborhoods for African American buyers , ensuring the locality remained white .
But it was the ill-famed redlining maps from lender likeHome possessor ' Loan Corporation(HOLC ) that allow us to see the practice in black and white . The HOLC ( and other lender ) graded neighborhoods into category based on race . Those with minorities were mark carmine and were consider high - risk for lenders .
These practices led to the inequality of riches between Black and blank the great unwashed that continues to this day . According to the National Community Reinvestment Coalition ’s " HOLC ' Redlining ' Maps : The Persistent Structure Of Segregation And Economic Inequality " report from 2018 , cities the HOLC place high - danger or " hazardous " still have greater economic inequality .
2. Elizabeth ‘Mum Bett’ Freeman Sues for Freedom
Elizabeth Freeman , nicknamed " Mum Bett , " was born into thralldom in 1742 , and was given to the Ashley family of Sheffield , Massachusetts , in her early teens . While enslaved , she splice and finally had a daughter identify Betsy .
One Clarence Shepard Day Jr. in 1780 , Mrs. Ashley charge Betsy of being a stealer and trail her with a hot shovel . Freeman jumped in between the two just as Ashley was swinging and blockade the shovel with her subdivision . Freeman encounter a bass wound on her arm and displayed the scar her full life as proof of her poor treatment .
After theRevolutionary War , Freeman was walking through town and heard the Massachusetts State Constitution being record aloud . After try " all men are born liberal and adequate , " she thought about the legal and spiritual meaning of these words . She meet with Theodore Sedgwick , an attorney and abolitionist she know and inquire to sue for her exemption .
He get hold of her case , but because women at the time had very few legal rights , Sedgwick tot up a virile hard worker have a go at it simply as " Brom " to the lawsuit and suedCol . John Ashley .
In the caseBrom and Bett v. Ashley , Sedgwick argued that based on the Constitution , she and Brom should n’t be considered prop and therefore should be complimentary . The jury in the Court of Common Pleas decided in their favour .
Col . Ashley appeal to the Supreme Court but after drop the charm , make Mum Bett the first distaff slave to sue and succeed her freedom .
3. Tulsa Was Home to ‘Black Wall Street’
In the 1890s , after the Emancipation Proclamation , Oklahoma became a haven for freed hard worker looking to start Modern living . As African Americans started business organization and built a prosper community , the affluent area in Tulsa known as the Greenwood District was coined " Negro Wall Street " by Booker T. Washington .
Here — unlike many other places in the U.S. — Black residents could get loans , a scheme Black businessmen make by pooling their resources . As the benefits of earth and business possession multiply , doctors opened practices , instructor open schools and the prosperity of Greenwood was undeniable . The district boasted market stores , flick theaters , hair salons , restaurants , entertainment , church , social organisation and more .
A journalist started a paper call the Tulsa Star , which help the district go forward to boom . The Tulsa Star on a regular basis printed articles about sound rights and rulings that spurred the community fellow member to urge for themselves . As Greenwood became more socially alive and upwardly roving , it drew the attention of livid residents in Tulsa — particularly poor white — who resented the Black ' rise in position , property and business leader .
But all was not peaceable . In 1921 , as racial tensions uprise , anewspaper articlein the Tulsa Tribune accuse a immature African American military man of raping a bloodless teenage girl and violence ensued . BetweenMay 31 and June 1 , more than 300 Black residents were killed by whites , many of the more than 80 businesses were burned or looted , and several citizens were left without place in what ’s been dubbed theTulsa Race Massacre .
4. Mary Kenner Changes Women’s Lives Forever
You probably learned about George Washington Carver in high school day . But you ’ve probably never pick up ofMary Beatrice Davidson Kenner . She ’s the African American cleaning lady we can thank forinventing the sanitary beltin 1957 and revolutionizing women ’s lives across the entire globe .
Before her invention , women were still using cloth pads and rag during their periods , which made it hard to work outside of the home for fear of fortuity . Kenner ’s simple idea was to create an adjustable belt with a wet - proof pocket for napkins . Genius .
When Kenner fabricate her modern - day maxi - domiciliation , it was illegal for African American women to apply for patents . But that did n’t deter her . She continued to hone her sanitary belt — and X later , she was able to patent it and several other conception , as well . And although Kenner never gained riches or recognition for her many inventions , she is still theonlyAfrican American woman in chronicle to file five patents that solved actual problem for women .
5. The Ocoee Election Day Massacre
On Feb. 3 , 1870 , the15th Amendmentwas ratified , giving African American Man the rightfulness to vote . By Election Day 1920 , it had been effectual for 50 old age , but many opprobrious citizens still did n’t practice their rightfulness to vote out of fear of retribution . Those fears came straight in Ocoee , Florida , on Nov. 2 , 1920 , which ultimately endedas the most violent dayin American election history .
On Nov. 1 , Ku Klux Klan members marched in robe , carrying crosses and threatening violence if any dark men attempted to vote in Ocoee . But African American Mose Norman , who was a prominent landowner , chose to do his popular the right way anyway . When Norman approached the polls , a crowd was at the entrance to halt Blacks from casting votes .
Norman leave and riposte with a group of Black citizen demanding to vote , but they again were turned away . An affray ensued .
Norman retreat to the home of his admirer , civil right activist Julius " July " Perry , leaving the white mob enraged . The mob of mostly KKK members went count for Norman — and any other Black trying to assert their right to vote . The mob lead to Perry ’s home , but Norman was hold out . They wonder Perry and a gunfight ensue . Perry was " collar " and lynch Nov. 3 , 1920 .
But the white mob did n’t block there . They continued from house to house fire hired gun and torching home , turning the day into a " sick racial purge " that end with the slaying of between 35 and 50 Black Ocoee residents . Every house in Ocoee ’s Methodist Quarter , plus the school and the Ocoee African Methodist Episcopal Church were set on fire . Soon after , most African Americans that survive moved aside , including Norman , who left Florida for New York City where he populate until his expiry in 1949 .
Events in Black History FAQ
Please re-create / paste the following textual matter to decent cite this HowStuffWorks.com article :