Exodus

Robert S. Abbot's Chicago Defender sparked the immense flight of Black Americans from the overtly racist clutches of Southern states to the"liberal" North in search of escape from racism and job opportunities. Described by Abbot as the "flight out of Egypt," thousands of black families packed up and left to Chicago. Although a monumental moment in history for many Black peoples, was Abbot's campaign helpful or hurtful to the lives of African Americans?
Despite the overt racist nature of the South - including the rampant lynchings of black brothers and sisters, the North did not offer a future that was less racist and less discriminatory. Yes, many families were able to attain economic prosperity in ways they could not attain in southern states, but did this offer a reformation to the way society viewed Black peoples or did it provide a temporary fix to the larger problem?
As white soldiers flocked back to the United States, after World War I, Black Americans quickly became aware that their economic prosperity was only a temporary solution to the shortage of poor whites from the labor pool. The overabundance of people of color in urban centers, such as Chicago, caused many problems that could not be fixed simply with another exodus of people to a different area.
The Chicago Tribune's description of the Chicago riots of 1919 are a prime example of how Abbot's campaign affected the lives of many Black people, but ultimately did not tackle the root of the United State's racist, sexist, classist structure that hinders the lives of Black people all across the U.S. - regardless of which region they live.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/chi-chicagodays-raceriots-story,0,1206660.story