1. The History of African-Americans.
Payton Kramer
Mr. Diekevers
A.P.U.S.H.
4/15/13

2. Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America
We Must Look Back...
Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States of America
Eric Lynn Wright, a.k.a. "Eazy- E", affectionately called "The Godfather of Gangsta Rap"

3. First Africans in the British Colonies
The first African slaves (19) were brought to Jamestown, Virginia, 1619
Slaves were hijacked from a Spanish slave ship, and delivered by a Dutch piloted, british made man-of-war
Slavery would replace traditional system of indentured servants in the colonies
Would see no end for over 240 years
Fun Fact: the first slave owner was a black man; Anthony Johnson

4. Slave Life in the Colonies/U.S.A.
Most commonly bought in the south, for...
homes
stores
plantations (rice, tobacco, sugarcane, COTTON)
Typically treated poorly
considered property rather than people
endured poor living/working conditions
faced issues such as rape, whippings, family members being sold away, etc.
conditions worsened deeper into the south
Took comfort in Religion
early slaves intertwined African and Christian beliefs: believed the return of Christ would save them

5. Slave Responses to Slavery
Slaves would sabotage equipment, feign sickness, etc.
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Southampton County, Virginia, 1820
Led by Nat Turner, slave preacher
Went farm to farm for 12 hours, killing between 55 and 65 whites (women and children mostly)
80 blacks (slave and free)
The Underground Railroad
route to Canada, made up of multiple safehouses
led by Hariet Tubman- rescued over 300 slaves

6. Freedom at Last(?)
1863, Lincoln gives Emancipation Proclamation, officially ending slavery
while slavery was officially outlawed, slaves were only made free when Union troops liberated Southern land
Newly freed slaves continued farming (sharecropping), or headed East to the big cities (Baltimore, NYC, Chicago, etc.)
Jim Crow Laws (1880's-1950's)
aimed at keeping blacks "below" whites
mandated separate public facilities
restricted black voting rights/ "Grandfather Clause"
caused numerous economic, educational, and social disadvantages

7. Post Civil War
W.E.B. Du Bois heads the newly formed National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP (1909)
helped develop schools, churches, banks, social welfare institutions, etc.
The Great Migration (1910)
5 million blacks moved to the North, West, and East, away from the South, to escape racial hate
The Harlem Renaissance (1920)
high concentration of blacks in downtown NYC after The Great Migration
many blacks would become famous jazz artists

8. WWII Era
African-Americans were finally permitted to serve in the armed forces
fought in segregated units
a total of over 1.5 million blacks served
most famous were the "Tuskegee Airmen"
Following the war:
Truman banned segregation in the U.S. armed forces

9. Major Strides in the Civil Rights Movement/ Cold War Era
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
separate yet equal facilities were no longer adequate
Civil Rights Act of 1964
banned public discrimination against race/color
Voting Rights Act of 1965
banned the ability of states to put up tests that would, "abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color" (i.e. literacy tests)

10. Concluding Statements
African-Americans have been part of American history and culture since before the colonies even considered themselves a nation, and the determination of generations past has shown that social equality can be achieved by any and all who strive for it.
To really get an idea of how great a change African-Americans made for themselves...

11. Concluding Statements (cont.)
Started from the bottom..
.. now they here.