Urban League Throughout American History

Throughout major events in American history, the Urban League was there.  The Urban League tirelessly advocated for dignity, equality and opportunity for Black Americans during the Great Depression, New Deal, World War 2 and the struggle for Civil Rights.  Today the Urban League continues its advocacy and empowerment of historically under-served communities in America.  This Black History Highlight will review the Urban League's efforts to advocate for our communities throughout major events in American history.

Great Depression Soup Line

The Great Depression
On October 29, 1929. The stock market crashed, bringing on the worst depression era that America and the world had ever seen.   Black unemployment rates were two to three times worse than those of whites, especially due to racial discrimination.  During the depression, in city after city, many businesses in Black neighborhoods refused to hire black workers.  The Urban League Chicago affiliate started a campaign with the slogan “Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work”.   This campaign spread to other cities and made inroads into interracial hiring.  The League also organized its energies to help find jobs for blacks during Great Depression and put pressure on schools to provide training for young people.  

Black jackhammer operator at the Tennessee Valley Authority, June 1942. During the Great Depression, African Americans were especially hit hard with high unemployment rates. Some found relief however through the Roosevelt administration's "new deal". Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, New York.

Roosevelt and the New Deal
Roosevelt’s National Recovery Act was enacted to address the economic collapse, but often times the local administration of the program discriminated against blacks, often leaving blacks the choice of lower wages or no work.  Programs like the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration, and state programs like the Tennessee Valley Authority often excluded blacks from utilizing the services and opportunities provided.  

Two staff members of the League used their influences at the highest levels of power, ruthlessly advocating the Roosevelt administration on behalf of black Americans  T. Arnold Hill, who ran the Chicago Urban League and Eugene Kinckle Jones were known as the “briefcase boys” for their constant prodding of Washington officials to include blacks in New Deal recovery programs.  In addition to advocating for inclusion in government programs, the League also fought to get segregated labor unions to accept blacks in their membership.   

United We Win [World War II Poster] (1943) In an effort to counter the demoralizing effect of racial segregation and discrimination, the U.S. government launched several campaigns that highlighted the contributions of African Americans to the war effort. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, MD.

World War 2 During World War 2, blacks continued to face employment discrimination in defense work and the armed services.  Under the leadership of Lester Granger, the League through its own Industrial Relations Laboratory had notable success in cracking the color bar in numerous defense plants.  The nation's need for civilian labor during the war also helped the organization press ahead with greater urgency in its programs to train black youth for meaningful blue-collar employment.  After the war, the League expanded efforts to persuade Fortune 500 companies to hold career conferences on the campuses of Negro colleges and place blacks in upper echelon jobs.

March on Washington
The National Urban League joined with a coalition of civil rights organizations including the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to organize a 1963 March on Washington.  The Urban League headquarters were used to organize this march, in which the participating organizations worked past their ideological and organizational differences tocreate a successful event.  Urban League President, Whitney Young spoke had a pivotal role in organizing the march.  The 1963 March on Washington is credited with helping to pass the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the National Voting Rights Act (1965).

Throughout the years the National Urban League’s leaders continued making gains for the community.  In 1967, the League established a Veterans Affairs office in 1967 to care for the needs of black veterans. League President Vernan E. Jordan established a Voter Education Program that registered 36,154 black voters in ten cities.  Current League president Marc Morial established the National Urban League Empowerment Fund which has pumped almost $200 million into urban impact businesses.  Under his leadership, the League has ramped up efforts to advance a five point empowerment agenda for education, economics, health, civil rights and racial justice.

During some of the most trying moments in American history, the Urban League was there, tirelessly advocating for the black community.  A lot of these battles were long and hard fought, and at times it seemed as though progress was moving at a snail pace. Thanks to the efforts of the Urban League and many other civil rights organizations, we have made monumental strides towards achieving equality.  However, we have more work to do in order to bridge the gap.  Visit www.gsul.org, www.joinyp.org and www.nul.org for more information on how to advance the Urban League's Empowerment Agenda.

Yours in the Movement,
Danielle Williams