"Or Does It Explode?": Black Harlem in the Great Depression

336 Pages·1991·35.405 MB·English

by  Cheryl Greenberg

"Or Does It Explode?"
Harlem, 1930. Health Areas and census tracts. New York City Department of Health
and Neighborhood Health Development, "Health Center Districts, New York
Handbook of Statistical Reference Data: Ten-Year Period, 1931-1940," 1944.
«Or Does It Explode?"
BLACK HARLEM IN
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Cheryl Lynn Greenberg
New York Oxford
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
Oxford University Press
Oxford New York
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Copyright © 1991 by Cheryl Lynn Greenberg
Published by Oxford University Press, Inc.
198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016
First published as an Oxford University Press paperback, 1997
Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior permission of Oxford University Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Greenberg, Cheryl Lynn.
"Or does it explode?" : Black Harlem in the great depression /
Cheryl Lynn Greenberg.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-19-505868-2; 0-19-511584-8 (pbk.)
1. Harlem (New York, N.Y.)—Politics and government. 2. Harlem
(New York, N.Y.)—Economic conditions. 3. Harlem (New York, N.Y.)—
Social conditions. 4. Afro-Americans—New York (State)—New York—
History—-20th century. 5. Depressions—1929—New York (State) —
New York. 6. New York (N.Y.)—Politics and government—1898-1951.
7. New York (N.Y.)—Economic conditions. 8. New York (N.Y.)—
Social conditions. I. Title.
F128.68.H3G74 1997
974.7'1—dc20 96-51559
2 4 6 8 97 5 ?> j
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
For Madelyn and my parents
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Acknowledgments
The most rewarding part of preparing this book has been the exchange of ideas with
friends and colleagues; it is a pleasure to have the opportunity to thank them. First,
I would like to gratefully acknowledge the help of the archivists and librarians of
the many libraries I visited who alerted me to interesting materials, taught me the
intricacies of their catalogues, and who occasionally bent the rules to facilitate the
process of my research. At the National Archives I want to thank Jimmy Rush—
the only researcher I know who keeps the Strawberry Statement at his desk for easy
reference—Jerry Hess, and Jerry Clark. Kenneth Cobb at the Municipal Archives
in New York City was wonderfully patient and helpful as I moved through box after
box of Mayor LaGuardia's materials, getting in the way of their re-cataloguing pro-
cess. Robert Morris and the entire staff at the Schomburg Center for Research in
Black Culture, also in New York, made me feel more like one of the family than a
"client" and always kept an eye out for interesting material I might have missed.
I have never encountered a friendlier, more helpful staff than at the Schomburg
Center.
Putting my ideas down in a coherent form proved its own challenge. The manu-
script began as my dissertation, and its subsequent improvements have a great deal
to do with good advice. But it also seems to me that so many people have read this
manuscript that it would be inappropriate for me to accept all the blame for any
errors that remain in the text. I freely share both praise and criticism for this book
with many colleagues and friends. My dissertation defense committee—John Gar-
raty, Herbert Gans, Charles Hamilton, Joshua Freeman, and Eric Foner—gave me
such strong encouragement and good advice that I actually looked forward to con-
tinuing my work on the project. I was also immensely aided by discussions with
many people. Nancy Weiss Malkiel, John L. P. Thompson, Elaine Soffer, Ira Fagin,
J. Matthew Gallman, and Barbara Sicherman all talked with me at length or read
parts of the manuscript, pointing out inconsistencies in my thinking and helping
me refine my arguments. They combined a critical review of my work with warm
support. John Thompson and my father, Irwin Greenberg, also provided invalu-
able statistical help. Without them the text and footnotes would have been much
simpler to read, but much less substantial. I would also like to thank Trinity College
for providing me with a summer grant, and help in preparing the manuscript for
publication.
Several people deserve special mention. Thomas Kessner, John B. Kirby, Joshua
Freeman, and J. Ronald Spencer read and edited the entire manuscript, and mirac-
viii Acknowledgments
ulously, they have remained my friends. Their dose and careful reading of the text
combined good sense, historical clarity, and a warm generosity of spirit. Whatever
strengths of argument or style this book may possess are due in large measure to
them.
The best decision I made in this long endeavor was the first: to ask Eric Foner to
serve as my dissertation advisor. Not only did he read and comment on every draft,
he did so promptly and thoroughly. He never failed to provide encouragement and
ideas. His impressive store of knowledge and historical insight spurred me to think
more deeply and carefully and rekindled my enthusiasm and ray sheer love of learn-
ing. His contributions are evident in my arguments and in the underlying structure.
This would be a far weaker book without him.
He also recommended Oxford University Press to me, and it was there that I met
my editor and my friend Rachel Toor. She read and critiqued my manuscript twice,
and throughout the entire process of writing and revision, remained my lifeline to
sanity. I treasure both her help and her friendship.
Dan Lloyd, my last and most devoted reader, taught me new questions to ask
and showed me new ways to approach the answers. His creativity has strengthened
all of my work. That he has had such an impact is hardly surprising; our courtship
has been virtually simultaneous with this book. During all this professional and per-
sonal rewriting he has sustained me with love and chocolate; I am so thankful for
our life together.
This book is for my parents and my sister Madelyn-—whom I depend on in ways
too numerous and personal to list here—and for Kelly, who loved to sit on the
manuscript whenever he got the chance.
Hartford, Connecticut C.L.G.
May 1990
Contents
Introduction 3
1. Depression in the Age of Prosperity 13
2. A View from the Bottom: 1930-1933 42
3. Barely Making Ends Meet:
At Work in the Great Depression 65
4. Roots of Organizing 93
5. "Don't Buy Where You Can't Work" 114
6. Harlem on Relief 140
7. Mean Streets 175
8. Been Down So Long 198
Appendices 225
Notes 247
Index 309
Illustrations appear following page 92