The last six chapters of Blood Relations: Caribbean Immigrants and the Harlem Community, 1900-1930, written by Irma Watkins-Owens, were very interesting and filled me in on many things that I did not know about the history of Harlem. Chapter 4 talked about how the evolving Harlem community was comprised of a myriad of social networks that were linked together by churches, benevolent and fraternal societies and lodges. These social institutions played a significant role in helping Caribbean and Southern immigrants become assimilated into New York City lifestyle during the early part of the twentieth century. Many times black clergymen and society leaders were responsible for making the Caribbean immigrants in their congregations feel more at home. They were links between native and immigrant blacks. Chapter 5 discussed the tensions that arose within the Harlem community based on differing political ideologies. The relationship between immigrants from the Caribbean and the South and native African Americans was not the best. African Americans were envious of West Indian immigrants because of the appeal they had to white people. West Indians were viewed as foreign and radical by African Americans. They did not want anything to do with West Indian immigrants and hated the fact that people thought that African Americans and West Indian immigrants fell in the same category of people. Chapter 7 focuses on Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican leader who caused a spur in the Harlem community by advocating for a strong, united African community that would create a powerful, industrialized, and advanced society in Africa. He encouraged his followers to move back to Africa. Chapter 9 talks about the organization and the importance of the numbers game in Harlem’s economy. Lastly, chapters 10 and 11 tie the content of the book together by discussing the effects that Caribbean immigrants had in Harlem society.
Religion played an important role in the lives of the Caribbean immigrants in Harlem. Practicing their faith was one of the most common ways that Caribbean immigrants maintained a link with their native countries. These immigrants introduced their own denominations to the Harlem community (and American society). Caribbean immigrant churches perpetuated island traditions. This made the assimilation process easier for Caribbean immigrants. However, we must also take into consideration the effect that the interaction between New York City native blacks and immigrants blacks had on services. The manner in which most black Americans conducted their religious services broadened the cultural experience of some immigrants used to the more Anglican and Catholic services. In other words, many Caribbean immigrants affiliated themselves with black churches because of the way the faithful conducted their religious services. Black churches have an interesting and unique charisma that more traditional denominations like the Catholic Church tend to lack. They appeal to the culture and traditions that black people have. Social organizations, religious institutions, a collective economy amongst immigrants and kin networks all allowed black immigrants to adapt to a new environment. They provided immigrants with social, moral and economic support, three of the most important types of support that a person who is suffering needs and can receive. There were many organizations that helped immigrants make progress in life. Churches and other social institutions often served as places where native blacks and immigrants got together and shared cultures and traditions. However, I must also agree with Watkins-Owens when she says that, “Churches, benevolents, and fraternal orders were also class- and gender-identified institutions”(74). In other words these social and religious institutions served both to unite and divide the different groups within the Harlem community.
Chapter 5 focuses on the political side of Harlem and the struggles for its autonomy. Harlem was faced with a lot of internal “conflict” between immigrants and natives. But it also did not have a voice in the politics of the city, the state or the nation. There was no black representation in government. Between 1900 and 1930, immigrants and native blacks decided to take action to solve this. However, there were many occasions where the immigrants and black natives did not reach a consensus and thus there were several disputes between both groups. During this time period, the control of local political clubs was largely restricted to upper class people in Harlem, both native born and immigrant. The regular political parties were not outlets for divergent political ideas. If people wanted to mobilize themselves in the political arena they needed to have initiative and contacts. Political leaders were often financially secured and Americanized. Thus many of them did not even know what issues plagued the lives of newly arrived immigrants who were trying to adapt themselves to a new lifestyle. However, despite the growing number of black elected officials in Harlem, neither black immigrants nor black natives benefitted from this. No community-improvement projects were created to aid Harlem. Overcrowded conditions, inadequate health care, deportations, high rents, dilapidated rat- and roach-infested housing, police brutality, prostitution and racketeering continued to be some of the main problems in Harlem. Political institutions like Tammany Hall were created. They advocated for the naturalization of Caribbean immigrants so that they could vote. However, Tammany Hall was corrupted and did not put Harlem residents’ requests before theirs. They wanted support from immigrants so that they could continue to become more powerful.
Chapter 7 focuses on the life of Marcus Garvey and his impact in Harlem. He was of Jamaican descent and was deported back to Jamaica technically because of mail fraud. However, in reality U.S. officials deported him because he was considered dangerous to the American government. He supported creating a strong, united, and powerful African community that would work together to create an economically and politically powerful African industrial empire. His dream was for all people of African descent throughout the world to move back to Africa and develop a society that would be powerful enough to compete with other powers like Europe and the United States. He convinced many blacks by telling them that the white man denies them many rights. He was very explicit about what basic human rights were denied and then afterwards motivated people to agree with him by saying that in the African society that he would lead, all would be equal. No disparity would exist. However, as we discussed in class, many socioeconomic disparities existed amongst people of African descent. Some of these disparities were created because not everyone grows up in circumstances that allow them to become people with important and influential roles. Lack of money, lack of social stability within the family unit, and many other things that come from living in a specific environment creates disparity. The idea of physical appearance also comes into play. Garvey wanted the African/black community in Harlem to have their own economy, press, political organization, jobs and other things so that the community could gain enough strength and power to move back to Africa. He also stressed racial purity, disagreeing with the idea of black people marrying people of other races. I found his meeting with Ku Klux Klan very odd but understandable. Like Professor Lutton said in class, he must have admired them for their advocacy of racial purity. But I thought that his idea that all white people deep down were members of the KKK is crazy. I understand that as dark-skinned human beings living during that time period him and his followers must have had many terrible experiences with white racists, but he took it too far. Although I do not agree with his ideas at all and know for sure that this would never have been possible, I do understand why he would take this stance in the first place. Like Dr. King advocated for the idea of integration, Garvey advocated for the idea of moving back to Africa and creating an advanced society. At the end of the day, acts of racism on behalf of many whites (causing a lot of tension) must have been terrible to experience. White Americans feared that his preaching and advocacy would cause turmoil in American society because black people would rebel against the social norm. So in the end he was sent back to Jamaica.
Chapter 9, “The Underground Entrepreneur,” discusses the organization and the importance of the numbers game in Harlem’s community. This game sustained an underground economy, which allowed for the social mobility and the employment of many people in Harlem. Bankers played a very important role in financing many community projects. These were the people that others went to when they had an issue. Usually when people have problems with their society they go to the government. But as we read in the previous chapters, black elected officials often cared more about gaining prestige and power than actually helping out their communities. Many times when a banker became extremely successful economically, he would give back to the community by aiding those who needed it the most. Holstein was one of these bankers. He made a lot of money from numbers and decided to give back to the community. He gave to the poor and needy and even supported organizations that worked for the bettering of Harlem. Holstein, along with other benevolent bankers, was respected by the community as race people. Watkins-Owens also describes how even after black bankers had been exposed and harassed by city authorities, they were still respected by the black community. Madame Stephanie St. Clair is an excellent example of this. She fought the penetration of white gangsters into the Harlem numbers business and the rampant police corruption. Many Harlem residents viewed her with so much admiration. She was persistent at demonstrating how unfair the system was to blacks. Interestingly enough, numbers playing was not limited to the working or elite classes of people. People from all social classes and stages in life participated. It was a way of getting money that working at the menial jobs available to the blacks could not compare. The illegality of playing numbers did not stop people from playing it. This shows how desperate many were to make ends meet.
Chapters 10 and 11 discuss the overall impact that Caribbean immigrants had in Harlem. Chapter 10 focuses on artists, poets and writers whose art impacted Harlem culture. One of the poets Watkins-Owens mentions is Claude McKay. His writing portrayed the immigrant experience in New York City. McKay’s point of view is very interesting and I am sure that it appeals to many immigrants. He tries to get at the idea that although New York City (and the U.S.) is a place full of race issues, it ultimately is the place where people from all over the world could go to make progress in life. It is the land of opportunity. Although he has the optimistic view of an immigrant, McKay still reveals many of the issues that immigrants encounter when they migrate to New York City. Chapter 10 also talks about the role the press had in Harlem. It is very important to note that the press spread many ideas throughout the community and gathered people together as one in many occasions to advocate or fight against a certain idea or notion. The reality is that Caribbean immigrants played a huge role in the shaping of twentieth century New York. The immigration of foreigners to the U.S. has allowed Americans, especially those residing in multiculturalist cities to be open-minded and accepting of people from different cultures.
